James J. Bremner Makes a Deposit.
- pshorner6
- Apr 2
- 3 min read
Updated: Apr 12
Nova Scotia # 12 on 3 January 1865 cover from Halifax to Charlottetown, P.E.I. Addressed to The Cashier, Bank of Prince Edwd Island, Charlotte Town, P.E.Island. Manuscript notation inside the back flap “J J Brimner, 3 January 1865. Backstamps from Halifax, JA 3 1865, Charlottetown JAN 6, 1865.
James John Lachlan Bremner was 37 years old and a merchant in Halifax when he sent this letter to the Bank of P.E.I. He was born in Keith, Moray, Scotland, May 23rd, 1828. He died 21 Feb 1921 (aged 92), Halifax, and is buried in Camp Hill Cemetery, Halifax,
Hutchinson's Nova Scotia directory, for 1864-65 has Bremner James J., merchant, 129 Lower Water, h 31 South park
James was a partner in the mercantile enterprise Bremner & Hart, West India and Commission Merchants, 153 Lower Water Street and the Bremner and Hart wharf.
He married Caroline Margaret BesBarres on August 11th, 1857and had children: William Frederick Desbarres Bremner, Arthur Grant Bremner, Harold Augustus Bremner, James Alexander Bremner. Allan Pollok Bremner.
James John Bremner, was owner of the Brig Rover, built 1856, the schooner Mary Balcom, built 1856, the schooner Dashaway built 1861, the brigantine Thomas Albert, built 1862, the brigantine Topaz, built 1864, the brigantine Empress, built 1865, the brigantine Faugha Bullough, built 1869, and the brigantine Wood Cock, built 1871.
McAlpine’s Halifax City Directory, 1896-1897, Bremner, James J., Col., Inspector Customs, 249 Hollis, h. 121 South Park
Halifax Provisional Battalion
The Halifax Provisional Battalion was a military unit from Nova Scotia, Canada, which was sent to fight in the North-West Rebellion in 1885. The battalion was under command of Lieutenant-Colonel James J. Bremner and consisted of 350 soldiers made up three companies from the Princess Louise Fusiliers, three companies of the 63rd Halifax Rifles (formerly the Halifax Volunteer Battalion), and two companies of the 1st "Halifax" Brigade of Garrison Artillery, with 32 officers. The battalion left Halifax under orders for the North-West on Saturday, 11 April 1885 and they stayed for almost three months.
The battalion was assigned garrison duty along the CPR main line that stretched across the prairies. After a short stay in Winnipeg, the battalion was broken into four components and sent to Moose Jaw, Swift Current, Saskatchewan Landing and Medicine Hat. Soldiers had to remain on high alert because of possible raids on their positions.
Prior to Nova Scotia's involvement in the Rebellion, "Canada's first war", many in the province had remained hostile to Canada in the aftermath of how the colony was forced into Canada. The celebration that followed the Halifax Provisional Battalion's return by train across the county ignited a national patriotism in Nova Scotia. Prime Minister Robert Borden, stated that "up to this time Nova Scotia hardly regarded itself as included in the Canadian Confederation... The rebellion evoked a new spirit... The Riel Rebellion did more to unite Nova Scotia with the rest of Canada than any event that had occurred since Confederation." Similarly, in 1907 Governor General Earl Grey declared, "This Battalion... went out Nova Scotians, they returned Canadians." The wrought iron gates at the Halifax Public Gardens were made in the battalion's honour.
Bank of Prince Edward Island
The Bank of Prince Edward Island incorporated on 14 April 1856 in Charlottetown, after nearly two years of negotiations with Great Britain over the legality of a colony-established bank. On 13 August 1856 the bank opened for business and was the first bank established on the island. The founding directors included: James Peake, Richard Heartz, Daniel Davies, Henry Haszard, and Daniel Brenan.
In 1857 the Bank of PEI temporarily closed (citing a provision in their original charter, they suspended all financial transactions for three months) after the directors discovered that the bank president and cashier had made loans that exceeded their capital. The cashier (William Cundall) remained at the bank while the president (Ralph Brecken) resigned.
In 1881, after it was discovered that the cashier (Joseph Brecken, son of former president Ralph Brecken) had made irresponsibly large loans, the bank was closed and liquidated over the next several years (1882–87). The Bank of Prince Edward Island was the first in Canada to file for bankruptcy.
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