The 1st Council of the North-West Territories, also known as the North-West Council in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

, lasted from October 7, 1876, to 1888. It was created as a permanent replacement to the

Temporary North-West Council The Temporary North-West Council, more formally known as the Council of the Northwest Territories and by its short name as the North-West Council, lasted from the creation of Northwest Territories, Canada, in 1870 until it was dissolved in 1876. Th ...

which existed prior to 1876. A 2nd Council of the North-West Territories was elected in 1888. It was replaced in 1891 by the 1st North-West Assembly when the quota of elected members was reached. (A different 2nd Council of the Northwest Territories (1905-1951) was created in 1905, when the NWT lost most of its population, to differentiate the new one from the two legislative councils of the NWT that had existed 1876 to 1891.)

Early history and development

The first members of the new council were appointed under the Northwest Territories Act and consisted of the Lieutenant Governor, appointed men and Stipendiary Magistrates. Elected representatives were added later and could join the council if an area of had 1000 people an electoral district could be set up. This created a patchwork of represented and unrepresented areas, and there was no official or independent boundaries commission; all electoral law at the beginning was under the purview of the Lieutenant Governor. Three electoral districts were created in 1881 and for an unknown reason writs were only issued in the district of Lorne which returned the first elected member Lawrence Clarke. Electors participating in the Northwest Territories elections did not vote by

secret ballot The secret ballot, also known as the Australian ballot, is a voting method in which a voter's identity in an election or a referendum is anonymous. This forestalls attempts to influence the voter by intimidation, blackmailing, and potential vote ...

until the 1893 Whitewood by-election.

Early sessions

When the first council formed under the new appointed government in 1876, the council consisted of the

lieutenant governor A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...

who acted as the chairman (speaker), and two appointed members. Because a quorum could not be maintained, the council had to be adjourned if one member went to the washroom.

By-election dates and summaries

Twelve elections took place during the period of 1876–1888. The biggest was the election of 1885 which took place on September 15, 1885. The election saw 11 members in 9 districts returned to the council, due to high population growth in the Northwest Territories at the time. After the 1885 election, elected members became the majority in the council vis a vis the appointed members, although they had to fight to wrest control from the "colonial" officials. It became a full assembly. These are not considered general elections, as there was no dissolution of the assembly. However, after four years from the first election, a district had to have another election - the seat was declared empty to be filled in an election. For list of elected candidates please see below.

March 23, 1881 Lorne by-election #1

May 29, 1883 Edmonton by-election

June 5, 1883 Lorne by-election #2

August 13, 1883 Moose Jaw, Regina, Qu'Appelle sub-election

August 31, 1883 Broadview by-election

June 28, 1884 Calgary, Moose Mountain by-election

July 8, 1886 Moose Mountain by-election #2

July 14, 1886 Calgary, by-election #2

October 14, 1886 Qu'Appelle by-election #2

May 24, 1887 Qu'Appelle by-election #3

September 5, 1887 Macleod by-election

Legislative session dates

*1st Legislative Session, March 8, 1877, to March 22, 1877 *2nd Legislative Session, July 10, 1878, to August 2, 1878 *3rd Legislative Session, August 28, 1879, to September 22, 1879 *4th Legislative Session, May 26, 1881, to June 11, 1881 *5th Legislative Session, August 20, 1883, to October 4, 1883 *6th Legislative Session, July 3, 1884, to August 16, 1884 *7th Legislative Session, November 5, 1885, to December 18, 1885 *8th Legislative Session, October 13, 1886, to November 19, 1886 *9th Legislative Session, October 14, 1887, to November 19, 1887

Elected members of the 1st Council of the Northwest Territories

For complete electoral history, see individual districts

Appointed members of the 1st Council of the Northwest Territories

References

External links

Electoral history of the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories 1876 - 1905Photo of the 1886 Legislature
{{DEFAULTSORT:1st Council Of The Northwest Territories Northwest Territories Legislative Assemblies Elections in the Northwest Territories

Northwest Territories The Northwest Territories (abbreviated ''NT'' or ''NWT''; french: Territoires du Nord-Ouest, formerly ''North-Western Territory'' and ''North-West Territories'' and namely shortened as ''Northwest Territory'') is a federal territory of Canada. ...