born: Cumberland County, Nova Scotia, July 1809
died: Halifax, Nova Scotia, 2 January 1887
representing: Nova Scotia
position: Pro-Confederation

After receiving his education locally, Jonathan McCully, took teaching as his first profession. One of his early pupils, Charles Tupper, would later be a colleague at the Charlottetown Conference. He soon turned to studying law and was admitted to the Nova Scotia bar in 1837 and opened his own practice in Amherst.

In 1847 McCully was appointed to the Legislative Council of Nova Scotia and subsequently served as solicitor-general, commissioner-general for railways, and eventually emerged as leader of the government.

After moving to Halifax in 1849 he tried his hand at editing newspapers. He first edited the Morning Chronicle and then the Nova Scotian from which he had to step down due to his pro-confederation stance, handing over to fellow Father of Confederation, Joseph Howe. McCully then took on the editing role at the Morning Journal which he renamed the Unionist. Using this medium he was able to spread his views on Confederation to the public.

After Confederation in 1867 he was named to the Canadian Senate.