Samuel (1791–1838)
Peter (1789–1838)
Toronto Necropolis
Section C Lot 19.25
In the quiet tranquility of Toronto Necropolis rest two men whose courage and sacrifice helped shape the course of Canadian democracy: Samuel Lount and Peter Matthews. Their story is one of conviction, tragedy and legacy.
Samuel Lount was a blacksmith, farmer, magistrate and elected member of the Legislative Assembly for Simcoe County in the Province of Upper Canada. Peter Matthews was a respected farmer and former militiaman who fought in the War of 1812. Both were family men (Lount had seven children and Matthews had eight) and pillars of their communities.
Dissatisfied with the way the political system was working, Lount and Matthews joined William Lyon Mackenzie during the Upper Canada Rebellion of 1837, in a desperate bid for responsible government. The uprising ended in chaos after a brief skirmish near Yonge and Carlton. Mackenzie fled to the US, but Lount and Matthews were captured.
Convicted of high treason, the two men became symbols of defiance. Despite petitions signed by thousands pleading for mercy, Lieutenant-Governor Sir George Arthur refused clemency. On April 12, 1838, before a crowd of 10,000 at King and Church Streets, Lount and Matthews were hanged.
Initially buried in Potter’s Field, their remains were reinterred at the Necropolis in 1859, with William Lyon Mackenzie present. In 1893, citizens erected a striking monument, a broken column symbolizing lives cut short. A bronze plaque titled “Patriots of 1837” was added in 1993, exactly 100 years later.
Though the rebellion failed militarily, it marked a turning point in Canada’s constitutional development, pushing reform towards representative democracy in an independent country. Lount and Matthews were posthumously pardoned by Queen Victoria in 1846, though their families received the documents two years later. Today, their graves stand as solemn reminders of the price paid for progress.
Sources:
• Mount Pleasant Group – Samuel Lount
• Mount Pleasant Group – Peter Matthews
• Cabbagetown People – Samuel Lount
• Upper Canada History – Lount & Matthews
Photos:
• Samuel Lount plaque - Ontarioplaques.com
• Monument: Nick Number, CC BY 4.0
• Matthews headshot - Special Collections Toronto Public Library, Public domain
