Edmonton municipal election, 1892 - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The 1892 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...

municipal election, held February 10, 1892, was the first after the incorporation of Edmonton

Edmonton

as a town, and was held to elect the new town's first town council (consisting of a mayor and six aldermen) for a one year term. It saw 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....

acclaimed as Edmonton's first mayor, and elected Colin Strang

Colin Strang

Colin Ferrie Strang was a politician in Alberta, Canada and an alderman on Edmonton Town Council.-Biography:...

, Daniel Fraser, Edward Carey

Edward Carey

Edward Francis Carey was a politician in Alberta, Canada and a municipal councillor in Edmonton.-Biography:...

, James Goodridge

James Goodridge

James Goodridge was a politician in Alberta, Canada and a municipal councillor in Edmonton.-Biography:Goodridge was born in 1852 in Vaughan, Ontario. He later moved to Winnipeg before coming west to Edmonton by ox-train in 1882...

, John Cameron

John Cameron (Alberta politician)

John A. Cameron was a politician in Alberta, Canada and a municipal councillor in Edmonton.-Biography:Cameron moved from Winnipeg to Edmonton in 1881 by ox-cart, bringing with him of freight on a journey that took three months. Once in Edmonton, he used this freight as the initial inventory of a...

, and Philip Daly

Philip Daly

Philip Ernest Daly was a politician in Alberta, Canada and a municipal councillor in Edmonton.-Biography:...

from a field of fourteen candidates for aldermen.

Background

In 1891, 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...

's main line, which had passed well south of Edmonton, was extended northward into 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....

, then known as South Edmonton. Edmonton came to fear that the presence of the railway 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....

would result in it being surpassed by its southern neighbour, and calls for the railway to be brought to Edmonton grew louder (this objective would be achieved in 1905). As part of these efforts, it was judged appropriate to apply for a town charter, which was granted effective February 15, 1892, when the first town council was to be sworn into office. The election of the first council was fixed for February 10.

Candidates

Nomination day was February 3, one week before the election, and nominations were accepted between ten am and noon. All nominated candidates ran as independents

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...

, as political parties did not begin to make their appearance until after Edmonton was incorporated as a city in 1904.

Mayoral nominations

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....

was nominated by George Sanderson and Colin Strang

Colin Strang

Colin Ferrie Strang was a politician in Alberta, Canada and an alderman on Edmonton Town Council.-Biography:...

and was the only mayoral candidate nominated. As such, he was declared elected by acclamation

Acclamation

An acclamation, in its most common sense, is a form of election that does not use a ballot. "Acclamation" or "acclamatio" can also signify a kind of ritual greeting and expression of approval in certain social contexts in ancient Rome.-Voting:...

Aldermanic nominations

Although there would eventually be fourteen candidates contesting the election, on nomination day there were seventeen nominated.

