Robert Parkyn
Encyclopedia
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...
, Canada
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...
.
Early life
Robert was born in CornwallCornwall
Cornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of...
, 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...
on November 19, 1862. His parents were William and Annie Parkyn.
He was educated in public schools in Cornwall. Later, he apprenticed as a Carpenter and
Joiner by trade, and joined the United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of England.
Robert married Matilda Edwards of Newport, Monmouthshire, Wales in 1895, and had seven children all male. The family moved to Calgary in 1910.
Municipal career
Robert Parkyn was elected to Calgary City Council as an Alderman on the Labor ticket for the first time on January 2, 1922 and served his first stint as Alderman until January 2, 1924.He would return to city council with his re-election on January 2, 1926. He would serve as both an Alderman and as a member of 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...
. His second stint in office ended on December 31, 1926.
Robert would serve 3 more broken terms as an Alderman January 1, 1933 to December 31, 1934 and January 2, 1935 to January 1, 1936 and his final term from January 1, 1939 until his death on June 13, 1939.
Provincial career
In the 1921 Alberta general electionAlberta 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....
Robert ran his first provincial campaign as a Labor candidate and ended up finishing 8th in a field of 20 candidates. Parkyn was elected in the 1926 Alberta general election
Alberta general election, 1926
The Alberta general election of 1926 was the sixth general election for the Province of Alberta, Canada. It was held on June 28, 1926 to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta. The writs of election were issued on May 10, 1926 allowing for an election period of 40 days.After Herbert...
this time as an Independent Labor candidate by winning the 5th seat in the Calgary
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...
district. The win was seen as an upset. He was defeated after serving a single term in office.
The Independent Labor Party folded and Parkyn ran in the 1930 Alberta general election
Alberta general election, 1930
The Alberta general election of 1930 was the seventh general election for the Province of Alberta, Canada. It was held on June 19, 1930 to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta....
as an Independent. He lost his seat in the 10th count of voting finishing 7th.
Parkyn was an advisory delegate during the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation
Co-operative Commonwealth Federation
The Co-operative Commonwealth Federation was a Canadian political party founded in 1932 in Calgary, Alberta, by a number of socialist, farm, co-operative and labour groups, and the League for Social Reconstruction...
founding meetings.
Robert attempted re-election in a 1933 by-election again running under his Independent Labor banner. In that election he never came close as the vote polarized between Labor, Cooperative Commonwealth candidate Amelia Turner and Independent Norman Hindsley
Norman Hindsley
Norman Hindsley was a politician and published author from Alberta, Canada.In 1927 Norman wrote a report Into the Advisability of the Establishment of a Forty-Eight Hour Working Week in Alberta the title was published by the University of Alberta.Norman Hindsley was elected to the Legislative...
.