William Bowman Felton

William Bowman Felton (1782 – June 30 1837) was a British naval officer and political figure in Lower Canada.

He was born in Gloucester, England in 1782, the son of John Felton, who was an officer in the Royal Navy. He served with the British fleet in the Mediterranean and at Gibraltar during the Napoleonic Wars. In 1811, he married Anna Maria Valls at Minorca. He was granted land in the Eastern Townships and brought his family to his property in Ascot Township near Sherbrooke in 1815. Felton raised livestock and also leased some of his land. He served in the local militia, becoming lieutenant-colonel, and also served as justice of the peace. In 1822, he was named to the Legislative Council of Lower Canada. He attempted to establish a colonization company to encourage development of the region, without success. In 1827, he was named commissioner of crown lands. He was suspended from this position in 1836, after having been accused of improperly selling crown property as if it were his own. There were also some irregularities in land grants issued to his children which had not been resolved at the time of Felton's death on his estate near Sherbrooke in 1837.

His son William Locker Pickmore became a lawyer and politician. His daughter Eliza Margaret married Thomas Cushing Aylwin, who served in the legislative assembly and was later named a judge.

External links

* [http://www.biographi.ca/009004-119.01-e.php?&id_nbr=3379 Biography at the "Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online"]