One of five children, he was born in New York City to Russian-Jewish immigrants. His father, Zusha Goled was a tailor and cantor. His mother, Henyagitel (Annie) walked across Europe from Russia to take a boat to join her husband in New New York
Foreign the 19th century politician see Joseph Gould
He was a trial lawyer in private life. He died in office at age 54. His name was changed to Jacob Gold when he entered the United States at Ellis Island.
Gould was captain of the Osgoode Hall debating team at the University of Toronto.
He practised criminal law and entered politics at a time when restrictive practices posed numerous challenges and he changed his name from Gold to the more Anglo-Saxon Gould. Gould was married to Esther Freeman.
They had three children Stephen, Marshall and Corrine. Stephen is a graduate of Berklee College of Music, an associate professor, and director of the Educational Leadership Doctor of Philosophy program at Lesley University in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
Marshall is a businessman in Toronto.
Corinne is the owner of Esther Gould"s Finest, a Toronto business based on her mother"s mandelbread recipe. He ran for the Liberal party in the provincial Saint Patrick electoral district in the June 4, 1945 Ontario general election, placing second to Progressive Conservative Kelso Roberts. In 1950, he was elected as an Alderman, representing Ward 5 in the old City of Toronto.
He represented Ward 5 until 1955.
In the 1959 Ontario general election, he ran for the Liberal Party again, this time in the Bracondale electoral district, which was near Ward 5. He defeated the incumbent Master in Public Policy, Progressive Conservative Arthur Frost, and would remain the Master in Public Policy for this district until his death in 1965.
Gould was a candidate in the 1964 Ontario Liberal leadership convention but placed last on the first ballot with only 13 of 1,370 votes cast. His candidacy was supported by Paul Hellyer who represented part of Gould"s riding in the Canadian House of Commons.
When Gould died, he did so coincidentally a few hours after Frost, the man he defeated to become Bracondale"s Master in Public Policy. Both men died on May 8, 1965.
When he died, Gould was married to Esther Gould and they had three children who were in their mid-teens to early twenties at the time of his death.
Gould was first the alderman for the City of Toronto"s Ward 5 in the 1950s and was the Ontario Liberal Party"s Member of Provincial Parliament (Master in Public Policy) for the Bracondale electoral district in Toronto, from 1959 to 1965, serving in the 26th and 27th Ontario parliaments. Gould was a revered member of the community, a tireless fighter for the "little man" and appointed as a Queen"s Counsel (Queen's Counsel).
