Alexander Cameron Rutherford
Encyclopedia
Alexander Cameron Rutherford (February 2, 1857 – June 11, 1941) was a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the first Premier of Alberta
from 1905 to 1910. Born in Ormond, Ontario
, he studied and practised law in Ottawa
before moving with his family to the Northwest Territories
in 1895. Here he began his political career, winning in his third attempt a seat in the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories. In keeping with the territorial custom Rutherford ran as an independent
, though he generally supported the territorial administration of Premier Frederick W. A. G. Haultain
. At the federal level, however, Rutherford was a Liberal
.
In 1905, Alberta Lieutenant Governor George Bulyea asked Rutherford to form the new province's first government. As Premier, his first task was to win a workable majority in the Legislative Assembly of Alberta
, which he did in the 1905 provincial election
. His second was to provide the apparatus of provincial government: his government established everything from speed limit
s to a provincial court system. The legislature also controversially, and with Rutherford's support, selected Edmonton
over rival Calgary
as the provincial capital. Calgarians' bruised feelings were not salved when the government located the University of Alberta
, a project dear to the Premier's heart, in his hometown of Strathcona, just across the North Saskatchewan River
from Edmonton.
The government was faced with labour unrest in the coal mining
industry, which it resolved by establishing a commission to examine the problem. It also set up a provincial government telephone network—Alberta Government Telephones
—at great expense, and tried to encourage the development of new railways. It was in pursuit of this last objective that the Rutherford government found itself embroiled in scandal. Early in 1910, William Henry Cushing
's resignation as Minister of Public Works precipitated the Alberta and Great Waterways Railway scandal
, which turned many of Rutherford's Liberals against his government. Eventually, pressure from many party figures forced Rutherford to resign. He kept his seat in the legislature after resigning as premier, but was defeated in the 1913 election
by Conservative
Herbert Crawford
.
After leaving politics, Rutherford continued his law practice and his involvement with a wide range of community groups. Most importantly, he became chancellor of the University of Alberta, whose earlier founding had been a personal project. He died of a heart attack June 11, 1941. A University of Alberta library, an Edmonton elementary school, and Jasper National Park
's Mount Rutherford
are named in his honour. Additionally, his home, Rutherford House
, was opened as a museum in 1973.
Alexander Rutherford was born February 2, 1857, near Ormond, Ontario
on his family's dairy farm. His parents, James (1817–1891) and Elspet "Elizabeth" (1818–1901) Cameron Rutherford, had immigrated from Scotland
two years previous. They joined the Baptist Church, and his father joined the Liberal Party of Canada
and served for a time on the Osgoode
village council. Rutherford attended public school locally and, after rejecting dairy farming as a vocation, enrolled in a Metcalfe
high school. After graduating in 1874, he attended the Canadian Literary Institute, a Baptist college in Woodstock
. He graduated from there in 1876, and taught for a year in Osgoode before going to Montreal
to study arts and civil law
at McGill University
. He was awarded degrees in both in 1881, and joined the Ottawa
law firm of Scott, McTavish and McCracken where he was articled
for four years under the tutelage of Richard William Scott
. Called to the Ontario bar in 1885, he became a junior partner in the firm of Hodgins, Kidd and Rutherford with responsibility for its Kemptville
office for ten years. He also established a moneylending business there. During this time, his social circle grew to include William Cameron Edwards
. Through Edwards, Rutherford was introduced to the Birkett family, which included former Member of Parliament
Thomas Birkett
. Rutherford married Birkett's niece, Mattie Birkett, in December 1888. The couple had three children: Cecil (born in 1890), Hazel (born in 1893), and Marjorie (born in 1903, but died sixteen months later). Rutherford had a traditional view of gender roles, and was happy to leave most child-rearing responsibilities to his wife.
to investigate the disappearance of his cousin. The Rocky Mountains
left a great impression on him, as did the coastal climate which he found "very agreeable". He visited again in the summer of 1894, when he took the Canadian Pacific Railway
across the prairies. Upon arriving in South Edmonton
, he was excited by the its growth potential and pleased to find that the dry air relieved his bronchitis
. He resolved to settle there, and did so one year later, bringing his reluctant wife and his children, who arrived by train June 10, 1895. Within ten days of their arrival, Rutherford had opened a law office, purchased four lots of land, and contracted local builder Hugh McCurdy to build him a house. In July they moved into their new home, a four-room house built on a single storey. In 1896 Rutherford became the town's only lawyer, as his only competition, Mervyn Mackenzie, moved to Toronto
.
Rutherford quickly became deeply involved in the community. Among the roles he acquired during his first three years in Alberta were President of the newly formed South Edmonton Football Club, secretary-treasurer of the South Edmonton School Board, president of the South Edmonton Athletic Association, vice president of the South Edmonton Literary Institute, auditor of the South Edmonton Agricultural Society, and worthy master of the Acacia Lodge, Ancient Free and Accepted Masons
. He later added to this the title of secretary of the Edmonton District Butter and Cheese Manufacturing Association. He was an early advocate for the incorporation of South Edmonton, hitherto an unincorporated community, and when incorporation came in 1899—as the Town of Strathcona
—Rutherford became the new town's secretary-treasurer (after acting as returning officer in its first election).
Throughout this period, he practised law, from 1899 with future Conservative
MLA
Frederick C. Jamieson as his partner. He employed single women as secretaries in an era when clerical workers were predominantly male, and defended a native Canadian
accused of murder at a time when most lawyers refused such cases. As their practice grew, he and Jamieson also engaged in moneylending
. Besides his law practice, Rutherford was a successful real estate
investor, and also owned an interest in gold mining
equipment situated on the North Saskatchewan River
.
in the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories since 1888, resigned to pursue a career in federal politics. Several Strathcona residents urged Rutherford to run for Oliver's old seat in the ensuing by-election
. Though he was originally reluctant, he agreed to stand after a three hundred signature petition
urging his candidacy was presented to him. His only opponent was former Edmonton mayor Matthew McCauley
who, like Rutherford, ran as an independent
. Rutherford campaigned on a platform of improved roads, resource development, simplification of territorial ordinances, and—in what would become a theme of his political career—increased educational funding. McCauley won the election, but Rutherford received more than forty percent of the vote.
During the 1898 territorial election
, Rutherford again challenged the now-incumbent McCauley. His defeat of two years previous still fresh in his mind, his platform this time included a call for a redrawing
of the territory's electoral boundaries; he felt that the current Edmonton riding
was gerrymandered in McCauley's favour. He also repeated his past calls for improved roads and advocated increased taxation on the railroads. He pledged "independent support" for the non-partisan administration of Premier Frederick Haultain, and supported that administration's call for the creation of a single province
from the territories following the 1901 census
. Rutherford also criticized McCauley's past record, accusing him of silence on issues that were of concern to his constituents. Despite this, McCauley won again, albeit by a reduced margin.
Rutherford was at last successful in the 1902 election
, when he ran in the newly created riding of Strathcona
. His 1902 platform was similar to his 1898 platform and supported Haultain, though this time he supported a two province integration of the Northwest Territories
into Confederation
, rather than Haultain's preferred one province approach, on the grounds that a single province would be so large as to be ungovernable. It at first looked as though he would run unopposed; however, at the last minute local lawyer Nelson D. Mills publicly accused Rutherford of being not a true independent, but a dyed-in-the-wool Haultain supporter, and announced that he would run against him. Nevertheless, Rutherford was supported by most of Strathcona's most prominent residents, including his law partner Jamieson and his future rival John R. Boyle
, and won an easy victory.
Rutherford served in the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories until Alberta became a province in 1905. During his tenure, he was elected deputy speaker
and sat on standing committees for libraries, municipal law, and education. His legislative efforts included successful attempts to extend the boundaries of the Town of Strathcona and to empower it to borrow for construction of public works. He was considered a possible member of Haultain's executive council
, likely in the post of Commissioner of Public Works, but the post instead went to George Bulyea. He joined many of his fellow MLA
s in continuing to advocate for provincial status, finding that the limitations on a territory's means to raise revenue prevented the Northwest Territories from meeting its obligations.
Though Rutherford supported Haultain's vision of non-partisan territorial administration, federally he was an avowed Liberal
. In 1900, he was elected president of the Strathcona Liberal association, and was a delegate to the convention that nominated Oliver as the party's candidate in Alberta
for the 1900 federal election
. He subsequently campaigned for Oliver in his successful re-election attempt. When the new federal constituency of Strathcona
was formed in advance of the 1904 election
, Rutherford was urged to accept the Liberal nomination, but demurred. Peter Talbot
was selected instead and, supported by Rutherford, was elected.
In February 1905, the federal government of Prime Minister
Sir Wilfrid Laurier
introduced legislation to create two new provinces—Alberta
and Saskatchewan
—from the Northwest Territories. Though Haultain wanted the new provinces to be governed on the same non-partisan basis as the Territories had been, it was expected that the Liberal Laurier would recommend a Liberal to serve as Lieutenant-Governor, and it was further assumed that the Lieutenant-Governor would call on a Liberal to form the new province's first government. Oliver was the province's most prominent Liberal, but had just been named federal Minister of the Interior, and was not interested in leaving Ottawa. Talbot was Laurier's preferred candidate, but he expected to be appointed to the Senate
and found the prospect more congenial than serving as Premier of Alberta. Both men supported Rutherford, though neither was enthusiastic about doing so. In August, Bulyea was appointed Alberta's first Lieutenant-Governor and later that month the Alberta Liberals selected Rutherford as their first leader. A final barrier was removed a few days later when Haultain, who was a Conservative
federally but who was thought to be a potential leader of a coalition government
, announced that he would stay in Regina
to lead the Saskatchewan Conservatives. On September 2, Bulyea asked Rutherford to form the first government of Alberta.
After accepting the position of premier, Rutherford selected a geographically diverse cabinet on September 6: Edmonton
's Charles Wilson Cross as Attorney-General, Calgary
's William Henry Cushing
as Minister of Public Works, Medicine Hat's William Finlay
as Minister of Agriculture and Provincial Secretary, and Lethbridge
's George DeVeber
as Minister without Portfolio. Rutherford kept for himself the positions of Provincial Treasurer and Minister of Education.
were accordingly fixed for November 9. The Conservatives
, the young province's only other political party, had already selected R. B. Bennett
as their leader. Bennett attacked the terms under which Alberta had been made a province, especially the clauses that left control of its lands and natural resources in the hands of the federal government and required the continued provincial funding of separate school
s. He pointed out that Canada's older provinces had control of their own natural resources and that education was a provincial responsibility under the British North America Act. The Liberals responded to these criticisms by highlighting the financial compensation the province received from the federal government in exchange for control of its natural resources, which amounted to $375,000 per year. They further suggested that Conservative concern for control of lands was due to their desire to make favourable land concessions to the unpopular Canadian Pacific Railway
, which had historically been friendly with the Conservatives, and for whom Bennett had acted as solicitor.
Besides the Conservatives' ties to the CPR, Rutherford's Liberals enjoyed the incumbent's advantage of controlling the levers of patronage
, and the election's result was never really in doubt. Before the election, Talbot predicted that the government would win 18 of the province's 25 seats. Immediately after the election it appeared that the Liberals had won 21; when all the votes had been counted they had won 23 seats to the Conservatives' two. Bennett himself was defeated in his Calgary riding
. When the outcome was clear, the people of Strathcona feted Rutherford with a torchlight procession and bonfire.
as the provisional capital, much to the chagrin of Calgary
. Neither party had taken a position on the divisive question during the campaign, but selecting a permanent capital was high on the list of the new legislature's orders of business. Calgary's case was made most enthusiastically by Minister of Public Works Cushing, Edmonton's by Attorney-General Cross. Banff
and Red Deer
were also possibilities, but motions to select each failed to find seconders. In the end, Edmonton was designated by a vote of sixteen members—including Rutherford—to eight.
