little is known of thomas scott's early years. he was born in the clandeboye area of county down, in what is today northern ireland in 1842. raised as a presbyterian, he became an active orangeman. scott emigrated to ontario in 1863. on his arrival at red river, he worked as a labourer on the "dawson road" project, connecting the red river and lake superior. he took part in a strike in 1869, for which he was fired and convicted of aggravated assault. scott then moved to winnipeg, where he met john christian schultz and became a supporter of the canadian party. scott backed the annexation of the red river settlement to canada, and the rest of his life revolved around this conflict.