Sous-fonds SFA - Edward Ermatinger

Edward Ermatinger was born on the island of Elba, just off the coast of Italy, in February, 1797. The eldest son of Lawrence Edward Ermatinger, an assistant commissary general in the British army, Edward was raised in England along with his brother Francis (born 1798). According to Edward's autobiography, his father was often absent; Edward and Francis were well-educated, if sometimes ill treated by their caregivers.

Edward's grandfather, Lawrence Ermatinger, had immigrated to Montreal from Switzerland in the mid-1760s, and much of the family still resided in North America. Edward's uncle Frederick Ermatinger was Sheriff of Montreal, and his other uncle Charles Oakes Ermatinger was a prominent fur trader with the Hudson's Bay Company. Lawrence Edward Ermatinger arranged for his sons' employment as clerks with the Hudson's Bay Company, and Edward and Francis sailed from London in 1818 aboard the ship Prince of Wales.

Edward and Francis arrived at York Factory on August 14, 1818. Although Edward had initially signed a five year contract, he remained in the Hudson's Bay Company's employ until 1828. He worked at various sites in present-day Manitoba, including York Factory, Island Lake, Oxford House, and Red River; his travels took him as far west as Fort Vancouver, in the present-day state of Oregon. In 1828, Edward Ermatinger went back to England, returning to Canada the following year. He lived in Montreal for one year before choosing to settle in St. Thomas, Ontario in 1830.

In St. Thomas, Ermatinger opened a general store and managed the Bank of Upper Canada, the Commercial Bank, and the Bank of Montreal successively. Afterwards, he helped establish the Bank of the County of Elgin, where he was its president. He also served at St. Thomas' postmaster from 1842 to 1876. In 1844, Edward Ermatinger was elected a Conservative member of the Legislative Assembly for the County of Middlesex, which at the time also included the County of Elgin. He was defeated in the election of 1847.

Edward Ermatinger established the St. Thomas Standard, the first newspaper in the community, in 1844. He also wrote numerous letters to the editors of other local newspapers on religious and political topics, and was a weekly columnist for the Hamilton Spectator newspaper. Ermatinger produced short stories, poems, diaries, and a book entitled The Life of Colonel Talbot and the Talbot Settlement, originally published in 1859.

Edward Ermatinger was a devout member of the Church of England, and choir director of the St. Thomas Church choir. He married Achsah Burnham (born 1809), daughter of judge Zaccheus Burnham of Cobourg, Ontario. Edward and Achsah had seven children:
Frances Elizabeth Ermatinger (1834-1857)
Lawrence Edward Ermatinger (1836-1837)
Maria Ermatinger Baldwin (1840-1863)
Annie Jemima Ermatinger (1843-1917)
Frederick William Ermatinger (1845-1845)
Francis Edward Ermatinger (1847-1892)
Charles Oakes Ermatinger (1851-1921)

Edward Ermatinger died on October 29, 1876. Achsah died on March 1, 1881. Edward and Achsah Ermatinger are buried in the churchyard of the Old St. Thomas Church (Anglican) in St. Thomas, Ontario.