A personal priority of Rutherford had been the establishment of a university. Though the Edmonton Bulletin
opined that it would be unfair "that the people of the Province should be taxed for the special benefit of four per cent that they may be able to attach the cognomen of B.A. or M.A. to their names and flaunt the vanity of such over the taxpayer, who has to pay for it", Rutherford proceeded quickly. He was concerned that delay might result in the creation of denominational colleges, striking a blow to his dream of a high quality non-sectarian system of post-secondary education. A bill establishing the University was passed by the legislature, but left the government to decide the location. Calgary felt that, having lost the fight to be provincial capital, it could expect the university to be established there, and was not pleased a year later when the government announced the founding of the University of Alberta
in Rutherford's hometown of Strathcona.
While these regionally charged issues attracted much attention, they were far from the government's only initiatives during the legislature's first session. In 1906 it passed a series of acts dealing with the organization and administration of the new provincial government and incorporated the cities of Lethbridge
, Medicine Hat, and Wetaskiwin. It also established a speed limit
of 20 miles per hour (32.2 km/h) for motorized vehicles and set up a regime for mine inspection. Perhaps most significantly, it set up a court system, with Arthur Lewis Sifton
as the province's first Chief Justice.
Though the founding of the University of Alberta was the centrepiece of Rutherford's educational policy, his activity as Minister of Education extended well beyond it. In the first year of Alberta's existence, 140 new schools were established, and a normal school
was set up in Calgary to train teachers. Rutherford put great emphasis on the creation of English-language schools in the large portions of the province occupied primarily by central- and eastern-European immigrants. The immigrants themselves were often unable to speak English, and the provision of these schools for their children was a major factor in their rapid assimilation into Albertan society. They were also in lieu of separate religious schools for groups such as Mennonites; while the continued existence of Roman Catholic separate schools was mandated by the terms of Alberta's admission into Confederation, the government's policy was otherwise to encourage a unified and secular public school system. Rutherford also introduced free school texts in the province, though he was criticized for commissioning the texts from a Toronto
publisher (which printed them in New York) rather than locally.
the miners from its mine near Taber. The same company was also facing a work stoppage at its mine in the Crow's Nest Pass, where miners were refusing to sign a new contract. The problem spread, until by April 22 all 3,400 miners working for member-companies of the Western Coal Operators' Association were off work. Miners' demands included increased wages, a reduction in working hours to eight per day (from ten), the posting of mine inspection reports, the isolated storage of explosives, the use of non-freezing explosives, and semi-monthly rather than monthly pay; the mine operators objected to this last point on the basis that many miners did not report to work the day after payday, and it was thus desirable to keep paydays to a minimum.
Rutherford's government appointed a commission in February, but it was not until May that it met. It consisted of Chief Justice Sifton, mining executive Lewis Stockett, and miners' union executive William Haysom. It began taking evidence in July. In the meantime, a May agreement saw most miners return to work at increased rates of pay; coal supply promptly increased, as did its price. In August, the commission released its recommendations, which included a prohibition on children under 16 working in mines, the posting of inspectors' reports, mandatory bath houses at mine sites, and improved ventilation inspection. It also recommended that Albertans keep a supply of coal on hand during the summer for winter use. The commission was silent on wages, other than to say that these should not be fixed by legislation, the operation of company stores (a sore point among the miners), and the incorporation
of mine unions which was recommended by mines but opposed by the unions. It also made no recommendation about working hours, but Rutherford's government legislated an eight hour day anyway.
Apart from coal mining issues, the government also passed workers' compensation
legislation designed to make such compensation automatic, rather than requiring the injured worker to sue his employer. Labour representatives criticized the bill for failing to impose fines on negligent employers and for limiting construction workers' eligibility under the program to injuries sustained while working on buildings more than 40 feet (12.2 m) in height, as well as for its exemption of casual labourers. It also viewed the maximum payout of $1,500 as inadequate. In response to these concerns, the maximum was increased to $1,800 and the minimum building height reduced to 30 feet (9.1 m). In response to farmers' concerns, farm labourers were exempt from the bill entirely.
Rutherford's relationship with organized labour was never easy. Historian L.G. Thomas argued that there was little indication that Rutherford had any interest in courting the labour vote. In 1908, Labour candidate Donald McNabb
was elected in a Lethbridge
by-election; the riding had previously been held by a Liberal. McNabb was the first Labour MLA elected in Alberta, though he was defeated in his 1909 re-election bid.
. In 1906, Alberta's municipalities legislation was passed and included a provision authorizing municipalities to operate telephone companies. Several, including Edmonton, did so, alongside private companies. The largest of this latter group was the Bell Telephone Company
, which held a monopoly
over service in Calgary. Such monopolies and the private firms' refusal to extend their services into sparsely populated and unprofitable rural areas aroused demand for provincial entry into the market, which was effected in 1907. The government constructed a number of lines, beginning with one between Calgary and Banff, and also purchased Bell's lines for $675,000.
Alberta's public telephone system was financed by debt, which was unusual for a government like Rutherford's that was generally committed to the principle of "pay as you go
". Rutherford's stated rationale was that the cost of such a large capital project shouldn't be borne by a single generation and that incurring debt to finance a corresponding asset was, in contrast to operating deficits, acceptable. Though the move was popular at the time, it would prove not to be a financially astute one: by focusing on areas neglected by existing companies, the government was entering into the most expensive and least profitable fields of telecommunication. These problems would not come to fruition until Rutherford had left office, however; in the short-term, the government's involvement in the telephone business helped it to a sweeping victory in the 1909 election
, in which the Liberals won 37 of 41 seats in the newly expanded legislature.
Of equal profile was Rutherford's government's management of the province's railways. Alberta's early years were optimistic ones, which manifested itself in a pronounced enthusiasm for the construction of new railway lines. Every town wanted to be a railway centre, and the government had great confidence in the ability of the free market to provide low freight rates to the province's farmers provided sufficient charters were issued to competing companies. The legislature passed government-sponsored legislation setting out a framework for new railways in 1907, but interest from private firms in actually building the lines was limited. In the face of public demand and support by legislators of all parties for as rapid as possible an expansion of the province's lines, the government offered loan guarantees to several companies in exchange for commitments to build lines. Rutherford justified this in part by his conviction that railways needed to expand along with population, rather than having railway expansion follow population growth as would be the case without government intervention. The Conservatives argued that this strategy didn't go far enough, and called for direct government ownership.
While most public works issues were handled by Public Works Minister Cushing, following the 1909 election Rutherford named himself as the province's first Minister of Railways.
When the legislature met for the first time after the 1909 election, things seemed to be going well for Rutherford and his government. He controlled a huge majority, albeit slightly reduced from the 1905 election, and enjoyed widespread popularity. His government had achieved significant success in setting up a new province, and this success looked poised to continue. Early in this new legislative session, however, two signs of trouble appeared: Liberal backbencher John R. Boyle
began to ask questions about the agreement between the government and the Alberta and Great Waterways Railway Company, and Cushing resigned from cabinet over his views of this same agreement.
The Alberta and Great Waterways Railway was one of several companies that had been granted charters and assistance by the legislature to build new railways in the province. The government support that it received was more generous than that received by more established railways, such as the Grand Trunk Pacific Railway
and the Canadian Northern Railway
. Boyle, Cushing, and Bennett alleged favouritism or ineptitude by Rutherford and his government, and pointed to the sale of government-guaranteed bonds in support of the company as further evidence. Because of the high interest rate they paid, the bonds were sold at above par value
, but the government only received par for them, leaving the company to pocket the difference.
Boyle sponsored a motion of non-confidence against the government. Despite enjoying the support of twelve Liberals, including Cushing, the motion was defeated and the government upheld. Rutherford attempted to quell the controversy by calling a royal commission
, but pressure from many Liberals, including Bulyea, led him to resign May 26, 1910; he was replaced by Arthur Sifton, hitherto the province's chief judge. In November, the royal commission issued its report. It found that the evidence did not show a conflict of interest
on Rutherford's part, but the majority report was nevertheless highly critical of the former Premier. A minority report was much kinder, avowing perfect satisfaction with Rutherford's version of events.
, Rutherford was again nominated as the Liberal candidate in Edmonton South
(Strathcona had been amalgamated into Edmonton in 1912), despite pledging opposition to the Sifton government and offering to campaign around the province for the Conservatives if they agreed not to run a candidate against him. At the nomination meeting, he stated that he was "not running as a Sifton candidate" and was "a good independent candidate ... and a good Liberal too". Despite his opposition to the government, the Conservatives declined his offer of support and nominated Herbert Crawford
to run against him. After a vigorous campaign, Crawford defeated Rutherford by fewer than 250 votes. Cross lobbied Prime Minister Laurier unsuccessfully for Rutherford to be appointed to the Senate, though he was made King's Counsel shortly after his electoral defeat.
The 1913 election was not the first time Rutherford had dissented from his own party during an election, nor would it be the last. Before the 1911 federal election
, several local Liberals opposed to Frank Oliver had asked Rutherford to run against him in Strathcona
. Relations between Oliver and Rutherford had always been chilly—Oliver was implacably opposed to Cross, who he viewed as a rival for dominance of the Liberal party in Alberta, and his Edmonton Bulletin had taken the side of the dissidents during the railway scandal. A nominating meeting unanimously nominated Rutherford as Liberal candidate, though Oliver refused to accept its legitimacy and awaited a later meeting. Before this meeting came to pass, however, Rutherford abruptly withdrew. Historian Douglas Babcock has suggested that this was due to the Conservatives' nomination of William Antrobus Griesbach
, dashing Rutherford's hopes that his popularity among Conservatives would preclude their opposing him. Rumours at the time alleged that Rutherford had been asked to make a personal contribution of $15,000 to his campaign fund, and had balked. Rutherford himself cited a desire to avoid splitting the vote
on reciprocity
, which he and Oliver both favoured but Griesbach opposed. Whatever the reason, Oliver went on to be nominated as Liberal candidate and was re-elected.
After his defeat in 1913, Rutherford was not active in politics until 1921. In that year's provincial election
, he campaigned actively for the Conservatives, including for Crawford, the man who had defeated him eight years earlier. Rutherford continued to call himself a Liberal, but criticized the incumbent administration for the growth of the provincial debt and for letting the party fall into disarray. Calling the Charles Stewart
-led government "rotten", he offered voters the slogan "get rid of the barnacles and the Boyle
s". The Liberals were defeated, but the landslide win by the United Farmers of Alberta
left the Conservatives with only one seat.
s, real estate
, wills
and estates
, and incorporation
s. In 1923, Rutherford's son Cecil joined the firm along with Stanley Harwood McCuaig, who in 1919 would marry Rutherford's daughter Hazel. In 1925, Jamieson left the partnership to establish his own firm. In 1939, McCuaig did the same. Cecil's partnership with his father continued until the latter's death.
Besides his work as a lawyer, Alexander Rutherford was involved in a number of business enterprises. He was President of the Edmonton Mortgage Corporation, and Vice President and solicitor of the Great Western Garment Company. This latter enterprise, which Rutherford co-founded, was a great success: established in 1911 with eight seamstresses, it had quadrupled in size within a year. During the Second World War, the Great Western Garment Company made military uniforms and was reputed to be the largest garment operation in the British Empire. It was acquired by Levi Strauss & Co.
in 1961, but continued to manufacture garments in Edmonton until 2004.
Rutherford also acted as director of the Canada National Fire Insurance Company, the Imperial Canadian Trust Company, the Great West Permanent Loan Company, and the Monarch Life Assurance Company.
. In 1911 he was elected by Alberta's university graduates to the University of Alberta Senate, responsible for the institution's academic affairs. In 1912 he established the Rutherford Gold Medal in English for the senior year honours English student with the highest standing; the prize still exists today as the Rutherford Memorial Medal in English. In 1912, with the University's first graduating class, Rutherford instituted a tradition of inviting convocating students to his house for tea; this tradition would last for twenty-six years.
