David Torrance (1805-1876)

He was born in New York and grew up in Kingston, Upper Canada, where his father was engaged in business on behalf of the family firm headed up by his elder brother, Thomas. In 1821, David came to Montreal to work for his uncle, John Torrance, who was a general merchant but specialised in tea, challenging the monopoly of the import market previously enjoyed by Forsyth, Richardson & Co. David was admitted as a partner in 1833 and their firm was the first in Canada to deal directly with China and India, where their name was well known for over 30-years.

After his uncle retired, David continued the business as D. Torrance & Co. and ventured into building and operating steamboats on the St. Lawrence River, rivalling the Molson operation. He was a director of the High School of Montreal which he helped establish in 1843 and Governor of the Montreal General Hospital. Having been a longtime director of the Bank of Montreal, he was elected its President in 1873 but died just three years later. After his death, his house, Belvidere, in Saint-Antoine on what would become known as Drummond Street was sold to Robert Wilson Reford. In 1832, he married his first cousin, Jane, the eldest daughter of his uncle and former employer, John Torrance, of Saint-Antoine Hall. They had ten children, eight of whom (listed above) lived to adulthood.