Candidate	Nominated By
A. F. DeGagne	A. D. Osborne, John Kelly John Kelly (Canadian politician) John Edmund Kelly was a politician in Alberta, Canada and a municipal councillor in Edmonton.-Biography:Kelly was born in Glengarry County, Ontario July 2, 1852. He was trained as a marine and mechanical engineer...	Accepted
J. Knowles	John Kelly John Kelly (Canadian politician) John Edmund Kelly was a politician in Alberta, Canada and a municipal councillor in Edmonton.-Biography:Kelly was born in Glengarry County, Ontario July 2, 1852. He was trained as a marine and mechanical engineer... , T. H. Stewart, Thomas Henderson	Accepted
Kenneth McLeod Kenneth McLeod Kenneth Archibald McLeod , was a politician in Alberta, Canada and a municipal councillor in Edmonton. He was also the builder of the McLeod Building, the Edmonton's first skyscraper.-Early life and career:...	Thomas Henderson, John Kelly John Kelly (Canadian politician) John Edmund Kelly was a politician in Alberta, Canada and a municipal councillor in Edmonton.-Biography:Kelly was born in Glengarry County, Ontario July 2, 1852. He was trained as a marine and mechanical engineer...	Accepted, but withdrew just after the poll opened
George Sanderson	Thomas Henderson, S. S. Taylor	Accepted
James McDonald	W. S. Robertson, S. S. Taylor	Accepted
E. Rayner	M. S. Connor, J. G. Lauder, J. R. Michael	Declined
John Alexander McDougall John Alexander McDougall John Alexander McDougall was a politician in Alberta, Canada, a municipal councillor and mayor in Edmonton, and a member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta.-Early life:...	W. Fielders, S. S. Taylor	Accepted
Edward Carey Edward Carey Edward Francis Carey was a politician in Alberta, Canada and a municipal councillor in Edmonton.-Biography:...	John Alexander McDougall John Alexander McDougall John Alexander McDougall was a politician in Alberta, Canada, a municipal councillor and mayor in Edmonton, and a member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta.-Early life:... , W. Fielders	Accepted
Colin Strang Colin Strang Colin Ferrie Strang was a politician in Alberta, Canada and an alderman on Edmonton Town Council.-Biography:...	W. Fielders, S. S. Taylor	Accepted
James Goodridge James Goodridge James Goodridge was a politician in Alberta, Canada and a municipal councillor in Edmonton.-Biography:Goodridge was born in 1852 in Vaughan, Ontario. He later moved to Winnipeg before coming west to Edmonton by ox-train in 1882...	Colin Strang Colin Strang Colin Ferrie Strang was a politician in Alberta, Canada and an alderman on Edmonton Town Council.-Biography:... , Edward Loopy	Accepted
John Cameron John Cameron (Alberta politician) John A. Cameron was a politician in Alberta, Canada and a municipal councillor in Edmonton.-Biography:Cameron moved from Winnipeg to Edmonton in 1881 by ox-cart, bringing with him of freight on a journey that took three months. Once in Edmonton, he used this freight as the initial inventory of a...	Colin Strang Colin Strang Colin Ferrie Strang was a politician in Alberta, Canada and an alderman on Edmonton Town Council.-Biography:... , W. Johnstone Walker	Accepted
John Kelly John Kelly (Canadian politician) John Edmund Kelly was a politician in Alberta, Canada and a municipal councillor in Edmonton.-Biography:Kelly was born in Glengarry County, Ontario July 2, 1852. He was trained as a marine and mechanical engineer...	W. S. Robertson, Joseph Henri Picard Joseph Henri Picard Joseph Henri Picard was a politician in Alberta, Canada and a municipal councillor in Edmonton.-Biography:...	Accepted
Donald Ross	Alexander Taylor, J. G. Lauder	Accepted
Philip Daly Philip Daly Philip Ernest Daly was a politician in Alberta, Canada and a municipal councillor in Edmonton.-Biography:...	James Ross James Ross (Alberta politician) James Ross was a politician in Alberta, Canada and a municipal councillor in Edmonton.-Biography:Ross was born August 14, 1851 in Toronto. He received his apprenticeship in tinsmithing and worked as a journeyman. He moved to Edmonton in 1878 and established a tinshop in 1882... , E. Rayner, James McKernan	Accepted
James Ross James Ross (Alberta politician) James Ross was a politician in Alberta, Canada and a municipal councillor in Edmonton.-Biography:Ross was born August 14, 1851 in Toronto. He received his apprenticeship in tinsmithing and worked as a journeyman. He moved to Edmonton in 1878 and established a tinshop in 1882...	Robert Vance, W. McKay, Philip Daly Philip Daly Philip Ernest Daly was a politician in Alberta, Canada and a municipal councillor in Edmonton.-Biography:... , A. D. Osborne, Kenneth McLeod Kenneth McLeod Kenneth Archibald McLeod , was a politician in Alberta, Canada and a municipal councillor in Edmonton. He was also the builder of the McLeod Building, the Edmonton's first skyscraper.-Early life and career:... , John Kelly John Kelly (Canadian politician) John Edmund Kelly was a politician in Alberta, Canada and a municipal councillor in Edmonton.-Biography:Kelly was born in Glengarry County, Ontario July 2, 1852. He was trained as a marine and mechanical engineer...	Accepted
Daniel Fraser	W. S. Robertson, Charles Sanderson	Accepted
George Thompson	A. H. Goodwin, M. S. Connor, R. F. Shaw, T. G. Lauder, E. E. Rayner	Declined

Issues

As Edmonton had yet to be incorporated at the time of election, most questions facing any municipality would have to be addressed in some form by the new council. 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....