Convocation was not the only reason that students visited Rutherford's home: he had a wealth of both knowledge and books on Canadian subjects, and welcomed students to consult his private library. This library eventually expanded beyond the room in his mansion devoted to it, to encompass the house's den, maid's sitting room, and garage as well. After his death, the collection was donated and sold to the University's library system; it was described in 1967 as "still the most important rare collection in the library".
Rutherford remained on the university senate until 1927, when he was elected Chancellor. The position was the titular head of the university, and its primary duty was presiding over convocations. According to Rutherford biographer Douglas Babcock, this was the honour that Rutherford prized most. He was acclaimed to the position every four years until his death. It has been estimated that he awarded degrees to more than five thousand students. His final convocation, however, was marred by controversy: in 1941, a committee of the university senate recommended awarding an honorary degree
to Premier William Aberhart
. Aberhart was pleased, and happily accepted University President William Alexander Robb Kerr
's invitation to deliver the commencement address at convocation. However, a week prior to convocation the full senate—responsible for all university academic affairs—met, and voted against awarding Aberhart a degree. Aberhart rescinded his acceptance of the Kerr's invitation (and later removed the senate's authority—except, ironically, the authority to award honorary degrees) and Kerr resigned in protest. Rutherford was mortified, but presided over convocation nonetheless.
in his church until well into his dotage, was a member of the Young Women's Christian Association
advisory board from 1913 until his death, was Edmonton's first exalted ruler of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks
and spent three years as the grand exalted ruler of the Elk Order of Canada. During World War I
he was Alberta director of the National Service Commission, which oversaw conscription
from 1916 until 1918, and in 1916 was appointed Honorary Colonel of the 194th Highland Battalion of the Canadian Expeditionary Force
. Rutherford served on the Loan Advisory Committee of the Soldier Settlement Board after the war, was President of the Alberta Historical Society (which had been created by his government) from 1919 until his death, was elected President of the McGill University Alumni Association of Alberta in 1922, and spent the last years of his life as honorary president of the Canadian Authors Association. He was also a member of the Northern Alberta Pioneers and Old-Timers Association, the British Association for the Advancement of Science, the Royal Colonial Institute of London, and the Masons
. He continued to curl
and played tennis
into his late fifties, and took up golf
at the age of sixty-four, becoming a charter member of the Mayfair Golf and Country Club. He received honorary doctorates of laws from four universities: McGill, the University of Alberta, McMaster University
, and the University of Toronto
.
In 1911, the Rutherfords built a new house adjacent to the University of Alberta campus. Rutherford named it "Archnacarry" , after his ancestral homeland. It is now known as Rutherford House
, and serves as a museum. He made several trips to the United Kingdom
, and was invited to attend the coronation
of George VI
, but had to return to Canada before the event. On December 19, 1938, the Rutherfords celebrated their fiftieth wedding anniversary
; tributes and well-wishes arrived from across Canada.
, Rutherford developed diabetes in later years. His wife monitored his sugar intake, though when they were apart Rutherford sometimes took less care than she would have liked him to. In 1938, possibly as a result of diabetes, he suffered a stroke
that left him paralyzed and mute. He learned to walk again and with the help of a grade one reader got his speech back. September 13, 1940, Mattie Rutherford died of cancer. Less than a year later, June 11, 1941, Rutherford suffered a fatal heart attack while in hospital for insulin
treatment. He was 84 years old. Alexander Rutherford was buried in Mount Pleasant Cemetery in Edmonton, alongside his family. His name was attached to many institutions both during his life and after: Rutherford Elementary School in Edmonton was established in 1911 and the University of Alberta's Rutherford Library in 1951. In 1954, a mountain in Jasper National Park
was named Mount Rutherford
. In 1980, the government of Alberta created the Alexander Rutherford Scholarship, which awards more than $20 million annually to high school students selected on the basis of academic excellence.
Rutherford's policy legacy is mixed. L. G. Thomas concludes that he was a weak leader, unable to dominate the ambitions of his lieutenants and with very little skill at debate. Despite this, he recognizes the Rutherford government's legacy of province building. Douglas Babcock suggests that Rutherford, while himself honourable, left himself at the mercy of unscrupulous men who ultimately ruined his political career. Bennett, Rutherford's rival and later Prime Minister, concurred with this assessment, calling Rutherford "a gentleman of the old school ... not equipped by experience or temperament for the rough and tumble of western politics". There is general agreement that Rutherford's greatest legacy, and the one in which he took the most pride, lies in his contributions to Alberta's education. As Mount Royal College
historian Patricia Roome concluded her chapter on Rutherford in a book about Alberta's first twelve premiers, "Rutherford's educational contribution remains his ultimate legacy to Albertans."
Alberta
Alberta is a province of Canada. It had an estimated population of 3.7 million in 2010 making it the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces...
from 1905 to 1910. Born in Ormond, Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, he studied and practised law in Ottawa
Ottawa
Ottawa is the capital of Canada, the second largest city in the Province of Ontario, and the fourth largest city in the country. The city is located on the south bank of the Ottawa River in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario...
before moving with his family to the Northwest Territories
Northwest Territories
The Northwest Territories is a federal territory of Canada.Located in northern Canada, the territory borders Canada's two other territories, Yukon to the west and Nunavut to the east, and three provinces: British Columbia to the southwest, and Alberta and Saskatchewan to the south...
in 1895. Here he began his political career, winning in his third attempt a seat in the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories. In keeping with the territorial custom Rutherford ran as an independent
Independent (politician)
In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do...
, though he generally supported the territorial administration of Premier Frederick W. A. G. Haultain
Frederick W. A. G. Haultain
Sir Frederick William Alpin Gordon Haultain was a lawyer and a long serving Canadian politician and judge. His career in provincial and territorial legislatures stretched into four decades...
. At the federal level, however, Rutherford was a Liberal
Liberal Party of Canada
The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative...
.
In 1905, Alberta Lieutenant Governor George Bulyea asked Rutherford to form the new province's first government. As Premier, his first task was to win a workable majority in the Legislative Assembly of Alberta
Legislative Assembly of Alberta
The Legislative Assembly of Alberta is one of two components of the Legislature of Alberta, the other being the Queen, represented by the Lieutenant-Governor of Alberta. The Alberta legislature meets in the Alberta Legislature Building in the provincial capital, Edmonton...
, which he did in the 1905 provincial election
Alberta general election, 1905
The Alberta general election of 1905 was the first general election held in the Province of Alberta, Canada. It was held on 9 November 1905, to elect members of the Alberta legislature to the 1st Alberta Legislative Assembly, shortly after the province was created out of the Northwest Territories...
. His second was to provide the apparatus of provincial government: his government established everything from speed limit
Speed limit
Road speed limits are used in most countries to regulate the speed of road vehicles. Speed limits may define maximum , minimum or no speed limit and are normally indicated using a traffic sign...
s to a provincial court system. The legislature also controversially, and with Rutherford's support, selected Edmonton
Edmonton
Edmonton is the capital of the Canadian province of Alberta and is the province's second-largest city. Edmonton is located on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Capital Region, which is surrounded by the central region of the province.The city and its census...
over rival Calgary
Calgary
Calgary is a city in the Province of Alberta, Canada. It is located in the south of the province, in an area of foothills and prairie, approximately east of the front ranges of the Canadian Rockies...
as the provincial capital. Calgarians' bruised feelings were not salved when the government located the University of Alberta
University of Alberta
The University of Alberta is a public research university located in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Founded in 1908 by Alexander Cameron Rutherford, the first premier of Alberta and Henry Marshall Tory, its first president, it is widely recognized as one of the best universities in Canada...
, a project dear to the Premier's heart, in his hometown of Strathcona, just across the North Saskatchewan River
North Saskatchewan River
The North Saskatchewan River is a glacier-fed river that flows east from the Canadian Rockies to central Saskatchewan. It is one of two major rivers that join to make up the Saskatchewan River....
from Edmonton.
The government was faced with labour unrest in the coal mining
Coal mining
The goal of coal mining is to obtain coal from the ground. Coal is valued for its energy content, and since the 1880s has been widely used to generate electricity. Steel and cement industries use coal as a fuel for extraction of iron from iron ore and for cement production. In the United States,...
industry, which it resolved by establishing a commission to examine the problem. It also set up a provincial government telephone network—Alberta Government Telephones
Alberta Government Telephones
Alberta Government Telephones was formed by the Liberal government of Alexander Cameron Rutherford in 1906 following the acquisitions by the government of several independent telephone companies...
—at great expense, and tried to encourage the development of new railways. It was in pursuit of this last objective that the Rutherford government found itself embroiled in scandal. Early in 1910, William Henry Cushing
William Henry Cushing
William Henry Cushing was a Canadian politician. Born in Ontario, he migrated west as a young adult where he started a successful lumber company and later became Alberta's first Minister of Public Works and the 11th mayor of Calgary...
's resignation as Minister of Public Works precipitated the Alberta and Great Waterways Railway scandal
Alberta and Great Waterways Railway scandal
The Alberta and Great Waterways Railway Scandal was a political scandal in Alberta, Canada in 1910. It resulted in the resignation of the provincial government of Alexander Cameron Rutherford over allegations of conflict of interest in the government's involvement in the financing of the Alberta...
, which turned many of Rutherford's Liberals against his government. Eventually, pressure from many party figures forced Rutherford to resign. He kept his seat in the legislature after resigning as premier, but was defeated in the 1913 election
Alberta general election, 1913
The Alberta general election of 1913 was the third general election for the Province of Alberta, Canada. The writ was dropped on 25 March 1913 and election day was held 17 April 1913 to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta. Elections in two northern districts took place on 30 July...
by Conservative
Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta
The Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta is a provincial centre-right party in the Canadian province of Alberta...
Herbert Crawford
Herbert Crawford
Herbert Howard Crawford was a provincial level politician from Alberta, Canada.Crawford attempted a run at Edmonton municipal politics running for the position of Public School Trustee in the December 1912 Edmonton Municipal Election...
.
After leaving politics, Rutherford continued his law practice and his involvement with a wide range of community groups. Most importantly, he became chancellor of the University of Alberta, whose earlier founding had been a personal project. He died of a heart attack June 11, 1941. A University of Alberta library, an Edmonton elementary school, and Jasper National Park
Jasper National Park
Jasper National Park is the largest national park in the Canadian Rockies, spanning 10,878 km² . It is located in the province of Alberta, north of Banff National Park and west of the City of Edmonton. The park includes the glaciers of the Columbia Icefield, hot springs, lakes, waterfalls and...
's Mount Rutherford
Mount Rutherford
Mount Rutherford is a mountain in Alberta, Canada. Located in Jasper National Park, it is part of the Northern Front Ranges of the Canadian Rockies...
are named in his honour. Additionally, his home, Rutherford House
Rutherford House
Rutherford House was the home of the first Premier of Alberta, Alexander Cameron Rutherford from 1911 to 1941. It is now an Alberta Provincial Historic Site.-Overview:...
, was opened as a museum in 1973.
Early life
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
on his family's dairy farm. His parents, James (1817–1891) and Elspet "Elizabeth" (1818–1901) Cameron Rutherford, had immigrated from Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
two years previous. They joined the Baptist Church, and his father joined the Liberal Party of Canada
Liberal Party of Canada
The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative...
and served for a time on the Osgoode
Osgoode, Ontario
Osgoode is a large village within the city of Ottawa, Canada, located just south of the city proper, near the Rideau River.It was originally part of Osgoode Township but it became part of Ottawa in 2001...
village council. Rutherford attended public school locally and, after rejecting dairy farming as a vocation, enrolled in a Metcalfe
Metcalfe, Ontario
Metcalfe is a large village in the Osgoode Ward of the city of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. The local agricultural fair, the Metcalfe Fair, has been held each fall since 1856....
high school. After graduating in 1874, he attended the Canadian Literary Institute, a Baptist college in Woodstock
Woodstock, Ontario
Woodstock is a city and the county seat of Oxford County in Southern Ontario, Canada. Woodstock is located 128 km southwest of Toronto, north of Highway 401 along the historic Thames River...
