Jonathan Sterns
Jonathan Sterns (April 19, 1751 – May 23, 1798) was a lawyer and political figure in Nova Scotia. He represented Halifax County in the Nova Scotia House of Assembly from 1793 to 1798.
He was born in Massachusetts, the son of David Sterns and Ruth Hubbard, and was educated at Harvard University. Sterns married Mehitable Robie in 1785. He married Elizabeth Taylor after his first wife's death. He served as solicitor general from 1797 to 1798. Sterns protested that loyalist could not get a fair trial in Nova Scotia.[1]
Solicitor General Richard John Uniacke beat Sterns so "savagely" that he died. Sterns was Sampson Salter Blowers protégé who afterward challenged Uniacke to a dual, which Uniacke accepted but then contacted the police.[2][3]
Sterns died in office in Halifax at the age of 47. He is buried in the Old Burying Ground (Halifax, Nova Scotia).
References
- A Directory of the Members of the Legislative Assembly of Nova Scotia, 1758-1958, Public Archives of Nova Scotia (1958)