John McLean (MacLean) was born on November 17, 1828, in Portsoy, Banffshire, Scotland.

He was a Church of England bishop and educator. He graduated with an M.A. from King’s College (University of Aberdeen) in Scotland, in 1851 and was ordained in the Church of England in 1858. He came to Canada as curate of St. Paul’s Cathedral in London, Ontario, serving up to 1866 when he came to Red River, Manitoba, as Rector of St. John’s Cathedral and Archdeacon of Assiniboia. He also served as Professor of Divinity and Warden of St. John’s College, Winnipeg. During the Red River Rebellion (1869-1870), McLean counselled moderation. He frequently served as a go-between in complex negotiations over Riel’s prisoners and helped convince Riel to spare the life of Charles Boulton. He received honorary degrees from Trinity University, Toronto, Bishop’s College, Lennoxville, and Kenyon College, Ohio. In 1877, he was a member of the First Convocation of the University of Manitoba. In 1874, he was consecrated as the first Bishop of Saskatchewan.

In 1861, he married Kathleen Wilhelmina Flood (1842–1897). He died on November 7, 1886, in Prince Albert, Saskatchewan.