Tom Fisher

Tom Fisher, the county’s first warden, was one of the first pioneers to settle in Moore Township.

Fisher, a card shark, war veteran and politician, was born in 1797 in Northumberland, England.

As a youth he was brilliant enough to get accepted into Cambridge University.  But he was also a bit of a rogue, managing to get expelled, along with three other students, for playing cards in class.

He joined the British army after that, taking part in the Battle of Waterloo in 1815.  During that epic clash, the British and Prussians under General Wellington changed the course of history by defeating Napoleon Bonaparte’s seemingly invincible French army.

Fifteen years later, his regiment was posted to Canada.  Eventually, he rose to the rank of colonel, seeing action in the Rebellion of 1837.

He retired from the army after that, got married in 1838 and purchased the land on the St Clair River in Moore Township.

Before long, Fisher had become a success farmer and merchant.  He turned his attention to politics next, becoming the first ever reeve of Moore Township in 1850.

Fisher became one of Lambton County’s founding fathers by successfully lobbying the provincial government to form a new county by breaking Kent County into two jurisdictions.

His peers, who elected him as Lambton County’s first warden in 1852, rewarded him for his efforts.

He died in 1853 at age 56 and is buried in Sutherland Cemetery.