Alexander, Charles, 1816-1905

Charles Alexander was born on June 13, 1816, in Dundee, Scotland.

He was a confectioner, caterer, philanthropist, and politician. He was educated at the Dundee Parochial Grammar School and then was apprenticed to the firm of Keiller and Sons, marmalade manufacturers.

In 1840, he immigrated to Lower Canada and found employment with the Montreal branch of the Keiller firm. Later he set up his own confectionery shop and he built up a successful manufacturing firm and wholesale-retail business. He opened Montreal’s first temperance dining-room in 1842, to which he later added an ice-cream parlour, and he pioneered catering services in the city. He was important as a reformer and philanthropist and he gave his time and skills in management to many charitable institutions and reform causes. In 1865, he was elected to represent the West Ward. As councillor from 1865 to 1867 and as alderman from 1868 to 1875, he sought to improve the welfare of Montreal’s citizens. He was a member of the Citizens’ League of Montreal and the Montreal Sanitary Association. In 1870, he and several friends tackled the problem of homeless adolescent boys by establishing the Boys’ Home of Montreal. From 1882 to 1905, he was president of the Canadian Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and from 1901 to 1905, president of the Montreal Sailors’ Institute. A respected businessman, Alexander was a member of the Montreal Board of Trade. He served on the board of directors of the Sun Mutual Life Insurance Company of Montreal (1871–1905), the Montreal Permanent Building Society (1865–70), and its successor the Montreal Loan and Mortgage Company, and the Mount Royal Cemetery Company (1895–1905).

He died on November 5, 1905, in Montreal, Quebec.