Dorchester's Baron
By Mitch Biggar
In 1823 Edward Baron Chandler began his legal career in Dorchester. That same year he was elected to the House of Assembly. In 1843 Lieutenant Governor Sir William Colebrooke appointed Chandler to the Executive Council. Chandler remained the leader of the Council until the Smasher Victory of 1854. Although Chandler retained his Westmorland set it was the Smasher Victory that would end his leadership role in politics.
Chandler turned down a seat in the Canadian Senate in 1867 but accepted an appointment as a railway commissioner. Chandler was in charge of railroad construction from Halifax to Montreal. Being in charge he succeeded in diverting the railway through his hometown of Dorchester.
Chandler also lobbied hard for the federal penitentiary to be built in his town. In 1879 he sold a piece of his own property to the government. That lot would become the penitentiary's location.
Edward Baron Chandler remained in public life for almost sixty years. He spent
his last two years as Lieutenant Governor of New Brunswick.
