Canada 150: Sir John A. Macdonald, the first Prime Minister from B.C.

Sir John A Macdonald and his wife Lady Macdonald at Stave River, B.C. during their only visit to British Columbia in 1886.

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On Sept. 17, 1878, Sir John A. MacDonald was defeated in his bid for re-election in Kingston, Ont.

But he was still able to claim a seat in parliament, and become prime minister, because he was elected in two ridings out west, Marquette in Manitoba and Victoria, B.C.

What makes this even weirder is that the so-called “Father of Confederation” had never been to western Canada. He would represent Victoria in Ottawa for four years, without actually visiting the riding.

He finally made it out west in the summer of 1886, when he was 71. The Vancouver Archives has a J.A. Brock photo of Macdonald and his wife arriving at the Canadian Pacific Railway’s Port Moody station on July 24.

July 24, 1886. Arrival of Canadian Prime Minister Sir John A. Macdonald and his wife by C.P.R train at Port Moody. Sir John A. MacDonald is # 13, and Lady MacDonald is #14. The other people identified are: 1. Mrs. Norman Fraser, 2. Mrs. John Fraser, 3. John Murray, 4. Miss Liah Scott, 5. E.K. Perry, 6. Miss Nellie Dockrill, 7. Mrs. E.K. Perry, 8. Norman Fraser, 9. T. J. Trapp, 10. Ham Lipsett, 11. first mate of ship “New York”, 12. Mr. Simmonds, and 15. John R. Scott. J.A. Brock/Vancouver Archives AM54-S4-: Can P62. J.A. Brock

The prime minister immediately took a boat to Victoria, sailing by the four-month old city of Vancouver. He spent three weeks on Vancouver Island, driving a silver spike at Shawnigan Lake to complete the Esquimalt & Nanaimo Railway on Aug. 13.

On his return, he took a boat from Nanaimo to New Westminster, stayed a couple of days, and then the train back east. He was never in British Columbia again.

In spite of his brief time in the province, Macdonald played a big role in B.C. joining Canada. He was the driving force behind Confederation in 1867, and also the chief advocate of building a railway to link B.C. to the east.

Born in Glasgow, Scotland on Jan. 11, 1815, John Alexander Macdonald immigrated with his family to Kingston, Ont. in 1820. In 1844, he was elected to the legislature as a Conservative in what was then called the Province of Canada (essentially southern Ontario and Quebec).

Engraving of Canada’s first Prime Minister, Sir John A. Macdonald, by James Murray & Co. Engravers Toronto. This print comes from the BC Archives and was in the Province files. It has been written on by editors in blue and red “grease pencil.”

A lawyer by trade, he proved an adroit politician, and by 1857 was premier. In 1864, he teamed up with one of his political opponents, George Brown, to push for a union of the British colonies in North America.

Macdonald and co. met with representatives of the maritime provinces in Charlottetown, P.E.I. in September, 1864, and in Quebec City a month later, where they drafted 72 resolutions that became the foundation of the Canadian constitution.

On July 1, 1867, a new country was formed with four provinces: Ontario, Quebec, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick. Manitoba joined on July 15, 1870, and B.C. signed on July 20, 1871.

Macdonald was knighted by Queen Victoria on the day Canada became a country. He resigned as prime minister in 1873 after a scandal erupted over a massive amount of cash donated to his party by the backers of the Canadian Pacific Railway, which was building the cross-Canada rail line.

Macdonald became prime minister again in 1878 and held the office until his death on June 6, 1891.

A Matthew Brady photo of Sir John A. Macdonald posing with his fellow commissioners at the Treaty of Washington in 1871. It is signed by the commissioners. Jenelle Schneider / 00032158A SUN

Sir John A. Macdonald, circa 1880s. Vancouver Archives AM54-S4-: Port P1528.2.

A stained glass window with Sir John A. Macdonald is on display in the Meaford Museum in Meaford, Ont. Robert Burcher / SunMedia

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