Gore, William Sinclair
William Sinclair Gore, of Victoria, is deputy minister of lands and works for the province of British Columbia and has had a very successful and broadly useful career as a civil engineer and government official, extending over forty years. He is thoroughly acquainted with the Northwest Territory and the province of British Columbia, his work having taken him over a great part of this country, and his skill and efficiency have given him a high rank in the civil service of the provincial government.
Mr. Gore was born in London, Ontario, June 29, 1842. He is of good old Irish lineage, being a descendant of the Earls of Arran. His father, Thomas Sinclair Gore, was born at Goremount, County Antrim, Ireland, and married Miss Harriet Hitchcock, a native of the same county. After their marriage they came out to Canada, in 1841, where Mr. Gore followed the profession of civil engineer.
Mr. Gore and his brother, Thomas Sinclair Gore, are the only members of the family in British Columbia. Mr. Gore had excellent educational privileges in his youth, part of his early training having been received in Dublin, Ireland. He was also at school in Barry, Ontario. He decided to follow the profession of his father, and took a course in civil engineering at Toronto, where he received his diploma as a Dominion land surveyor in 1863. For a number of years he was employed in railroad construction in the United States, until he received appointment from the Dominion government as a surveyor of the lands of the Hudson's Bay Company. This work took him all through the Northwest Territory, and after it was completed he received the government appointment as surveyor general of the province of British Columbia. In 1891 he was promoted to the office of the deputy minister of lands and works for this province, which he has since administered to the entire satisfaction of all concerned.
In 1868 Mr. Gore married Miss Jennie Blodgett, a native of the state of Massachusetts. They have two sons: Thomas Sinclair Gore is now a resident of the city of Mexico, and Arthur Sinclair Gore is in the provincial government service. Their home in Victoria is one of the many pleasant and delightful residences of this city of homes, and the house is surrounded by trees and flowers, and everything indicates the good taste and cheerful nature of these honoured and esteemed citizens.
R. E. Gosnell, A History of British Columbia, (Vancouver, B. C.: Lewis Publishing Co., 1906). pp. 358-359.