The 1908 municipal election was held December 14, 1908 for the purpose of electing a mayor and six aldermen to sit on the

Edmonton City Council The Edmonton City Council is the governing body of the City of Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Edmonton currently has one mayor and twelve city councillors. Elections are held every four years. The most recent was held in 2021, and the next is in 20 ...

, as well as three public school trustees and five separate school trustees. There were also five proposed bylaws put to a vote of the electorate concurrently with the election.

Positions to be elected

There were eight aldermen on city council, but two of the positions were already filled:

George S. Armstrong George Seale Armstrong (May 16, 1867 – June 9, 1947) was a Canadian businessman and politician. He served on the Edmonton City Council from 1907 to 1910 and as Mayor of Edmonton from 1910 to 1912. Armstrong was born in what would soon bec ...

and

Robert Manson Robert John Manson (1866 or 1867 – May 10, 1932) was a politician in Alberta, Canada and a municipal councillor in Edmonton, 1906-1909. Biography Manson came to Edmonton from Renfrew County, Ontario in 1891. He fast became one of the city's ...

had been elected to two-year terms in

1907 Events January * January 14 – 1907 Kingston earthquake: A 6.5 Mw earthquake in Kingston, Jamaica, kills between 800 and 1,000. February * February 11 – The French warship ''Jean Bart'' sinks off the coast of Morocco. ...

and were still in office. Robert Lee and

Thomas Bellamy Thomas Bellamy (June 6, 1853 – October 11, 1926) was a politician in Alberta, Canada and a municipal councillor in Edmonton. Bellamy was born at Canada West, which would later be the province of Ontario. The son of an English immigrant, he ent ...

had also been elected to two-year terms in 1907, but had resigned to run for mayor. Accordingly, the fifth and sixth-place finishers in the aldermanic race - Andrew Agar and Daniel Fraser - were elected to one-year terms. There were five trustees on the public board of trustees, but two of the positions were already occupied: A E May and Alex Taylor had been elected to two-year terms in

and were still in office.

Campaign

The campaign's major issue was how to best increase the city's water supply. Mayoral candidate Robert Lee supported enhancing the capacity of the existing plant, while his opponent,

, favoured constructing a new plant. According to the

Edmonton Bulletin The ''Edmonton Bulletin'' was a newspaper in Edmonton, Alberta, published from 1880 until January 20, 1951. It was founded by Edmonton pioneer Frank Oliver, a future Liberal politician and cabinet minister in the Canadian Government. Oliver co- ...

, Lee's earlier entry into the race and early success at recruiting prominent citizens as his public supporters was a decisive factor in his defeat of Bellamy, who entered the race later.

Voter turnout

There were 1942 ballots cast in the 1908 municipal election. The number of eligible voters is no longer available.

Results

(bold indicates elected, ''italics'' indicate incumbent)

Mayor

* Robert Lee - 1303 *

- 639

Aldermen

*''

Wilfrid Gariépy Wilfrid Gariepy (March 14, 1877 – January 13, 1960) was a Canadian politician, member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta and provincial cabinet minister, member of the House of Commons of Canada, and municipal councillor in Edmonton. Early ...

'' - 1,424 *

John Lundy John Egbert Lundy (September 18, 1872 – October 13, 1949) was a politician in Alberta, Canada and a municipal councillor in Edmonton. Biography Lundy was born in Halton County, Ontario. He went to high school in Brampton, and upon graduati ...

- 1020 *''

Herman McInnes Herman Lewis McInnes (also Hermon McInnes or Herman McInnis) (October 13, 1862 – July 16, 1923) was a politician in Alberta, Canada and a municipal councillor in Edmonton. Biography Herman McInnes was born in Saint John, New Brunswick an ...

'' - 1,010 * James McKinley - 902 * Andrew Agar - 891 *'' Daniel Fraser'' - 812 *''

Cameron Anderson Cameron Anderson (May 1857 – March 22, 1926) was a politician in Alberta, Canada and a municipal councillor in Edmonton. Biography Anderson came to Edmonton prior to 1901 from North Dakota. Anderson was a long-time Edmonton resident and a bu ...

'' - 742 *A E Potter - 560 *Alex McSporan - 462 *James Francis - 353 *Frank Ball - 296 *John Galbraith - 274 *Thomas Killips - 115

Public School Trustees

*Walter Ramsey - 818 *Allan Gray - 780 *

William Clark William Clark (August 1, 1770 – September 1, 1838) was an American explorer, soldier, Indian agent, and territorial governor. A native of Virginia, he grew up in pre-statehood Kentucky before later settling in what became the state of Misso ...

- 761 *''William Ferris'' - 533 *J G M Sloan - 489 *Gregory Krikewsky - 273 *William Eastwood - 229

Separate (Catholic) School Trustees

James Collisson James Thomas Joseph Collisson (August 21, 1875 – July 30, 1962)
was a politician in

, ''

'', ''

Prosper-Edmond Lessard Prosper-Edmond Lessard (February 3, 1873 – April 11, 1931) was a Canadian businessman, militia officer and politician. He served as a member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta from 1909 to 1921 sitting with the Liberal caucus in government. ...

'', J McAllister, and ''

Joseph Henri Picard Joseph Henri Picard (February 18, 1857 – May 23, 1934) was a politician in Alberta, Canada and a municipal councillor in Edmonton. Picard was born in Saint-Jean-de-Matha, Quebec on February 18, 1857. He apprenticed as a carpenter before coming ...

'' were elected. Detailed results are no longer available.

Bylaws

The following bylaws were voted on concurrently with the 1908 election:

Bylaw 161

A bylaw to raise $42,500 to pay for part of a traffic deck on the C.P.R. Bridge. *For: 1,072 *Against: 47

Bylaw 164

A bylaw to raise $30,000 to supplement $49,000 to pay for street railway material. *For: 921 *Against: 110

Bylaw 165

A bylaw to raise $40,000 for improvement in and extensions to the Municipal Telephone System. *For: 1,022 *Against: 34

Bylaw 166

A bylaw to raise the sum of $60,000 for improvement in and extensions to Municipal Electric Plant. *For: 1,019 *Against: 33

Bylaw 167

A bylaw to raise $5,000 to supplement previous amounts for an Isolation Hospital. *For: 841 *Against: 89

References

City of Edmonton: Edmonton Elections

Alderman Lee Mayor for 1909
, ''Edmonton Bulletin'', December 15, 1908. {{Edmonton elections

1908 Events January * January 1 – The British ''Nimrod'' Expedition led by Ernest Shackleton sets sail from New Zealand on the ''Nimrod'' for Antarctica. * January 3 – A total solar eclipse is visible in the Pacific Ocean, and is the 46 ...

1908 elections in Canada 1908 in Alberta