George Riley was a Canadian merchant and 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...

 politician.

Born in St. Catharines

St. Catharines, Ontario

St. Catharines is the largest city in Canada's Niagara Region and the sixth largest urban area in Ontario, Canada, with 97.11 square kilometres of land...

, Canada West, the son of P. Riley, he was educated there and in Buffalo, New York

Buffalo, New York

Buffalo is the second most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City. Located in Western New York on the eastern shores of Lake Erie and at the head of the Niagara River across from Fort Erie, Ontario, Buffalo is the seat of Erie County and the principal city of the...

. In 1885, Riley moved to British Columbia, becoming a merchant in Victoria

Victoria, British Columbia

Victoria is the capital city of British Columbia, Canada and is located on the southern tip of Vancouver Island off Canada's Pacific coast. The city has a population of about 78,000 within the metropolitan area of Greater Victoria, which has a population of 360,063, the 15th most populous Canadian...

. He married Mary N. Balfour in 1908.

He was chosen in a 1902 by-election to represent Victoria

Victoria (electoral district)

Victoria is a federal electoral district in British Columbia, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1872 to 1904 and since 1925....

 in 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...

, after the election of Edward Gawler Prior

Edward Gawler Prior

Edward Gawler Prior, PC was a mining engineer and politician in British Columbia. Prior worked as a mining engineer in England until 1873 when he moved to the province where he settled in Nanaimo and took employment as assistant manager of the Vancouver Coal Mining & Land Co., Ltd...

 was voided. He was re-elected once, serving as an MP for Victoria City

Victoria City (electoral district)

Victoria City was a federal electoral district in British Columbia, Canada, that was represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1904 to 1924. This riding was created in 1903...

 until 1906, when he resigned to allow William Templeman

William Templeman

William Templeman, PC was a Canadian newspaper editor and politician.Born in Pakenham, Canada West, he was managing editor and owner of the Victoria Daily Times newspaper, before first running as the Liberal candidate for the Canadian House of Commons for the riding of Victoria in the 1891...

, a minister

Minister without Portfolio

A minister without portfolio is either a government minister with no specific responsibilities or a minister that does not head a particular ministry...

 in 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....

's government, to take his seat. Shortly thereafter, Riley was 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...

. He died in office in Victoria at the age of 72.