THIS district has seen many residents emigrate to Canada and the United States over the years.

A Greenockian played a significant role in attracting early British settlers to Canada.

The son of a banker, he was William ‘Tiger’ Dunlop, born on November 19, 1792.

He became one of the more colourful and adventurous sons Greenock has produced.

Dunlop was a young Army surgeon who arrived in Upper Canada at the time of the War of 1812, when the British colony was invaded by the United States.

He and his regiment were sent back to Britain at the end of the conflict but Dunlop had developed a love for Canada and was determined to go back there.

In 1826 he arrived in Toronto as one of the principal figures in a large scale scheme that would draw thousands of settlers from overseas.

Dunlop was hired with the romantic sounding title of ‘Warden of the Woods and Forests’. He was assigned to travel across the country, helping to decide where new roads and settlements should be built.

Dunlop wrote a book called Statistical Sketches of Upper Canada: For the use of Emigrants.

However, it has been said there was scarcely a single page of statistics in the book and most of the ‘facts’ were little more than lies.

Dunlop’s often extravagant descriptions of a virtually unknown part of North America succeeded in making many British people choose a new life in Canada.

He became a major celebrity and entered Canadian politics.

William ‘Tiger’ Dunlop died in 1848 and was buried in Goderich, a town he founded on the shores of Lake Huron.

It is understood Dunlop was nicknamed ‘Tiger’ after he visited India and was involved in a cull of the animals.

TODAY'S flashback photo is of a large number of people waiting for a steamer at Princes Pier and the image possibly goes back to the start of the last century.

It is interesting to note the sign with the spelling Prince’s Pier.