He died unmarried at age 74, still carrying out his duties as vice-admiralty judge, as he had done for thirty-seven years.

He attended a private school in Quebec run by a Presbyterian minister, Dr Daniel Wilkie.

Stuart had supported the populist Parti canadien in their struggles with the British governors, but broke with them in the run-up to the Lower Canada Rebellions of 1837 and 1838.

[7][8][9] The first Governor General for the new province, Lord Sydenham, was determined that the elections would return a majority in favour of his policies supporting the new union.

)[1][12][13][14] Throughout his term in Parliament, Black was a supporter of the Governor General, as a member of the "British Tories" group from Lower Canada.

For the rest of the four years of the Parliament, Black consistently voted for governments supported by the Governor General.

[1] Black devoted himself to his duties as the president of the vice-admiralty court for the Quebec district for the rest of his life.

[16] During the 1860s, an issue arose because there were no courts with admiralty jurisdiction over the Great Lakes, which were increasingly used for shipping.

Black suggested that the jurisdiction of the Vice-Admiralty Court in Quebec should be extended to the Great Lakes, but the imperial authorities rejected the possibility.

He was also on friendly terms, both personally and professionally, with Chancellor James Kent of New York and Justice Joseph Story of the Supreme Court of the United States.

[19][20] His obituary in a contemporary Quebec City newspaper, L’Événement, stated: "He was a man of profound learning, and on no subject was his erudition found wanting.

He showed great kindness and interest in his dealings with young people who had recourse to his superior knowledge.