. He graduated from there in 1876, and taught for a year in Osgoode before going to Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
to study arts and civil law
Civil law (legal system)
Civil law is a legal system inspired by Roman law and whose primary feature is that laws are codified into collections, as compared to common law systems that gives great precedential weight to common law on the principle that it is unfair to treat similar facts differently on different...
at McGill University
McGill University
Mohammed Fathy is a public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The university bears the name of James McGill, a prominent Montreal merchant from Glasgow, Scotland, whose bequest formed the beginning of the university...
. He was awarded degrees in both in 1881, and joined the Ottawa
Ottawa
Ottawa is the capital of Canada, the second largest city in the Province of Ontario, and the fourth largest city in the country. The city is located on the south bank of the Ottawa River in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario...
law firm of Scott, McTavish and McCracken where he was articled
Articled clerk
An articled clerk, also known as an articling student, is an apprentice in a professional firm in Commonwealth countries. Generally the term arises in the accountancy profession and in the legal profession. The articled clerk signs a contract, known as "articles of clerkship", committing to a...
for four years under the tutelage of Richard William Scott
Richard William Scott
Sir Richard William Scott, PC, KC was a Canadian politician and cabinet minister.He was born in Prescott, Ontario in 1825. A lawyer by training, Scott was admitted to the bar in 1848 and established a practice in Bytown...
. Called to the Ontario bar in 1885, he became a junior partner in the firm of Hodgins, Kidd and Rutherford with responsibility for its Kemptville
Kemptville, Ontario
Kemptville is a community located in the Municipality of North Grenville in Southern Ontario, Canada in the northernmost part of the United Counties of Leeds and Grenville...
office for ten years. He also established a moneylending business there. During this time, his social circle grew to include William Cameron Edwards
William Cameron Edwards
William Cameron Edwards was a Canadian businessman and parliamentarian.He was born in Clarence Township in Russell County, Ontario in 1844, the son of William Edwards and Ann Cameron, received basic schooling in Ottawa and, at a young age, began work in the timber industry at Thurso, Quebec. He...
. Through Edwards, Rutherford was introduced to the Birkett family, which included former Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
Thomas Birkett
Thomas Birkett
Thomas Birkett was mayor of Ottawa, Canada in 1891 and a member of the Canadian House of Commons representing Ottawa City from 1900 to 1904....
. Rutherford married Birkett's niece, Mattie Birkett, in December 1888. The couple had three children: Cecil (born in 1890), Hazel (born in 1893), and Marjorie (born in 1903, but died sixteen months later). Rutherford had a traditional view of gender roles, and was happy to leave most child-rearing responsibilities to his wife.
Move west
In November 1886 Rutherford visited the Canadian west for the first time when he travelled to British ColumbiaBritish Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
to investigate the disappearance of his cousin. The Rocky Mountains
Rocky Mountains
The Rocky Mountains are a major mountain range in western North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch more than from the northernmost part of British Columbia, in western Canada, to New Mexico, in the southwestern United States...
left a great impression on him, as did the coastal climate which he found "very agreeable". He visited again in the summer of 1894, when he took the Canadian Pacific Railway
Canadian Pacific Railway
The Canadian Pacific Railway , formerly also known as CP Rail between 1968 and 1996, is a historic Canadian Class I railway founded in 1881 and now operated by Canadian Pacific Railway Limited, which began operations as legal owner in a corporate restructuring in 2001...
across the prairies. Upon arriving in South Edmonton
Strathcona, Alberta
Strathcona was a city in Alberta, Canada, located on the south of the North Saskatchewan River opposite of the City of Edmonton. It amalgamated with Edmonton on February 1, 1912....
, he was excited by the its growth potential and pleased to find that the dry air relieved his bronchitis
Bronchitis
Acute bronchitis is an inflammation of the large bronchi in the lungs that is usually caused by viruses or bacteria and may last several days or weeks. Characteristic symptoms include cough, sputum production, and shortness of breath and wheezing related to the obstruction of the inflamed airways...
. He resolved to settle there, and did so one year later, bringing his reluctant wife and his children, who arrived by train June 10, 1895. Within ten days of their arrival, Rutherford had opened a law office, purchased four lots of land, and contracted local builder Hugh McCurdy to build him a house. In July they moved into their new home, a four-room house built on a single storey. In 1896 Rutherford became the town's only lawyer, as his only competition, Mervyn Mackenzie, moved to Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
.
Freemasonry
Freemasonry is a fraternal organisation that arose from obscure origins in the late 16th to early 17th century. Freemasonry now exists in various forms all over the world, with a membership estimated at around six million, including approximately 150,000 under the jurisdictions of the Grand Lodge...
. He later added to this the title of secretary of the Edmonton District Butter and Cheese Manufacturing Association. He was an early advocate for the incorporation of South Edmonton, hitherto an unincorporated community, and when incorporation came in 1899—as the Town of Strathcona
Strathcona, Alberta
Strathcona was a city in Alberta, Canada, located on the south of the North Saskatchewan River opposite of the City of Edmonton. It amalgamated with Edmonton on February 1, 1912....
—Rutherford became the new town's secretary-treasurer (after acting as returning officer in its first election).
Throughout this period, he practised law, from 1899 with future Conservative
Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta
The Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta is a provincial centre-right party in the Canadian province of Alberta...
MLA
Legislative Assembly of Alberta
The Legislative Assembly of Alberta is one of two components of the Legislature of Alberta, the other being the Queen, represented by the Lieutenant-Governor of Alberta. The Alberta legislature meets in the Alberta Legislature Building in the provincial capital, Edmonton...
Frederick C. Jamieson as his partner. He employed single women as secretaries in an era when clerical workers were predominantly male, and defended a native Canadian
Indigenous peoples of the Americas
The indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of North and South America, their descendants and other ethnic groups who are identified with those peoples. Indigenous peoples are known in Canada as Aboriginal peoples, and in the United States as Native Americans...
accused of murder at a time when most lawyers refused such cases. As their practice grew, he and Jamieson also engaged in moneylending
Credit (finance)
Credit is the trust which allows one party to provide resources to another party where that second party does not reimburse the first party immediately , but instead arranges either to repay or return those resources at a later date. The resources provided may be financial Credit is the trust...
. Besides his law practice, Rutherford was a successful real estate
Real estate
In general use, esp. North American, 'real estate' is taken to mean "Property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals, or water; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in this; an item of real property; buildings or...
investor, and also owned an interest in gold mining
Gold mining
Gold mining is the removal of gold from the ground. There are several techniques and processes by which gold may be extracted from the earth.-History:...
equipment situated on the North Saskatchewan River
North Saskatchewan River
The North Saskatchewan River is a glacier-fed river that flows east from the Canadian Rockies to central Saskatchewan. It is one of two major rivers that join to make up the Saskatchewan River....
.
Early political career
In 1896, Frank Oliver, who had represented EdmontonEdmonton (N.W.T. electoral district)
Edmonton was a territorial electoral district for the Legislative Assembly of Northwest Territories, Canada.The riding was created by royal proclamation in 1883 and abolished in 1905. In 1888 the riding returned the top two candidates after it was merged with the St. Albert electoral district. The...
in the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories since 1888, resigned to pursue a career in federal politics. Several Strathcona residents urged Rutherford to run for Oliver's old seat in the ensuing by-election
By-election
A by-election is an election held to fill a political office that has become vacant between regularly scheduled elections....
. Though he was originally reluctant, he agreed to stand after a three hundred signature petition
Petition
A petition is a request to do something, most commonly addressed to a government official or public entity. Petitions to a deity are a form of prayer....
urging his candidacy was presented to him. His only opponent was former Edmonton mayor Matthew McCauley
Matthew McCauley (politician)
Matthew "Matt" McCauley was the first mayor of the city of Edmonton, and a member of the legislative assemblies of both the Northwest Territories and Alberta....
who, like Rutherford, ran as an independent
Independent (politician)
In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do...
. Rutherford campaigned on a platform of improved roads, resource development, simplification of territorial ordinances, and—in what would become a theme of his political career—increased educational funding. McCauley won the election, but Rutherford received more than forty percent of the vote.
Northwest Territories general election, 1898
The Northwest Territories general election of 1898 took place on 4 November 1898. This was the fourth general election in the history of the Northwest Territories, Canada. It was held to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories....
, Rutherford again challenged the now-incumbent McCauley. His defeat of two years previous still fresh in his mind, his platform this time included a call for a redrawing
Redistribution (election)
Redistribution , called redistricting in the United States, is the process of changing of political borders. This is a form of boundary delimitation that changes electoral district boundaries, usually in response to periodic census results that cause malportionment of representation...
of the territory's electoral boundaries; he felt that the current Edmonton riding
Electoral district (Canada)
An electoral district in Canada, also known as a constituency or a riding, is a geographical constituency upon which Canada's representative democracy is based...
was gerrymandered in McCauley's favour. He also repeated his past calls for improved roads and advocated increased taxation on the railroads. He pledged "independent support" for the non-partisan administration of Premier Frederick Haultain, and supported that administration's call for the creation of a single province
Province of Buffalo
The Province of Buffalo was a proposal for the creation of a new Canadian province in the early 1900s. Its main proponent was Sir Frederick Haultain, the premier of the North-West Territories...
from the territories following the 1901 census
Census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
. Rutherford also criticized McCauley's past record, accusing him of silence on issues that were of concern to his constituents. Despite this, McCauley won again, albeit by a reduced margin.
Rutherford was at last successful in the 1902 election
Northwest Territories general election, 1902
The Northwest Territories general election of 1902, occurred on 21 May 1902 and was the fifth general election in the history of the Northwest Territories, Canada. It was held to elect Members of the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories. This was the last election held until 1951,...
, when he ran in the newly created riding of Strathcona
Strathcona (N.W.T. electoral district)
Strathcona was a territorial electoral district in the Northwest Territories from 1902 - 1905, after 1905 Alberta split from the territories, the Strathcona district continues to exist to present day.-Election Results 1902:-See also:...
. His 1902 platform was similar to his 1898 platform and supported Haultain, though this time he supported a two province integration of the Northwest Territories
Northwest Territories
The Northwest Territories is a federal territory of Canada.Located in northern Canada, the territory borders Canada's two other territories, Yukon to the west and Nunavut to the east, and three provinces: British Columbia to the southwest, and Alberta and Saskatchewan to the south...
into Confederation
Canadian Confederation
Canadian Confederation was the process by which the federal Dominion of Canada was formed on July 1, 1867. On that day, three British colonies were formed into four Canadian provinces...
, rather than Haultain's preferred one province approach, on the grounds that a single province would be so large as to be ungovernable. It at first looked as though he would run unopposed; however, at the last minute local lawyer Nelson D. Mills publicly accused Rutherford of being not a true independent, but a dyed-in-the-wool Haultain supporter, and announced that he would run against him. Nevertheless, Rutherford was supported by most of Strathcona's most prominent residents, including his law partner Jamieson and his future rival John R. Boyle
John R. Boyle
John Robert Boyle was a Canadian politician and jurist who served as a Member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta, a cabinet minister in the Government of Alberta, and a judge on the Supreme Court of Alberta. Born in Ontario, he came west and eventually settled in Edmonton, where he practiced...
, and won an easy victory.
