Born in England, George Barber came to Canada aged 24 in 1826. He was known as the Father of Canadian Cricket and was one of the first to promote the game outside the military in the 1820s. He helped form Toronto CC in 1832 and also played for Upper Canada College (where he was a master until being dismissed after a scandal) . While still at Upper Canada College he had established a public auditing business which he continued for the rest of his life. After 1840 he was also auditor to the city of Toronto. In 1841 he was also hired as the editor of the Toronto Commercial Herald (later Toronto Herald and Herald) and he became its proprietor and operated the paper until it ceased publication in June 1848. In 1844 the busy Barber also became the first superintendent of common (public) schools for Toronto. An avid enthusiast of cricket, he was no mean player despite having lost the thumb on his right hand. He played in the 1840 Toronto v St George's Club match and the 1844 Canada v USA international, and was still playing club cricket well into his sixties.
Martin Williamson