John Jacob Withrow

John Jacob Withrow (1833 – August 5, 1900) was a Toronto businessman and politician. He proposed the first edition of the Canadian National Exhibition and organised the annual event for several years.

Withrow was born in York, Upper Canada, and opened a construction business. In 1873, he was elected as alderman for the Toronto City Council. He tried to convince the Provincial Fair Association to permanently establish their annual fair in Toronto. When they refused, he established an annual fair in Toronto, which later became the Canadian National Exhibition. He twice ran, unsuccessfully, to become mayor of Toronto. After leaving city council, he sat on the board of various businesses and philanthropic organisations. He declared bankruptcy after losing his investments in a depression in the 1890s. He died in Toronto after suffering from a stroke.

Early life

Withrow was born in 1833 in York, Upper Canada (later named Toronto). His parents were James Withrow and Ellen Sanderson. The Withrows originated from Orange County, South Carolina and likely fled to Rawdon, Hants, Nova Scotia after the American Revolution. He achieved his schooling at Toronto Academy, worked at an architect's office, and worked as a contractor for McBean and Withrow, his father's building firm. He then toured the northern United States to observe architecture trends in the region, and in the late 1850s he returned to Toronto and worked as a carpenter. In the late 1860s, he partnered with John Hillock to form a contractor and lumber merchant business called Withrow and Hillock.

Political career and permanent fair

In 1873 Withrow was elected as alderman for St David's Ward in the Toronto City Council. The following year, he was elected in St Thomas's Ward as alderman, and would be reelected for in the subsequent three years. As alderman, he focused on bringing the annual provincial exhibition to Toronto every year, as before the exhibition had been held in various cities across the province. He led the city's exhibition committee when they enlarged the city's exhibition grounds and built permanent buildings. The Provincial Fair Association, the body that decided where the provincial exhibition was to be located, announced that the 1879 edition would take place in Ottawa, much to the chagrin of Withrow. At the closing banquet of the 1878 fair, Withrow announced that Toronto would host a permanent exhibition the subsequent year.

Mayoral campaigns

Withrow was nominated to become mayor of Toronto in 1883. During the campaign, he was criticised by the trade union movement for his treatment of his employees and for intervening in the 1872 printers' strike. He lost the election to Arthur Radcliffe Boswell by five votes. In 1885 he ran again to become mayor, but was defeated by the Conservative candidate Alexander Henderson Manning.