One black and white gelatin silver photograph depicting a full length portrait of J.B. Lewis seated at a desk. He has dark, short hair and is bearded. He is wearing a dark suit; vest with six buttons, and a white shirt. A pocket watch is tucked into the left pocket of his vest and he is wearing a long robe that touches the floor. His left hand is resting on his thigh, his right arm is resting against a desk and he is holding a pen in his right hand.
Made/Created
Notes
Country of Origin: Canada
Support: PAPER
Paper, Photographic, Photograph, Photograph
Inscription/Signature/Marks
Transcription
"139816 // JOHN BOWER LEWIS // MAYOR OF BYTOWN 1848 // OTTAWA 1855-57".
Notes
Written on the back of the photograph.
Transcription
"Topley - Ottawa"
Notes
Printed on the mat.
Lexicon
Nomenclature 4.0
Nomenclature Primary Object Term
Photograph
Nomenclature Sub-Class
Graphic Documents
Nomenclature Class
Documentary Objects
Nomenclature Category
Category 08: Communication Objects
Search Terms
Black and White, Black and White, Communication Artifacts
Legacy Lexicon
Object Name
Photograph, Gelatin Silver
Dimensions
Height
15.1 cm
Width
10.1 cm
Research Notes
Notes
John Bower Lewis was the first Mayor of the City of Ottawa in 1855.
Lewis was born in France in March 1817 and came with his parents to Canada in 1820 where they settled near Bytown. He went on to study law in Toronto and practiced law in Bytown. He also bought and sold land in town.
Lewis' political career began in 1847, where he was elected to the first municipal council for Bytown. He also became the town's second mayor in 1848, before becoming the first mayor of the City of Ottawa in 1855 when the town became a city and changed its name.
In 1872, he was elected to Parliament to occupy one of the two-member seats for Ottawa. He originally joining as a Conservative before leaving for the Liberal party, he died during his election campaign in 1874 at the age of 56.
At the time, the Ottawa Citizen reported that his funeral was the largest ever seen in Ottawa. Today, he is buried in Ottawa's Beechwood Cemetery, and Lewis Street in Centretown is named after him.
