DAVID

DAVID, early Canadian family. LAZARUS DAVID (1734–1776), born in Swansea, Wales, arrived in Canada about 1760 and helped found the Shearith Israel Congregation in Montreal. His eldest son DAVID DAVID (1764–1824), born in Montreal, was a founder and member of the original board of directors of the Bank of Montreal. SAMUEL DAVID (1766–1824), second son of Lazarus David, married Sarah Hart, daughter of aaron hart of Trois Rivières in 1810. He fought with the   British forces in the War of 1812. His diary (unpublished) reflects the conditions of Trois Rivières in the colonial period. AARON HART DAVID (1812–1882) was born in Montreal, the son of Samuel David. He earned a medical degree at Edinburgh in 1835 and practiced medicine in Montreal, becoming dean of the faculty of medicine at the University of Bishops College, president of the Natural History Society of Montreal, and general secretary of the Canadian Medical Association; he held numerous other important medical and scientific positions. Aaron David took a leading part in Jewish life in Quebec province and served as army surgeon in the 1837 Rebellion and the 1866 Fenian Raids. These and other members of the David family were closely involved in the affairs of the Shearith Israel Congregation of Montreal and served actively in the armed forces. -BIBLIOGRAPHY: B.G. Sack, History of the Jews in Canada (19652). (Ben G. Kayfetz)