Walter Patterson

Walter Patterson ( – 6 September 1798) was the first British colonial Governor of Prince Edward Island.

Birth and life in the military The son of William Patterson of Foxhall, near Ramelton, County Donegal, and Elizabeth, daughter of William Thornton Todd of Buncrana Castle, County Donegal. He was a first cousin of Isaac Todd. Patterson joined the British Army early in life, participating in the Seven Years' War with the 80th Regiment of Light-Armed Foot. He was soon appointed to the rank of Captain.

Governor In 1763, Prince Edward Island (then known as St. John's Island) was ceded to the British by the French, and it became a British colony. In 1764, Patterson requested grants to own land on the island, and he and his brother, John Patterson (father of future U.S. Naval hero Commodore Daniel Patterson), were awarded Lot 19, near the present-day town of Kensington, through the 1767 land lottery.

Following the first Assembly elections in 1773, Patterson acquired over of land from proprietors who had failed to pay their quit-rent. The land was to be sold off. The former proprietors wrote to the British government asking that their land be returned, and when this failed, they asked that Patterson be removed from office. This was to the first of several incidents which would cause tension between the British government and Governor Patterson.

Patterson He died in poverty at his lodgings in Castle Street, Oxford Market, London on 6 September 1798.