Robert Randal

Robert Randal (ca 1766 – May 2, 1834) was a businessman and political figure in Upper Canada.

He was born Robert Randall in Maryland (Virginia in some sources) around 1766; after 1809, he spelled his surname Randal. In 1795, he was part of a partnership which wished to buy the lower Michigan peninsula from the United States government. In 1795, Randal was part of a partnership with Ebenezer Allen and Charles Whitney of Vermont and several British subjects in Detroit including John Askin and William Robertson, which planned to buy the entire lower Michigan peninsula from the United States government. He was cited for contempt for attempting to bribe members of the United States Congress in conjunction with this scheme. In 1798, he petitioned for a 999-year lease on land near the Niagara River on which to build a foundry. He also bought a sawmill and gristmill on adjoining land. In 1800, he signed two-thirds of the business over to his creditors in Montreal. In 1802, that company, now bankrupt, sold its interest to a company in London who sent their agent, James Durand, to collect on their debt. In 1803, Randal set up business near Cornwall, Ontario, building a tannery and potash works on the American side of the Saint Lawrence River at Massena, New York and establishing up a ferry service. In the meantime, although Randal had not relinquished his one-third share of the operation, Durand sold the Niagara operation to Samuel Street and Thomas Clark.

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