Gatineau Park matter would receive their minister's immediate attention, Devlin died before he could follow up on Harkin's request, and no further response was ever received. With the First World War intervening shortly thereafter, the government of Canada had to tend to more pressing matters. On April 7, 1927, the idea of creating a Gatineau national park was again raised in the House of Commons, where MPs considered a bill to create the Federal District Commission, which would build parks and parkways on both sides of the Ottawa River. During debate, however, Conservative MP John Edwards accused Prime Minister King of wanting
Gatineau Park James Harkin to be the first national park outside the Rocky Mountains, it remains the only federal park that is not a national park, a situation that has direct repercussions on its ecology, boundaries, and land mass. Created in 1938, Gatineau is the only federal park not protected by the National Parks Act, largely as a result of former Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King's caution, fear of criticism, and desire for privacy. Gatineau Park was not only the first national park advocated for Quebec, it was also intended as the first one outside the Rocky Mountains. As well, it