Samuel Hume Blake

Samuel Hume Blake (31 August 1835 – 23 June 1914) was a Canadian judge, philanthropist, and reformer from Toronto.

Early life Blake was born on 31 August 1835 in Toronto, Upper Canada. He was the second son of William Hume Blake (1809–1870), an Irish-Canadian jurist and politician, and Catherine Honoria (née Hume) Blake (1804–1886). Among his siblings was the older brother, Edward Blake, the second Premier of Ontario, and younger sister, Sophie Eliza (née Blake) Cronyn. He was called to the bar in 1860 and practiced in Toronto. He also helped to establish Bishop Ridley College in St Catharines, Ontario in 1889 and Havergal Ladies' College in Toronto in 1894. Blake's brother, Edward, was married to Rebecca's sister, Margaret Cronyn, and Blake's sister, Sophia, was married to Rebecca's brother, Verschoyle Cronyn (parents of Hume Blake Cronyn). Together, Rebecca and Samuel were the parents of one son and two daughters, including:

His wife died in London, England while visiting her sister Margaret. After her death, the 74-year-old Blake married his 32-year-old housekeeper and private secretary, Elizabeth Baird (1876–1969) on October 18, 1909, in Rio de Janeiro.

Blake died at his home in Toronto on 23 June 1914. He was buried at St. James Cemetery in Toronto.