Rutherford served in the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories until Alberta became a province in 1905. During his tenure, he was elected deputy speaker
Speaker (politics)
The term speaker is a title often given to the presiding officer of a deliberative assembly, especially a legislative body. The speaker's official role is to moderate debate, make rulings on procedure, announce the results of votes, and the like. The speaker decides who may speak and has the...
and sat on standing committees for libraries, municipal law, and education. His legislative efforts included successful attempts to extend the boundaries of the Town of Strathcona and to empower it to borrow for construction of public works. He was considered a possible member of Haultain's executive council
Executive Council (Canada)
Executive Councils in the provinces and territories of Canada are constitutional organs headed by the Lieutenant Governor.The Cabinet is an informal grouping within the Council, headed by a provincial Premier, whom hold de facto power over the body...
, likely in the post of Commissioner of Public Works, but the post instead went to George Bulyea. He joined many of his fellow MLA
Member of the Legislative Assembly
A Member of the Legislative Assembly or a Member of the Legislature , is a representative elected by the voters of a constituency to the legislature or legislative assembly of a sub-national jurisdiction....
s in continuing to advocate for provincial status, finding that the limitations on a territory's means to raise revenue prevented the Northwest Territories from meeting its obligations.
Though Rutherford supported Haultain's vision of non-partisan territorial administration, federally he was an avowed Liberal
Liberal Party of Canada
The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative...
. In 1900, he was elected president of the Strathcona Liberal association, and was a delegate to the convention that nominated Oliver as the party's candidate in Alberta
Alberta (Provisional District)
Alberta was a federal electoral district in the Northwest Territories, Canada, that was represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1887 to 1908.-History:...
for the 1900 federal election
Canadian federal election, 1900
The Canadian federal election of 1900 was held on November 7 to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 9th Parliament of Canada. As a result of the election, the Liberal Party, led by Prime Minister Wilfrid Laurier, was re-elected to a second majority government, defeating the...
. He subsequently campaigned for Oliver in his successful re-election attempt. When the new federal constituency of Strathcona
Strathcona (electoral district)
Strathcona was a federal electoral district in the Northwest Territories and Alberta, Canada, that was represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1904 to 1925. When it was created, it was part of the Northwest Territories. In 1905, when Saskatchewan and Alberta became provinces, it was split...
was formed in advance of the 1904 election
Canadian federal election, 1904
The Canadian federal election of 1904 was held on November 3 to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 10th Parliament of Canada...
, Rutherford was urged to accept the Liberal nomination, but demurred. Peter Talbot
Peter Talbot (politician)
Peter Talbot was a Canadian parliamentarian.Born in Eramosa, Canada West , he moved to Fort Macleod, Alberta, in 1890 to teach school. In 1892, he moved to Lacombe, Alberta, to homestead and raise cattle.In 1902 he was elected to the Legislative Assembly of Northwest Territories and served until...
was selected instead and, supported by Rutherford, was elected.
Selection as Premier
Prime Minister of Canada
The Prime Minister of Canada is the primary minister of the Crown, chairman of the Cabinet, and thus head of government for Canada, charged with advising the Canadian monarch or viceroy on the exercise of the executive powers vested in them by the constitution...
Sir Wilfrid Laurier
Wilfrid Laurier
Sir Wilfrid Laurier, GCMG, PC, KC, baptized Henri-Charles-Wilfrid Laurier was the seventh Prime Minister of Canada from 11 July 1896 to 6 October 1911....
introduced legislation to create two new provinces—Alberta
Alberta
Alberta is a province of Canada. It had an estimated population of 3.7 million in 2010 making it the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces...
and Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan is a prairie province in Canada, which has an area of . Saskatchewan is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, and on the south by the U.S. states of Montana and North Dakota....
—from the Northwest Territories. Though Haultain wanted the new provinces to be governed on the same non-partisan basis as the Territories had been, it was expected that the Liberal Laurier would recommend a Liberal to serve as Lieutenant-Governor, and it was further assumed that the Lieutenant-Governor would call on a Liberal to form the new province's first government. Oliver was the province's most prominent Liberal, but had just been named federal Minister of the Interior, and was not interested in leaving Ottawa. Talbot was Laurier's preferred candidate, but he expected to be appointed to the Senate
Canadian Senate
The Senate of Canada is a component of the Parliament of Canada, along with the House of Commons, and the monarch . The Senate consists of 105 members appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister...
and found the prospect more congenial than serving as Premier of Alberta. Both men supported Rutherford, though neither was enthusiastic about doing so. In August, Bulyea was appointed Alberta's first Lieutenant-Governor and later that month the Alberta Liberals selected Rutherford as their first leader. A final barrier was removed a few days later when Haultain, who was a Conservative
Conservative Party of Canada (historical)
The Conservative Party of Canada has gone by a variety of names over the years since Canadian Confederation. Initially known as the "Liberal-Conservative Party", it dropped "Liberal" from its name in 1873, although many of its candidates continued to use this name.As a result of World War I and the...
federally but who was thought to be a potential leader of a coalition government
Coalition government
A coalition government is a cabinet of a parliamentary government in which several political parties cooperate. The usual reason given for this arrangement is that no party on its own can achieve a majority in the parliament...
, announced that he would stay in Regina
Regina, Saskatchewan
Regina is the capital city of the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. The city is the second-largest in the province and a cultural and commercial centre for southern Saskatchewan. It is governed by Regina City Council. Regina is the cathedral city of the Roman Catholic and Romanian Orthodox...
to lead the Saskatchewan Conservatives. On September 2, Bulyea asked Rutherford to form the first government of Alberta.
After accepting the position of premier, Rutherford selected a geographically diverse cabinet on September 6: Edmonton
Edmonton
Edmonton is the capital of the Canadian province of Alberta and is the province's second-largest city. Edmonton is located on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Capital Region, which is surrounded by the central region of the province.The city and its census...
's Charles Wilson Cross as Attorney-General, Calgary
Calgary
Calgary is a city in the Province of Alberta, Canada. It is located in the south of the province, in an area of foothills and prairie, approximately east of the front ranges of the Canadian Rockies...
's William Henry Cushing
William Henry Cushing
William Henry Cushing was a Canadian politician. Born in Ontario, he migrated west as a young adult where he started a successful lumber company and later became Alberta's first Minister of Public Works and the 11th mayor of Calgary...
as Minister of Public Works, Medicine Hat's William Finlay
William Finlay
William Thomas Finlay was a politician and cabinet minister in Alberta and Northwest Territories, Canada-Early life:...
as Minister of Agriculture and Provincial Secretary, and Lethbridge
Lethbridge
Lethbridge is a city in the province of Alberta, Canada, and the largest city in southern Alberta. It is Alberta's fourth-largest city by population after Calgary, Edmonton and Red Deer, and the third-largest by area after Calgary and Edmonton. The nearby Canadian Rockies contribute to the city's...
's George DeVeber
Leverett DeVeber
Leverett George DeVeber was a Canadian politician who served as Member of the Legislative Assemblies of Alberta and the Northwest Territories, minister in the government of Alberta, and member of the Senate of Canada...
as Minister without Portfolio. Rutherford kept for himself the positions of Provincial Treasurer and Minister of Education.
1905 election
Rutherford was Premier, but had not yet faced the people in an election and did not yet have a legislature to which he could propose legislation. Elections for the first Legislative Assembly of AlbertaLegislative Assembly of Alberta
The Legislative Assembly of Alberta is one of two components of the Legislature of Alberta, the other being the Queen, represented by the Lieutenant-Governor of Alberta. The Alberta legislature meets in the Alberta Legislature Building in the provincial capital, Edmonton...
were accordingly fixed for November 9. The Conservatives
Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta
The Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta is a provincial centre-right party in the Canadian province of Alberta...
, the young province's only other political party, had already selected R. B. Bennett
R. B. Bennett
Richard Bedford Bennett, 1st Viscount Bennett, PC, KC was a Canadian lawyer, businessman, politician, and philanthropist. He served as the 11th Prime Minister of Canada from August 7, 1930, to October 23, 1935, during the worst of the Great Depression years...
as their leader. Bennett attacked the terms under which Alberta had been made a province, especially the clauses that left control of its lands and natural resources in the hands of the federal government and required the continued provincial funding of separate school
Separate school
In Canada, separate school refers to a particular type of school that has constitutional status in three provinces and statutory status in three territories...
s. He pointed out that Canada's older provinces had control of their own natural resources and that education was a provincial responsibility under the British North America Act. The Liberals responded to these criticisms by highlighting the financial compensation the province received from the federal government in exchange for control of its natural resources, which amounted to $375,000 per year. They further suggested that Conservative concern for control of lands was due to their desire to make favourable land concessions to the unpopular Canadian Pacific Railway
Canadian Pacific Railway
The Canadian Pacific Railway , formerly also known as CP Rail between 1968 and 1996, is a historic Canadian Class I railway founded in 1881 and now operated by Canadian Pacific Railway Limited, which began operations as legal owner in a corporate restructuring in 2001...
, which had historically been friendly with the Conservatives, and for whom Bennett had acted as solicitor.
Patronage
Patronage is the support, encouragement, privilege, or financial aid that an organization or individual bestows to another. In the history of art, arts patronage refers to the support that kings or popes have provided to musicians, painters, and sculptors...
, and the election's result was never really in doubt. Before the election, Talbot predicted that the government would win 18 of the province's 25 seats. Immediately after the election it appeared that the Liberals had won 21; when all the votes had been counted they had won 23 seats to the Conservatives' two. Bennett himself was defeated in his Calgary riding
Calgary (provincial electoral district)
Calgary was a provincial electoral district in Alberta, Canada that existed from 1905 to 1913 and was recreated from 1921 to 1959. The district returned from one to six members to the Legislative Assembly of Alberta...
. When the outcome was clear, the people of Strathcona feted Rutherford with a torchlight procession and bonfire.
First legislature and regional tensions
One of the most contentious issues facing the newly elected government was the decision of the province's capital city. The federal legislation creating the province had fixed EdmontonEdmonton
Edmonton is the capital of the Canadian province of Alberta and is the province's second-largest city. Edmonton is located on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Capital Region, which is surrounded by the central region of the province.The city and its census...
as the provisional capital, much to the chagrin of Calgary
Calgary
Calgary is a city in the Province of Alberta, Canada. It is located in the south of the province, in an area of foothills and prairie, approximately east of the front ranges of the Canadian Rockies...
. Neither party had taken a position on the divisive question during the campaign, but selecting a permanent capital was high on the list of the new legislature's orders of business. Calgary's case was made most enthusiastically by Minister of Public Works Cushing, Edmonton's by Attorney-General Cross. Banff
Banff, Alberta
Banff is a town within Banff National Park in Alberta, Canada. It is located in Alberta's Rockies along the Trans-Canada Highway, approximately west of Calgary and east of Lake Louise....
and Red Deer
Red Deer, Alberta
Red Deer is a city in Central Alberta, Canada. It is located near the midpoint of the Calgary-Edmonton Corridor and is surrounded by Red Deer County. It is Alberta's third-most-populous city – after Calgary and Edmonton. The city is located in aspen parkland, a region of rolling hills...
were also possibilities, but motions to select each failed to find seconders. In the end, Edmonton was designated by a vote of sixteen members—including Rutherford—to eight.
A personal priority of Rutherford had been the establishment of a university. Though the Edmonton Bulletin
Edmonton Bulletin
The Edmonton Bulletin was a newspaper in Edmonton, Alberta published from 1880 until January 20, 1951. It was founded by Frank Oliver, a politician and future minister in the Canadian Government....
opined that it would be unfair "that the people of the Province should be taxed for the special benefit of four per cent that they may be able to attach the cognomen of B.A. or M.A. to their names and flaunt the vanity of such over the taxpayer, who has to pay for it", Rutherford proceeded quickly. He was concerned that delay might result in the creation of denominational colleges, striking a blow to his dream of a high quality non-sectarian system of post-secondary education. A bill establishing the University was passed by the legislature, but left the government to decide the location. Calgary felt that, having lost the fight to be provincial capital, it could expect the university to be established there, and was not pleased a year later when the government announced the founding of the University of Alberta
University of Alberta
The University of Alberta is a public research university located in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Founded in 1908 by Alexander Cameron Rutherford, the first premier of Alberta and Henry Marshall Tory, its first president, it is widely recognized as one of the best universities in Canada...
in Rutherford's hometown of Strathcona.
