William Finlay
William Thomas Finlay | |
---|---|
Member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta | |
In office November 9, 1905 – June 6, 1910 | |
Preceded by | New district |
Succeeded by | Charles R. Mitchell |
Constituency | Medicine Hat |
Alberta Minister of Agriculture | |
In office September 9, 1905 – November 1, 1909 | |
Preceded by | New position |
Succeeded by | Duncan Marshall |
Alberta Provincial Secretary | |
In office September 9, 1905 – November 1, 1909 | |
Preceded by | New position |
Succeeded by | Duncan Marshall |
Member of the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories | |
In office May 21, 1902 – August 31, 1905 | |
Preceded by | |
Succeeded by | District abolished |
Constituency | Medicine Hat |
Mayor of Medicine Hat | |
In office 1900–1903 | |
Preceded by | William Bradley Marshall |
Succeeded by | Archibald Courtice Hawthorne |
Personal details | |
Born | July 12, 1853 Lisburn, Ireland |
Died | May 9, 1914 Vancouver, British Columbia | (aged 60)
Political party | Liberal |
Spouse(s) | Catherine Anne Allott |
Children | Two sons, three daughters |
Residence | Medicine Hat, Alberta |
Occupation | Merchant, rancher |
William Thomas Finlay (July 12, 1853 – May 9, 1914) was a politician and cabinet minister in Alberta and Northwest Territories, Canada.
Early life[]
William was born in Lisburn, Ireland on July 12, 1853[1] and worked in the whole sale grocery business before moving to Montreal, Quebec in 1873. He moved to the Medicine Hat region 10 years later in 1883 and started working for the Northwest Lumber Company, and later his own firm Finlay and Company. He got married and became interested in territorial politics in 1898.[2]
Northwest Territories politics[]
William ran for the Legislative Assembly of Northwest Territories in the 1898 Northwest Territories general election in the Medicine Hat district but was defeated, coming a close second to .
William ran again in the 1902 Northwest Territories general election this time becoming elected as the Member of the Legislative Assembly for Medicine Hat.[3]
Finlay served as the second mayor of Medicine Hat, from 1900 to 1903.[1]
Alberta politics[]
William became Alberta's first Minister of Agriculture after the province was created on September 1, 1905 he was sworn into the executive council on the advice of Premier Alexander Cameron Rutherford on September 9, 1905.[4]
In the provinces first general election, William was voted in as a member of the Alberta Liberal Party for Medicine Hat.
William was re-elected in the 1909 Alberta general election, but declined to return to his cabinet post due to his health. He stepped down as the member of his riding in 1910 after his health deteriorated to the point where he could no longer perform his duties, and made room for Charles R. Mitchell to run in a by-election.[5]
Death[]
William moved to Vancouver, British Columbia after his retirement died in 1914.
Electoral record[]
1909 Alberta general election results (Medicine Hat)[6] | Turnout N.A. | |||
Liberal | William Thomas Finlay | 1,249 | 71.66% | |
Conservative | F. O. Sissions | 494 | 28.34% | |
1905 Alberta general election results (Medicine Hat)[7] | Turnout N.A. | |||
Liberal | William Thomas Finlay | 575 | 51.71% | |
Conservative | F. D. Sissons | 537 | 48.29% | |
1902 Northwest Territories general election results (Medicine Hat)[8] | Turnout N.A. | |||
William Thomas Finlay | 486 | 70.33% | ||
J. A. Grant | 205 | 29.67% | ||
1898 Northwest Territories general election results (Medicine Hat)[8] | Turnout N.A. | |||
327 | 36.50% | |||
William Thomas Finlay | 285 | 31.81% | ||
John George Calder | 284 | 31.70% |
References[]
- ^ a b Chambers, Ernest J., ed. (1909). The Canadian Parliamentary Guide. Ottawa: Mortimer Company Ltd. p. 437. ISSN 0315-6168. OCLC 266967058. Retrieved August 9, 2020.
- ^ "Pioneer profiles William T. Finlay". Pioneers Alberta. Retrieved 2006-10-15.
- ^ "History of the Northwest Territories Legislative Assembly 1876 - 1905" (PDF). Saskatchewan Archives. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2006-05-23. Retrieved 2006-10-15.
- ^ "Alberta Gazette October 1905". Alberta government. Retrieved 2006-10-15.
- ^ "Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online". Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 2006-10-15.
- ^ "Election results for Claresholm, 1909". Alberta Online Encyclopedia. Retrieved 2010-03-24.
- ^ "Election results for Macleod, 1905". Alberta Online Encyclopedia. Retrieved 2010-03-24.
- ^ a b "Territories" (PDF). Saskatchewan Archives Board. Retrieved 2010-03-23.
Further reading[]
- Wilson, L. J. Roy (1998). "Finlay, William Thomas". In Cook, Ramsay; Hamelin, Jean (eds.). Dictionary of Canadian Biography. XIV (1911–1920) (online ed.). University of Toronto Press.
External links[]
- William T. Finlay – Legislative Assembly of Alberta Member Profile
- 1853 births
- 1914 deaths
- Members of the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories
- Alberta Liberal Party MLAs
- Members of the Executive Council of Alberta
- Mayors of Medicine Hat
- 19th-century Canadian politicians
- 20th-century Canadian politicians