From the archives: Fire insurance: A part of history

This story was first published on Aug. 9, 2014, in the Montreal Gazette.
It was Aug. 6, 1808, a big day for Alexander Auldjo. He had no intention of missing his rendezvous. Auldjo was a well-placed merchant in Montreal, as well as the Canadian agent for the venerable Phoenix Assurance Co. of London. And on that August day, the secretary of the company, Jenkin Jones, would be stepping off the ferry from La Prairie, the final leg of his journey overland from New York. Jones’s mission was to