Rolph, John

Rolph, John rŏlf [key], 1793–1870, Canadian physician and politician, b. England. He studied law and medicine in England and served in the Legislative Assembly of Upper Canada (1824–30, 1836–37). A leader in the Reform party and a fomenter of the rebellion of 1837, he was not a participant in it. He fled to the United States after the uprising and practiced medicine there until the amnesty of 1843 permitted his return to Canada. He founded (1843) in Toronto a school of medicine (later part of Victoria Univ.). He was one of the founders of the Clear Grit Reform party and again sat in the Legislative Assembly (1851–57).

The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2024, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.

See more Encyclopedia articles on: Canadian History: Biographies