Background
He was born in East Flamboro Township, Wentworth County, Canada West, the son of George Chisholm.
He was born in East Flamboro Township, Wentworth County, Canada West, the son of George Chisholm.
In 1837, he sold the farm and studied for two years at Victoria College in Cobourg.
In the 1872 federal election he was elected to the Canadian House of Commons representing Hamilton as a Liberal-Conservative. He was re-elected in Halton in 1874 but unseated in 1875 after an appeal and defeated in the 1875 by-election which followed. Chisholm studied law with Miles O"Reilly in Hamilton, was called to the bar in 1864 and set up practice in Hamilton.
He was president of the Standard Fire Insurance Company, the Alliance Insurance Company and the Canada Loan and Banking Company.
Chisholm was also Chairman of the Provincial Board of Directors for the Hamilton and North Western Railway and served as a major in the militia. In 1883 Chisholm left town suddenly, having suffered a large business loss around $100,000 and used clients money to repay.
He and his 15-year-old son fled to Evanton, Illinois, just outside Chicago. Eventually she secured a decree of absolute divorce.
Although the legality of this divorce under Canadian law was questioned, she remarried in July of 1889, to the Honorary
George Eulas Foster, Minister of Finance for Canada.