He was a close political and personal friend of Sir John A. Macdonald, but made his way chiefly through his own abilities. His niece, Gertrude Agnes VanKoughnet, married Sir John's only son, Sir Hugh John Macdonald. VanKoughnet was a forcible and fluent speaker, and an able lawyer. An annual award is made in his name to a member of the graduating law class of Osgoode Hall Law School, where his full-length portrait hangs. A small village in Muskoka, on the old Peterson Colonization Road, was named for him.