Lethbridge
Lethbridge is a city in the province of Alberta, Canada, and the largest city in southern Alberta. It is Alberta's fourth-largest city by population after Calgary, Edmonton and Red Deer, and the third-largest by area after Calgary and Edmonton. The nearby Canadian Rockies contribute to the city's...
, Medicine Hat, and Wetaskiwin. It also established a speed limit
Speed limit
Road speed limits are used in most countries to regulate the speed of road vehicles. Speed limits may define maximum , minimum or no speed limit and are normally indicated using a traffic sign...
of 20 miles per hour (32.2 km/h) for motorized vehicles and set up a regime for mine inspection. Perhaps most significantly, it set up a court system, with Arthur Lewis Sifton
Arthur Lewis Sifton
Arthur Lewis Watkins Sifton, PC, KC was a Canadian politician who served as the second Premier of Alberta from 1910 until 1917 and as a minister in the Government of Canada thereafter. Born in Ontario, he grew up there and in Winnipeg, where he became a lawyer...
as the province's first Chief Justice.
Though the founding of the University of Alberta was the centrepiece of Rutherford's educational policy, his activity as Minister of Education extended well beyond it. In the first year of Alberta's existence, 140 new schools were established, and a normal school
Normal school
A normal school is a school created to train high school graduates to be teachers. Its purpose is to establish teaching standards or norms, hence its name...
was set up in Calgary to train teachers. Rutherford put great emphasis on the creation of English-language schools in the large portions of the province occupied primarily by central- and eastern-European immigrants. The immigrants themselves were often unable to speak English, and the provision of these schools for their children was a major factor in their rapid assimilation into Albertan society. They were also in lieu of separate religious schools for groups such as Mennonites; while the continued existence of Roman Catholic separate schools was mandated by the terms of Alberta's admission into Confederation, the government's policy was otherwise to encourage a unified and secular public school system. Rutherford also introduced free school texts in the province, though he was criticized for commissioning the texts from a Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
publisher (which printed them in New York) rather than locally.
Labour unrest
The winter of 1906–07 was the coldest in Alberta history; this was exacerbated by a shortage of coal. One cause of this shortage was the strained relationship between coal miners and mine operators in the province. At the beginning of April 1907 the Canada West Coal and Coke Company locked outLockout (industry)
A lockout is a work stoppage in which an employer prevents employees from working. This is different from a strike, in which employees refuse to work.- Causes :...
the miners from its mine near Taber. The same company was also facing a work stoppage at its mine in the Crow's Nest Pass, where miners were refusing to sign a new contract. The problem spread, until by April 22 all 3,400 miners working for member-companies of the Western Coal Operators' Association were off work. Miners' demands included increased wages, a reduction in working hours to eight per day (from ten), the posting of mine inspection reports, the isolated storage of explosives, the use of non-freezing explosives, and semi-monthly rather than monthly pay; the mine operators objected to this last point on the basis that many miners did not report to work the day after payday, and it was thus desirable to keep paydays to a minimum.
Incorporation (business)
Incorporation is the forming of a new corporation . The corporation may be a business, a non-profit organisation, sports club, or a government of a new city or town...
of mine unions which was recommended by mines but opposed by the unions. It also made no recommendation about working hours, but Rutherford's government legislated an eight hour day anyway.
Apart from coal mining issues, the government also passed workers' compensation
Workers' compensation
Workers' compensation is a form of insurance providing wage replacement and medical benefits to employees injured in the course of employment in exchange for mandatory relinquishment of the employee's right to sue his or her employer for the tort of negligence...
legislation designed to make such compensation automatic, rather than requiring the injured worker to sue his employer. Labour representatives criticized the bill for failing to impose fines on negligent employers and for limiting construction workers' eligibility under the program to injuries sustained while working on buildings more than 40 feet (12.2 m) in height, as well as for its exemption of casual labourers. It also viewed the maximum payout of $1,500 as inadequate. In response to these concerns, the maximum was increased to $1,800 and the minimum building height reduced to 30 feet (9.1 m). In response to farmers' concerns, farm labourers were exempt from the bill entirely.
Rutherford's relationship with organized labour was never easy. Historian L.G. Thomas argued that there was little indication that Rutherford had any interest in courting the labour vote. In 1908, Labour candidate Donald McNabb
Donald McNabb
Donald McNabb was a politician from Alberta, Canada.In 1890 helped form a committee to raise money to buy books and periodicals and furnishings for the Miner's Library in Lethbridge....
was elected in a Lethbridge
Lethbridge (provincial electoral district)
Lethbridge was a provincial electoral district in Alberta, Canada.The riding has existed twice. The first incarnation was in 1905 when Alberta first became a province. Lethbridge covered a large patch of southern Alberta, It was broken into Lethbridge District and Lethbridge City in 1909...
by-election; the riding had previously been held by a Liberal. McNabb was the first Labour MLA elected in Alberta, though he was defeated in his 1909 re-election bid.
Public works
Rutherford's Liberals self-identified as the party of free enterprise, in contrast to the public ownership-supporting Conservatives. Despite this, they made a limited number of large-scale forays into government operation of utilities, the most notable of which was the creation of Alberta Government TelephonesAlberta Government Telephones
Alberta Government Telephones was formed by the Liberal government of Alexander Cameron Rutherford in 1906 following the acquisitions by the government of several independent telephone companies...
. In 1906, Alberta's municipalities legislation was passed and included a provision authorizing municipalities to operate telephone companies. Several, including Edmonton, did so, alongside private companies. The largest of this latter group was the Bell Telephone Company
Bell Canada
Bell Canada is a major Canadian telecommunications company. Including its subsidiaries such as Bell Aliant, Northwestel, Télébec, and NorthernTel, it is the incumbent local exchange carrier for telephone and DSL Internet services in most of Canada east of Manitoba and in the northern territories,...
, which held a monopoly
Monopoly
A monopoly exists when a specific person or enterprise is the only supplier of a particular commodity...
over service in Calgary. Such monopolies and the private firms' refusal to extend their services into sparsely populated and unprofitable rural areas aroused demand for provincial entry into the market, which was effected in 1907. The government constructed a number of lines, beginning with one between Calgary and Banff, and also purchased Bell's lines for $675,000.
Alberta's public telephone system was financed by debt, which was unusual for a government like Rutherford's that was generally committed to the principle of "pay as you go
PAYGO
PAYGO is the practice in the United States of financing expenditures with funds that are currently available rather than borrowed.-Budgeting:The PAYGO compels new spending or tax changes not to add to the federal deficit. Not to be confused with pay-as-you-go financing, which is when a government...
". Rutherford's stated rationale was that the cost of such a large capital project shouldn't be borne by a single generation and that incurring debt to finance a corresponding asset was, in contrast to operating deficits, acceptable. Though the move was popular at the time, it would prove not to be a financially astute one: by focusing on areas neglected by existing companies, the government was entering into the most expensive and least profitable fields of telecommunication. These problems would not come to fruition until Rutherford had left office, however; in the short-term, the government's involvement in the telephone business helped it to a sweeping victory in the 1909 election
Alberta general election, 1909
The Alberta general election was 1909 was the second general election for the Province of Alberta, Canada. It was held on 22 March 1909 to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta....
, in which the Liberals won 37 of 41 seats in the newly expanded legislature.
Of equal profile was Rutherford's government's management of the province's railways. Alberta's early years were optimistic ones, which manifested itself in a pronounced enthusiasm for the construction of new railway lines. Every town wanted to be a railway centre, and the government had great confidence in the ability of the free market to provide low freight rates to the province's farmers provided sufficient charters were issued to competing companies. The legislature passed government-sponsored legislation setting out a framework for new railways in 1907, but interest from private firms in actually building the lines was limited. In the face of public demand and support by legislators of all parties for as rapid as possible an expansion of the province's lines, the government offered loan guarantees to several companies in exchange for commitments to build lines. Rutherford justified this in part by his conviction that railways needed to expand along with population, rather than having railway expansion follow population growth as would be the case without government intervention. The Conservatives argued that this strategy didn't go far enough, and called for direct government ownership.
Railway scandal
John R. Boyle
John Robert Boyle was a Canadian politician and jurist who served as a Member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta, a cabinet minister in the Government of Alberta, and a judge on the Supreme Court of Alberta. Born in Ontario, he came west and eventually settled in Edmonton, where he practiced...
began to ask questions about the agreement between the government and the Alberta and Great Waterways Railway Company, and Cushing resigned from cabinet over his views of this same agreement.
The Alberta and Great Waterways Railway was one of several companies that had been granted charters and assistance by the legislature to build new railways in the province. The government support that it received was more generous than that received by more established railways, such as the Grand Trunk Pacific Railway
Grand Trunk Pacific Railway
The Grand Trunk Pacific Railway was a historical Canadian railway.A wholly owned subsidiary of the Grand Trunk Railway , the GTPR was constructed by GTR using loans provided by the Government of Canada. The company was formed in 1903 with a mandate to build west from Winnipeg, Manitoba to the...
and the Canadian Northern Railway
Canadian Northern Railway
The Canadian Northern Railway is a historic Canadian transcontinental railway. At its demise in 1923, when it was merged into the Canadian National Railway , the CNoR owned a main line between Quebec City and Vancouver via Ottawa, Winnipeg, and Edmonton.-Manitoba beginnings:CNoR had its start in...
. Boyle, Cushing, and Bennett alleged favouritism or ineptitude by Rutherford and his government, and pointed to the sale of government-guaranteed bonds in support of the company as further evidence. Because of the high interest rate they paid, the bonds were sold at above par value
Par value
Par value, in finance and accounting, means stated value or face value. From this comes the expressions at par , over par and under par ....
, but the government only received par for them, leaving the company to pocket the difference.
Boyle sponsored a motion of non-confidence against the government. Despite enjoying the support of twelve Liberals, including Cushing, the motion was defeated and the government upheld. Rutherford attempted to quell the controversy by calling a royal commission
Royal Commission
In Commonwealth realms and other monarchies a Royal Commission is a major ad-hoc formal public inquiry into a defined issue. They have been held in various countries such as the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and Saudi Arabia...
, but pressure from many Liberals, including Bulyea, led him to resign May 26, 1910; he was replaced by Arthur Sifton, hitherto the province's chief judge. In November, the royal commission issued its report. It found that the evidence did not show a conflict of interest
Conflict of interest
A conflict of interest occurs when an individual or organization is involved in multiple interests, one of which could possibly corrupt the motivation for an act in the other....
on Rutherford's part, but the majority report was nevertheless highly critical of the former Premier. A minority report was much kinder, avowing perfect satisfaction with Rutherford's version of events.
Later political career
After resigning as Premier, Rutherford continued to sit as a Liberal MLA. He commanded the loyalty of many Liberals who had supported his government through the Alberta and Great Waterways issue, though this faction began increasingly to see Cross as its real leader. Rutherford opposed the Sifton government's decision to confiscate the Alberta and Great Waterways bond money and revoke its charter, and in 1913 was one of only two Liberals to support a non-confidence motion against the government (Cross had by this time joined the Sifton cabinet, which placated most members of the Cross-Rutherford faction). In the 1913 electionAlberta general election, 1913
The Alberta general election of 1913 was the third general election for the Province of Alberta, Canada. The writ was dropped on 25 March 1913 and election day was held 17 April 1913 to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta. Elections in two northern districts took place on 30 July...
