Ernest Whitfield Stairs (10 April 1873 - 31 October 1941) was a Canadian

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

 farmer

Farmer

A farmer is a person engaged in agriculture, who raises living organisms for food or raw materials, generally including livestock husbandry and growing crops, such as produce and grain...

 and politician

Politician

A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...

. He was born in Southampton

Southampton, New Brunswick

Southampton is a Canadian rural community in York County, New Brunswick.The community is located south of Southampton Junction, a station located within the village of Millville, created when the New Brunswick Railway was constructed in the 1870s....

, New Brunswick

New Brunswick

New Brunswick is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the only province in the federation that is constitutionally bilingual . The provincial capital is Fredericton and Saint John is the most populous city. Greater Moncton is the largest Census Metropolitan Area...

, a descendant of United Empire Loyalists

United Empire Loyalists

The name United Empire Loyalists is an honorific given after the fact to those American Loyalists who resettled in British North America and other British Colonies as an act of fealty to King George III after the British defeat in the American Revolutionary War and prior to the Treaty of Paris...

 who settled the area in 1784. A successful farmer, Stairs was involved in a variety of public and social activities. He was a director of the Farmers Co-Operative Association and served on the Municipal Council Board for York County

York County, New Brunswick

York County is located in west-central New Brunswick, Canada. The county contains the provincial capital, Fredericton. Outside the city, farming and forestry are two major industries in the county, which is bisected by the Saint John River...

 from 1911-1921 and served as Warden in 1916.

Stairs was the unsuccessful 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...

 candidate for the Canadian House of Commons

Canadian House of Commons

The House of Commons of Canada is a component of the Parliament of Canada, along with the Sovereign and the Senate. The House of Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 308 members known as Members of Parliament...

 in the 1921 York-Sunbury

Fredericton (electoral district)

Fredericton is a federal electoral district in New Brunswick, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1988. Its population in 2001 was 82,782...

 riding Federal by-election. Encouraged to run in the 1935 New Brunswick general election

New Brunswick general election, 1935

The 18th New Brunswick general election was held on June 27, 1935, to elect 48 members to the 38th New Brunswick Legislative Assembly, the governing house of the province of New Brunswick, Canada. New Brunswick general election, 1935 Name Seats...

 by Liberal Party

New Brunswick Liberal Association

The New Brunswick Liberal Association , more popularly known as the New Brunswick Liberal Party or Liberal Party of New Brunswick, is one of the two major political parties in the Canadian province of New Brunswick...

 leader Allison Dysart

Allison Dysart

A. Allison Dysart was a New Brunswick politician, lawyer and judge.Dysart was born in Cocagne, New Brunswick and was educated at St. Joseph's University in Memramcook, the Guelph Agricultural School in Ontario and Dalhousie Law School. He was called to the bar in 1913 and set up practice in...

, Stairs was elected to the 38th New Brunswick Legislative Assembly

38th New Brunswick Legislative Assembly

The 38th New Brunswick Legislative Assembly represented New Brunswick between March 5, 1936 and October 24, 1939.Murray MacLaren served as Lieutenant-Governor of New Brunswick.Hedley F. G. Bridges was chosen as speaker....

 as the York County representative. He served in the Legislative Assembly

Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick

The Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick is located in Fredericton. It was established de jure when the colony was created in 1784, but only came in to session in 1786 following the first elections in late 1785. Until 1891, it was the lower house in a bicameral legislature when its upper house...

 at Fredericton

Fredericton, New Brunswick

Fredericton is the capital of the Canadian province of New Brunswick, by virtue of the provincial parliament which sits there. An important cultural, artistic, and educational centre for the province, Fredericton is home to two universities and cultural institutions such as the Beaverbrook Art...

 until 1939.

Stairs died at his home in 1941.

His daughter, Nelda (1905-1993), married Harry A. Corey

Harry A. Corey

Harry Allen Corey was a Canadian entrepreneur and politician. Born in Pinder, New Brunswick, in 1924 he married Nelda Stairs, daughter of a prominent Southampton, New Brunswick farmer and member of the Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick, Ernest W...

 who was elected the Liberal member of the Provincial Legislature for Stairs' York County riding in 1944. Corey served two terms through 1952 then was elected President of the New Brunswick Liberal Association

New Brunswick Liberal Association

The New Brunswick Liberal Association , more popularly known as the New Brunswick Liberal Party or Liberal Party of New Brunswick, is one of the two major political parties in the Canadian province of New Brunswick...

, serving from 1952 to 1958.