Sir Joseph Pope

Born in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, in 1854, he was the son of William Henry Pope, one of the Fathers of Confederation. He moved into federal public life and became private secretary to Prime Minister Sir John A. Macdonald, serving in that role during the 1880s and early 1890s.

After Macdonald’s death, he continued a long career in the Canadian civil service and also worked in diplomatic posts. He was later knighted, reflecting the prominence he had reached in public service.

He is also remembered as a writer and editor of political history. As Macdonald’s literary executor, he helped preserve the record of Canada’s first prime minister, and his own books offered first-hand views of politics, empire, and nation-building in late 19th- and early 20th-century Canada.