Alexander Laird (1788-1873) and Janet Orr (1802-1879) emigrated from Renfrewshire, Scotland to Prince Edward Island in 1819. Their fourth son, David, was born on 12 March 1833, in New Glasgow, PEI. David received his early education at the Central Academy in Charlottetown before attending the Presbyterian Theological Seminary in Truro, Nova Scotia. In 1859, Laird founded the "Protestant and Evangelical Witness" newspaper and in 1860, the "Charlottetown Patriot," which he edited and published. On 30 June 1864, David married Mary Louise Owen (1833-1895) in Georgetown. They had six children: David Rennie (1865-1947), Mary Alice (1867-1945), Arthur Gordon (1868-?), William Charles (1870-1958), James Harold (1872-?), and Fanny Louise (1874-?).

David was elected in the Belfast Constituency of Queen's County in the Legislative Assembly in 1871, a seat he held until 1873. That year he was elected to the federal House of Commons. Laird was Prime Minister MacKenzie's Minister of the Interior from 1873 to 1876, becoming the first individual from PEI to hold a federal cabinet position. In 1876, he was appointed the first Lieutenant Governor of the old Northwest Territories and held this position until 1881. That year his term as governor expired and David returned to Charlottetown. Laird campaigned unsuccessfully in the 1882 and 1887 elections for a seat in federal politics.

In 1884, David served as a delegate to the Pan-Presbyterian Council held in Belfast, Ireland, and in Toronto, Ontario in 1892. In 1898, Laird was appointed as Indian Commissioner for Manitoba and the Northwest Territories and held this title until 1909, at which point he was sent to Ottawa as a governmental advisor on Indian Affairs. David held this position and was actively involved with Indian Affairs until his death on 12 January 1914, in Ottawa.