, Rutherford was again nominated as the Liberal candidate in Edmonton South
Edmonton South (provincial electoral district)
Edmonton South was a provincial electoral district in Alberta, Canada. The district was created in 1913, when the borders of Edmonton, Alberta expanded south. Edmonton was big enough to warrant adding a third seat...
(Strathcona had been amalgamated into Edmonton in 1912), despite pledging opposition to the Sifton government and offering to campaign around the province for the Conservatives if they agreed not to run a candidate against him. At the nomination meeting, he stated that he was "not running as a Sifton candidate" and was "a good independent candidate ... and a good Liberal too". Despite his opposition to the government, the Conservatives declined his offer of support and nominated Herbert Crawford
Herbert Crawford
Herbert Howard Crawford was a provincial level politician from Alberta, Canada.Crawford attempted a run at Edmonton municipal politics running for the position of Public School Trustee in the December 1912 Edmonton Municipal Election...
to run against him. After a vigorous campaign, Crawford defeated Rutherford by fewer than 250 votes. Cross lobbied Prime Minister Laurier unsuccessfully for Rutherford to be appointed to the Senate, though he was made King's Counsel shortly after his electoral defeat.
The 1913 election was not the first time Rutherford had dissented from his own party during an election, nor would it be the last. Before the 1911 federal election
Canadian federal election, 1911
The Canadian federal election of 1911 was held on September 21 to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 12th Parliament of Canada.-Summary:...
, several local Liberals opposed to Frank Oliver had asked Rutherford to run against him in Strathcona
Strathcona (electoral district)
Strathcona was a federal electoral district in the Northwest Territories and Alberta, Canada, that was represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1904 to 1925. When it was created, it was part of the Northwest Territories. In 1905, when Saskatchewan and Alberta became provinces, it was split...
. Relations between Oliver and Rutherford had always been chilly—Oliver was implacably opposed to Cross, who he viewed as a rival for dominance of the Liberal party in Alberta, and his Edmonton Bulletin had taken the side of the dissidents during the railway scandal. A nominating meeting unanimously nominated Rutherford as Liberal candidate, though Oliver refused to accept its legitimacy and awaited a later meeting. Before this meeting came to pass, however, Rutherford abruptly withdrew. Historian Douglas Babcock has suggested that this was due to the Conservatives' nomination of William Antrobus Griesbach
William Antrobus Griesbach
Major General William Antrobus Griesbach CB CMG DSO was a Canadian politician, decorated soldier, mayor of Edmonton, and member of the Canadian House of Commons and Senate of Canada.-Early life:...
, dashing Rutherford's hopes that his popularity among Conservatives would preclude their opposing him. Rumours at the time alleged that Rutherford had been asked to make a personal contribution of $15,000 to his campaign fund, and had balked. Rutherford himself cited a desire to avoid splitting the vote
Vote splitting
Vote splitting is an electoral effect in which the distribution of votes among multiple similar candidates reduces the chance of winning for any of the similar candidates, and increases the chance of winning for a dissimilar candidate....
on reciprocity
Reciprocity (Canadian politics)
In nineteenth and early twentieth century Canadian politics, the term reciprocity was used to describe the concept of free trade with the United States of America...
, which he and Oliver both favoured but Griesbach opposed. Whatever the reason, Oliver went on to be nominated as Liberal candidate and was re-elected.
After his defeat in 1913, Rutherford was not active in politics until 1921. In that year's provincial election
Alberta general election, 1921
The Alberta general election of 1921 was the fifth general election for the Province of Alberta, Canada. It was held on July 18, 1921 to elect members to the 5th Alberta Legislative Assembly....
, he campaigned actively for the Conservatives, including for Crawford, the man who had defeated him eight years earlier. Rutherford continued to call himself a Liberal, but criticized the incumbent administration for the growth of the provincial debt and for letting the party fall into disarray. Calling the Charles Stewart
Charles Stewart (Canadian politician)
Charles Stewart, PC was a Canadian politician who served as the third Premier of Alberta from 1917 until 1921. Born in Strabane, Ontario, in Wentworth County, Stewart was a farmer who moved west to Alberta after his farm was destroyed by a storm...
-led government "rotten", he offered voters the slogan "get rid of the barnacles and the Boyle
John R. Boyle
John Robert Boyle was a Canadian politician and jurist who served as a Member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta, a cabinet minister in the Government of Alberta, and a judge on the Supreme Court of Alberta. Born in Ontario, he came west and eventually settled in Edmonton, where he practiced...
s". The Liberals were defeated, but the landslide win by the United Farmers of Alberta
United Farmers of Alberta
The United Farmers of Alberta is an association of Alberta farmers that has served many different roles throughout its history as a lobby group, a political party, and as a farm-supply retail chain. Since 1934 it has primarily been an agricultural supply cooperative headquartered in Calgary...
left the Conservatives with only one seat.
Professional career
Once out of politics, Rutherford returned to his law practice. His partnership with Jamieson saw partners come and go. Rutherford divided his time between the original Strathcona office and the Edmonton office he opened in 1910; his practice focussed on contractContract
A contract is an agreement entered into by two parties or more with the intention of creating a legal obligation, which may have elements in writing. Contracts can be made orally. The remedy for breach of contract can be "damages" or compensation of money. In equity, the remedy can be specific...
s, real estate
Real estate
In general use, esp. North American, 'real estate' is taken to mean "Property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals, or water; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in this; an item of real property; buildings or...
, wills
Will (law)
A will or testament is a legal declaration by which a person, the testator, names one or more persons to manage his/her estate and provides for the transfer of his/her property at death...
and estates
Estate (law)
An estate is the net worth of a person at any point in time. It is the sum of a person's assets - legal rights, interests and entitlements to property of any kind - less all liabilities at that time. The issue is of special legal significance on a question of bankruptcy and death of the person...
, and incorporation
Incorporation (business)
Incorporation is the forming of a new corporation . The corporation may be a business, a non-profit organisation, sports club, or a government of a new city or town...
s. In 1923, Rutherford's son Cecil joined the firm along with Stanley Harwood McCuaig, who in 1919 would marry Rutherford's daughter Hazel. In 1925, Jamieson left the partnership to establish his own firm. In 1939, McCuaig did the same. Cecil's partnership with his father continued until the latter's death.
Levi Strauss & Co.
Levi Strauss & Co. is a privately held American clothing company known worldwide for its Levi's brand of denim jeans. It was founded in 1853 when Levi Strauss came from Buttenheim, Franconia, to San Francisco, California to open a west coast branch of his brothers' New York dry goods business...
in 1961, but continued to manufacture garments in Edmonton until 2004.
Rutherford also acted as director of the Canada National Fire Insurance Company, the Imperial Canadian Trust Company, the Great West Permanent Loan Company, and the Monarch Life Assurance Company.
University of Alberta
Education was a personal priority of Rutherford's, as evidenced by his retention of the office of Education Minister for his entire time as Premier and by his enthusiastic work in founding the University of AlbertaUniversity of Alberta
The University of Alberta is a public research university located in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Founded in 1908 by Alexander Cameron Rutherford, the first premier of Alberta and Henry Marshall Tory, its first president, it is widely recognized as one of the best universities in Canada...
. In 1911 he was elected by Alberta's university graduates to the University of Alberta Senate, responsible for the institution's academic affairs. In 1912 he established the Rutherford Gold Medal in English for the senior year honours English student with the highest standing; the prize still exists today as the Rutherford Memorial Medal in English. In 1912, with the University's first graduating class, Rutherford instituted a tradition of inviting convocating students to his house for tea; this tradition would last for twenty-six years.
Rutherford remained on the university senate until 1927, when he was elected Chancellor. The position was the titular head of the university, and its primary duty was presiding over convocations. According to Rutherford biographer Douglas Babcock, this was the honour that Rutherford prized most. He was acclaimed to the position every four years until his death. It has been estimated that he awarded degrees to more than five thousand students. His final convocation, however, was marred by controversy: in 1941, a committee of the university senate recommended awarding an honorary degree
Honorary degree
An honorary degree or a degree honoris causa is an academic degree for which a university has waived the usual requirements, such as matriculation, residence, study, and the passing of examinations...
to Premier William Aberhart
William Aberhart
William Aberhart , also known as Bible Bill for his outspoken Baptist views, was a Canadian politician and the seventh Premier of Alberta between 1935 and 1943. The Social Credit party believed the reason for the depression was that people did not have enough money to spend, so the government...
. Aberhart was pleased, and happily accepted University President William Alexander Robb Kerr
William Alexander Robb Kerr
William Alexander Robb Kerr was a Canadian academic and the third president of the University of Alberta....
's invitation to deliver the commencement address at convocation. However, a week prior to convocation the full senate—responsible for all university academic affairs—met, and voted against awarding Aberhart a degree. Aberhart rescinded his acceptance of the Kerr's invitation (and later removed the senate's authority—except, ironically, the authority to award honorary degrees) and Kerr resigned in protest. Rutherford was mortified, but presided over convocation nonetheless.
Community involvement and family life
Rutherford remained active in a wide range of community organizations well after his departure from politics. He was a deaconDeacon
Deacon is a ministry in the Christian Church that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions...
in his church until well into his dotage, was a member of the Young Women's Christian Association
World YWCA
The World YWCA is the umbrella organization of the global network of the YWCA, a movement of women working for social and economic change around the world. It advocates for young women’s leadership, peace, justice, human rights and sustainable development, both on a grassroots and global scale...
advisory board from 1913 until his death, was Edmonton's first exalted ruler of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks
Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks
The Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks is an American fraternal order and social club founded in 1868...
and spent three years as the grand exalted ruler of the Elk Order of Canada. During World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
he was Alberta director of the National Service Commission, which oversaw conscription
Conscription
Conscription is the compulsory enlistment of people in some sort of national service, most often military service. Conscription dates back to antiquity and continues in some countries to the present day under various names...
from 1916 until 1918, and in 1916 was appointed Honorary Colonel of the 194th Highland Battalion of the Canadian Expeditionary Force
Canadian Expeditionary Force
The Canadian Expeditionary Force was the designation of the field force created by Canada for service overseas in the First World War. Units of the C.E.F. were divided into field formation in France, where they were organized first into separate divisions and later joined together into a single...
. Rutherford served on the Loan Advisory Committee of the Soldier Settlement Board after the war, was President of the Alberta Historical Society (which had been created by his government) from 1919 until his death, was elected President of the McGill University Alumni Association of Alberta in 1922, and spent the last years of his life as honorary president of the Canadian Authors Association. He was also a member of the Northern Alberta Pioneers and Old-Timers Association, the British Association for the Advancement of Science, the Royal Colonial Institute of London, and the Masons
Freemasonry
Freemasonry is a fraternal organisation that arose from obscure origins in the late 16th to early 17th century. Freemasonry now exists in various forms all over the world, with a membership estimated at around six million, including approximately 150,000 under the jurisdictions of the Grand Lodge...
. He continued to curl
Curling
Curling is a sport in which players slide stones across a sheet of ice towards a target area. It is related to bowls, boule and shuffleboard. Two teams, each of four players, take turns sliding heavy, polished granite stones, also called "rocks", across the ice curling sheet towards the house, a...
and played tennis
Tennis
Tennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...
into his late fifties, and took up golf
Golf
Golf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....
at the age of sixty-four, becoming a charter member of the Mayfair Golf and Country Club. He received honorary doctorates of laws from four universities: McGill, the University of Alberta, McMaster University
McMaster University
McMaster University is a public research university whose main campus is located in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is located on of land in the residential neighbourhood of Westdale, adjacent to Hamilton's Royal Botanical Gardens...
, and the University of Toronto
University of Toronto
The University of Toronto is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution of higher learning in Upper Canada...
.
Rutherford House
Rutherford House was the home of the first Premier of Alberta, Alexander Cameron Rutherford from 1911 to 1941. It is now an Alberta Provincial Historic Site.-Overview:...
