Memorable Manitobans: Hugh Francis “Bob” O’Lone (c1836-1871)

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Hugh Francis O'Lone
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Tavern-keeper.

Born in the Hell’s Kitchen district of New York City around 1836, son of James and Margaret O’Lone, in 1861 he enlisted in Union forces for service during the American Civil War, rising to the rank of Captain. In the Fall of 1864, after being detached to recruiting service in New York, he was listed as absent without leave and was discharged in January 1865.

He began trading whiskey on the American frontier until a dispute in mid-1866 brought him to Upper Fort Garry. He opened a saloon called O’Lone’s, later named the Red Saloon.

He became active in community affairs, chairing a meeting to establish a fire department for the nascent community of Winnipeg. He attended the Convention of Twenty-Four on 16 November 1869 and the Convention of Forty from 25 January to 10 February 1870, and was elected to the Legislative Assembly of Assiniboia, attending sessions in March through June 1870. Along with Louis Riel and others, on 3 June 1870 he was included in a famous photograph known as “Louis Riel and his Councillors”.

In early January 1871, he was severely injured in a barroom brawl at Pembina, Dakota Territory (now North Dakota) and died from a head wound.

Sources:

Advertisement [Olone’s saloon}, The Nor’Wester, 3 July 1869, page 3.

“The fire department,” The Nor’Wester, 13 September 1869, page 2.

Advertisement [Olone & Campbell], New Nation, 11 February 1870, page 3.

“A ghastly find. Are they the remains of Thomas Scott?,” Manitoba Free Press, 18 September 1896, page 1.

Dictionary of Manitoba Biography by John M. “Jack” Bumsted, Winnipeg: University of Manitoba Press, 1999.

Legislative Assembly of Manitoba (1870) by Lawrence Barkwell, Scribd.

We thank Andrew Cogdell for providing additional information used here.

This page was prepared by Brian Cyr and Gordon Goldsborough.

Page revised: 12 November 2023

Memorable Manitobans

Memorable Manitobans

This is a collection of noteworthy Manitobans from the past, compiled by the Manitoba Historical Society. We acknowledge that the collection contains both reputable and disreputable people. All are worth remembering as a lesson to future generations.

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