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1st North-West Legislative Assembly

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
1st Legislature
Consensus parliament
c. 1888 – c. 1891
Parliament leaders
First MinisterRobert Brett
30 June 1888 - 7 November 1891
Lower House
Speaker of the
Lower House
Herbert Charles Wilson
31 October 1888 - 10 October 1891
Members25 seats
Sovereign
MonarchVictoria
20 June 1837 – 22 January 1901
Joseph Royal
4 July 1888 – 31 October 1893
Sessions
1st session
31 October 1888 – 11 December 1888
2nd session
16 October 1889 – 22 November 1889
3rd session
29 October 1890 – 29 November 1890
← 1st Council of the North-West Territories → 2nd North-West Legislative Assembly

The 1st North-West Legislative Assembly lasted from 1888 to 1891. This Assembly was the third in the history of the Northwest Territories. It marked a huge milestone, bringing responsible government to the territory for the first time.

Background

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The 1st Northwest Territories Council was dissolved after reaching the quota of elected members prescribed under the Northwest Territories Act. This precipitated the 1888 Northwest Territories general election.

Despite being an elected body, there were three remaining appointed members left to serve in the Assembly. The three appointees were legal advisers; they could actively participate in debates and move motions, but did not have a vote.

1st Session

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The 1st Session of the 1st North-West Legislative Assembly began on October 31, 1888.[1] The festivities began in the morning, with music provided by the North-West Mounted Police Band.[1] The session began at 3:00pm with Lieutenant Governor Joseph Royal entering the chamber escorted by Mounties.

The Council opened by electing the first speaker in Northwest Territories history. Herbert Charles Wilson was nominated in a motion moved by Hugh Cayley. Wilson was acclaimed with the unanimous consent of the Assembly.[1] The election for speaker was decided in a caucus meeting prior to the opening of the Assembly.[2] There were two candidates for speaker presented. The first vote resulted in an 11 to 11 tie between James Ross and Wilson. Ross asked that his name be withdrawn but his supporters refused. After two more tie votes, Ross withdrew and Wilson was acclaimed as the choice for speaker.[2]

Lieutenant Governor Advisory Council
Frederick Haultain
David Jelly
Hilliard Mitchell
William Sutherland

The throne speech outlined five main areas of concern. The first was the need for provisions to deal with and prevent prairie fires. The Lieutenant Governor then called for the repeal of the liquor laws passed by the Temporary North-West Council. The speech also announced the introduction of a bill to provide provisions for collecting vital statistics. Royal also reported on the efforts of his legal committee to consolidate the legislation of the Northwest Territories. The last major portion of the speech outlined the upcoming budgetary estimates to be provided to members from the Lieutenant Governor advisory Council.

Members

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District of Alberta District of Assiniboia
District Member District Member
Calgary John Lineham Moose Jaw James Hamilton Ross
Hugh Cayley Moosomin John Ryerson Neff
Edmonton Herbert Charles Wilson North Qu'Appelle William Sutherland
Frank Oliver Prince Albert William Plaxton
Macleod Frederick Haultain John Felton Betts
Medicine Hat Thomas Tweed Souris John Gillanders Turriff
Red Deer Robert Brett South Qu'Appelle George Davidson
District of Saskatchewan Wallace Joel Reaman
District Member Whitewood Alexander Thorburn
Batoche Hilliard Mitchell Wolseley Benjamin Parkyn Richardson
Battleford James Clinkskill Appointed legal advisors
Kinistino James Hoey James Macleod
North Regina David Jelly Hugh Richardson
South Regina John Secord Charles Rouleau

References

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  1. ^ a b c "The Session Opened". Manitoba Daily Free Press. November 1, 1888. p. 1.
  2. ^ a b "The Speakership". Manitoba Daily Free Press. November 1, 1888. p. 1.
  1. https://web.archive.org/web/20070928101028/http://www.saskarchives.com/web/seld/1-00.pdf
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