, and serves as a museum. He made several trips to the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, and was invited to attend the coronation
Coronation
A coronation is a ceremony marking the formal investiture of a monarch and/or their consort with regal power, usually involving the placement of a crown upon their head and the presentation of other items of regalia...
of George VI
George VI of the United Kingdom
George VI was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until his death...
, but had to return to Canada before the event. On December 19, 1938, the Rutherfords celebrated their fiftieth wedding anniversary
Wedding anniversary
-Official recognition:In the Commonwealth realms, one can receive a message from the monarch for 60th, 65th, and 70th wedding anniversaries, and any wedding anniversary after that...
; tributes and well-wishes arrived from across Canada.
Death and legacy
Besides his bronchitisBronchitis
Acute bronchitis is an inflammation of the large bronchi in the lungs that is usually caused by viruses or bacteria and may last several days or weeks. Characteristic symptoms include cough, sputum production, and shortness of breath and wheezing related to the obstruction of the inflamed airways...
, Rutherford developed diabetes in later years. His wife monitored his sugar intake, though when they were apart Rutherford sometimes took less care than she would have liked him to. In 1938, possibly as a result of diabetes, he suffered a stroke
Stroke
A stroke, previously known medically as a cerebrovascular accident , is the rapidly developing loss of brain function due to disturbance in the blood supply to the brain. This can be due to ischemia caused by blockage , or a hemorrhage...
that left him paralyzed and mute. He learned to walk again and with the help of a grade one reader got his speech back. September 13, 1940, Mattie Rutherford died of cancer. Less than a year later, June 11, 1941, Rutherford suffered a fatal heart attack while in hospital for insulin
Insulin
Insulin is a hormone central to regulating carbohydrate and fat metabolism in the body. Insulin causes cells in the liver, muscle, and fat tissue to take up glucose from the blood, storing it as glycogen in the liver and muscle....
treatment. He was 84 years old. Alexander Rutherford was buried in Mount Pleasant Cemetery in Edmonton, alongside his family. His name was attached to many institutions both during his life and after: Rutherford Elementary School in Edmonton was established in 1911 and the University of Alberta's Rutherford Library in 1951. In 1954, a mountain in Jasper National Park
Jasper National Park
Jasper National Park is the largest national park in the Canadian Rockies, spanning 10,878 km² . It is located in the province of Alberta, north of Banff National Park and west of the City of Edmonton. The park includes the glaciers of the Columbia Icefield, hot springs, lakes, waterfalls and...
was named Mount Rutherford
Mount Rutherford
Mount Rutherford is a mountain in Alberta, Canada. Located in Jasper National Park, it is part of the Northern Front Ranges of the Canadian Rockies...
. In 1980, the government of Alberta created the Alexander Rutherford Scholarship, which awards more than $20 million annually to high school students selected on the basis of academic excellence.
Mount Royal College
Mount Royal University is a public university in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Founded in 1910 as a primary and secondary school, Mount Royal became a post-secondary institution in 1931 as Mount Royal College offering transfer courses to the University of Alberta and later to the University of Calgary...
historian Patricia Roome concluded her chapter on Rutherford in a book about Alberta's first twelve premiers, "Rutherford's educational contribution remains his ultimate legacy to Albertans."
As party leader
| 1909 Alberta provincial election Alberta general election, 1909 The Alberta general election was 1909 was the second general election for the Province of Alberta, Canada. It was held on 22 March 1909 to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta.... |
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| Party | Party leader | # of candidates |
Seats | Popular vote | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1905 Alberta general election, 1905 The Alberta general election of 1905 was the first general election held in the Province of Alberta, Canada. It was held on 9 November 1905, to elect members of the Alberta legislature to the 1st Alberta Legislative Assembly, shortly after the province was created out of the Northwest Territories... |
1909 Alberta general election, 1909 The Alberta general election was 1909 was the second general election for the Province of Alberta, Canada. It was held on 22 March 1909 to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta.... |
% Change | # | % | % Change |
Liberal Alberta Liberal Party The Alberta Liberal Party is a provincial political party in Alberta, Canada. Originally founded in 1905, when the province was created, it was the dominant political party until 1921 when it was defeated. It has never been in government since that time... |
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42 | 23 | 36 | +63.8% | 29,634 | 59.26% | +1.70% |
Conservative Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta The Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta is a provincial centre-right party in the Canadian province of Alberta... |
Albert Robertson Albert John Robertson was a politician from Alberta, Canada, and the first Leader of the Opposition in the province's history. He led the Conservatives in the Legislative Assembly of Alberta from 1905 to 1909, before being defeated in the 1909 election.... |
29 | 2 | 2 | 0% | 15,848 | 31.7% | −5.43% |
Independent | 6 | — | 1 | — | 1,695 | 3.39% | −1.92% |
Independent Liberal | 2 | — | 1 | — | 1,311 | 2.62% | — |
Socialist Socialist Party of Canada There have been two different but related political parties in Canada that called themselves the Socialist Party of Canada . The current Socialist Party is an electorally inactive and unregistered federal political party in Canada... |
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2 | — | 1 | — | 1,302 | 2.60% | — |
Labour | Donald McNabb Donald McNabb was a politician from Alberta, Canada.In 1890 helped form a committee to raise money to buy books and periodicals and furnishings for the Miner's Library in Lethbridge.... |
1 | — | — | — | 214 | 0.43% | — | ||
| Total | 82 | 25 | 41 | +64.0% | 50,004 | 100% | |
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| 1905 Alberta provincial election Alberta general election, 1905 The Alberta general election of 1905 was the first general election held in the Province of Alberta, Canada. It was held on 9 November 1905, to elect members of the Alberta legislature to the 1st Alberta Legislative Assembly, shortly after the province was created out of the Northwest Territories... |
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| Party | Party leader | # of candidates |
Seats | Popular vote | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| # | % |
Liberal Alberta Liberal Party The Alberta Liberal Party is a provincial political party in Alberta, Canada. Originally founded in 1905, when the province was created, it was the dominant political party until 1921 when it was defeated. It has never been in government since that time... |
|
26 | 23 | 14,485 | 57.56% |
Conservative Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta The Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta is a provincial centre-right party in the Canadian province of Alberta... |
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23 | 2 | 9,316 | 37.13% |
Independent | 7 | — | 1,336 | 5.31% |
Labor | |
2 | — | 843 | % | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Total | 56 | 25 | 25,163 | 100% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
As MLA
| 1913 Alberta general election Alberta general election, 1913 The Alberta general election of 1913 was the third general election for the Province of Alberta, Canada. The writ was dropped on 25 March 1913 and election day was held 17 April 1913 to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta. Elections in two northern districts took place on 30 July... results (Edmonton South Edmonton South (provincial electoral district) Edmonton South was a provincial electoral district in Alberta, Canada. The district was created in 1913, when the borders of Edmonton, Alberta expanded south. Edmonton was big enough to warrant adding a third seat... ) |
Turnout | |||
| Conservative | Herbert Crawford Herbert Crawford Herbert Howard Crawford was a provincial level politician from Alberta, Canada.Crawford attempted a run at Edmonton municipal politics running for the position of Public School Trustee in the December 1912 Edmonton Municipal Election... |
1,523 | 54.4% |
Liberal Alberta Liberal Party The Alberta Liberal Party is a provincial political party in Alberta, Canada. Originally founded in 1905, when the province was created, it was the dominant political party until 1921 when it was defeated. It has never been in government since that time... |
Alexander C. Rutherford | 1,275 | 45.6% |
| 1909 Alberta general election Alberta general election, 1909 The Alberta general election was 1909 was the second general election for the Province of Alberta, Canada. It was held on 22 March 1909 to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta.... results (Strathcona Strathcona (provincial electoral district) Strathcona is a provincial electoral district for the Legislative Assembly of Alberta, Canada. It is not to be confused with Edmonton-Strathcona, another provincial electoral district within the city of Edmonton, or with the federal electoral district Edmonton-Strathcona.The riding of Strathcona... ) |
Turnout | |||
| Liberal Alberta Liberal Party The Alberta Liberal Party is a provincial political party in Alberta, Canada. Originally founded in 1905, when the province was created, it was the dominant political party until 1921 when it was defeated. It has never been in government since that time... |
Alexander C. Rutherford | 1,034 | 85.9% |
Conservative | Rice Sheppard Rice Sheppard Rice Sheppard was a politician and farmers' activist in Alberta, Canada. He served on Edmonton City Council for many years, ran for mayoral, provincial, and federal office, and was an executive member of the United Farmers of Alberta.-Early life:Sheppard was born April 2, 1861 in Lambourn,... |
173 | 14.1% |
| 1905 Alberta general election Alberta general election, 1905 The Alberta general election of 1905 was the first general election held in the Province of Alberta, Canada. It was held on 9 November 1905, to elect members of the Alberta legislature to the 1st Alberta Legislative Assembly, shortly after the province was created out of the Northwest Territories... results (Strathcona Strathcona (provincial electoral district) Strathcona is a provincial electoral district for the Legislative Assembly of Alberta, Canada. It is not to be confused with Edmonton-Strathcona, another provincial electoral district within the city of Edmonton, or with the federal electoral district Edmonton-Strathcona.The riding of Strathcona... ) |
Turnout | |||
| Liberal Alberta Liberal Party The Alberta Liberal Party is a provincial political party in Alberta, Canada. Originally founded in 1905, when the province was created, it was the dominant political party until 1921 when it was defeated. It has never been in government since that time... |
Alexander C. Rutherford | 625 | 67.1% |
Conservative | Frank W. Crang | 306 | 32.9% |
| 1902 Northwest Territories general election Northwest Territories general election, 1902 The Northwest Territories general election of 1902, occurred on 21 May 1902 and was the fifth general election in the history of the Northwest Territories, Canada. It was held to elect Members of the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories. This was the last election held until 1951,... results (Strathcona Strathcona (N.W.T. electoral district) Strathcona was a territorial electoral district in the Northwest Territories from 1902 - 1905, after 1905 Alberta split from the territories, the Strathcona district continues to exist to present day.-Election Results 1902:-See also:... ) |
Turnout | |||
| Alexander C. Rutherford | 577 | 89.5% | ||
| N.D. Mills | 68 | 10.5% | ||
| 1898 Northwest Territories general election Northwest Territories general election, 1898 The Northwest Territories general election of 1898 took place on 4 November 1898. This was the fourth general election in the history of the Northwest Territories, Canada. It was held to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories.... results (Edmonton Edmonton (N.W.T. electoral district) Edmonton was a territorial electoral district for the Legislative Assembly of Northwest Territories, Canada.The riding was created by royal proclamation in 1883 and abolished in 1905. In 1888 the riding returned the top two candidates after it was merged with the St. Albert electoral district. The... ) |
Turnout | |||
| Matthew McCauley Matthew McCauley (politician) Matthew "Matt" McCauley was the first mayor of the city of Edmonton, and a member of the legislative assemblies of both the Northwest Territories and Alberta.... |
582 | 48.8% | ||
| Alexander C. Rutherford | 498 | 41.8% | ||
| Harry Havelock Robertson | 112 | 9.4% | ||
| 1896 by-election results (Edmonton Edmonton (N.W.T. electoral district) Edmonton was a territorial electoral district for the Legislative Assembly of Northwest Territories, Canada.The riding was created by royal proclamation in 1883 and abolished in 1905. In 1888 the riding returned the top two candidates after it was merged with the St. Albert electoral district. The... ) |
Turnout | |||
| Matthew McCauley Matthew McCauley (politician) Matthew "Matt" McCauley was the first mayor of the city of Edmonton, and a member of the legislative assemblies of both the Northwest Territories and Alberta.... |
567 | 58.6% | ||
| Alexander C. Rutherford | 400 | 41.4% | ||