, in a February 6 editorial, listed several that it thought that candidates should be addressing:

the level of taxation
whether to incur liabilities for public purposes or to "live within our means"
whether to implement some system of fire protection, or whether the substantial space between most of the town's buildings was sufficient protection itself against fire
whether to levy taxes by a straight property tax, or whether to implement other taxes (such as dog taxes, drag taxes, boarding house taxes, poll taxes, etc.)
how many municipal liquor licenses to issue
what scheme of police protection to adopt
how to establish productive industries

Additionally, in a February 13 editorial the Bulletin reminded the new council that the major purpose of incorporation had been to either construct a railroad bridge 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....

or, in the event that Canadian Pacific Railway

Canadian Pacific Railway

was not amenable to the idea, construct a traffic bridge to lead to the train station 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....

Candidate activity

The campaign was a lacklustre one; the Bulletin claimed on February 6 that only Philip Daly

Philip Daly

Philip Ernest Daly was a politician in Alberta, Canada and a municipal councillor in Edmonton.-Biography:...

had even bothered to release his policies and called upon the candidates to organize a public meeting on one of the campaign's last days. Several of the aldermanic candidates - Strang, Goodridge, Daly, and Fraser - made campaign speeches at the nomination meeting, but these were brief and promised only that the candidate would serve the town to the best of his ability if elected. On election day itself, the Bulletin reported "light canvassing" by several of the candidates, and none at all by others.

Endorsements

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....

, the town's only paper, did not make any specific endorsements. However, it did advise voters that

in municipal matters the only money handled comes directly sooner or later from the pockets of the individual ratepayers and therefore that a man who is liable for a large amount of taxes is more apt to be careful of expenditure than one whose taxes are not as important an item to him.

Voter turnout

Eligibility to vote in the election was restricted to "men, unmarried women and widows, being British subjects over 21 years of age, who have been owners or householders within the municipality for a period of not less than three months next preceding the day of voting". Of these, 234 cast ballots (although five of these were spoiled) out of an estimated eligible voter base of 200. Elections officials attributed this to an "unexpected population spurt".

Election staff

The election was overseen by Returning Officer A. G. Randall, who was assisted by Deputy Returning Officer E. J. Bangs, Election Clerk J. C. F. Brown, Poll Clerk J. R. Michael, and Constable F. Shaw (who provided a mounted police patrol at the poll through election day).

Mayor

Candidate	Votes	%
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....	Acclaimed

Aldermen

Candidate	Votes
Colin Strang Colin Strang Colin Ferrie Strang was a politician in Alberta, Canada and an alderman on Edmonton Town Council.-Biography:...	134
Daniel Fraser	128
Edward Carey Edward Carey Edward Francis Carey was a politician in Alberta, Canada and a municipal councillor in Edmonton.-Biography:...	124
James Goodridge James Goodridge James Goodridge was a politician in Alberta, Canada and a municipal councillor in Edmonton.-Biography:Goodridge was born in 1852 in Vaughan, Ontario. He later moved to Winnipeg before coming west to Edmonton by ox-train in 1882...	117
John Cameron John Cameron (Alberta politician) John A. Cameron was a politician in Alberta, Canada and a municipal councillor in Edmonton.-Biography:Cameron moved from Winnipeg to Edmonton in 1881 by ox-cart, bringing with him of freight on a journey that took three months. Once in Edmonton, he used this freight as the initial inventory of a...	113
Philip Daly Philip Daly Philip Ernest Daly was a politician in Alberta, Canada and a municipal councillor in Edmonton.-Biography:...	107
John Alexander McDougall John Alexander McDougall John Alexander McDougall was a politician in Alberta, Canada, a municipal councillor and mayor in Edmonton, and a member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta.-Early life:...	91
A. F. DeGagne	88
George Sanderson	88
Donald Ross	67
John Kelly John Kelly (Canadian politician) John Edmund Kelly was a politician in Alberta, Canada and a municipal councillor in Edmonton.-Biography:Kelly was born in Glengarry County, Ontario July 2, 1852. He was trained as a marine and mechanical engineer...	60
James Ross James Ross (Alberta politician) James Ross was a politician in Alberta, Canada and a municipal councillor in Edmonton.-Biography:Ross was born August 14, 1851 in Toronto. He received his apprenticeship in tinsmithing and worked as a journeyman. He moved to Edmonton in 1878 and established a tinshop in 1882...	55
James McDonald	37
J. Knowles	15

Reaction

After McCauley's acclamation, the Bulletin commented that this event "while, no doubt, very pleasing to gentleman is not less satisfactory to the large majority of the ratepayers of the town" and praised the new mayor as a man of "energy and good judgment that, shown in lesser offices in the past, has won for him the public confidence."

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