Albert Freeman Ewing (June 29, 1871 – August 26, 1946) was a provincial politician and judge from

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

, Canada. He served as a member of the

Legislative Assembly of Alberta The Legislative Assembly of Alberta is the deliberative assembly of the province of Alberta, Canada. It sits in the Alberta Legislature Building in Edmonton. The Legislative Assembly currently has 87 members, elected first past the post from singl ...

from 1913 to 1921 sitting with the

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...

caucus in opposition. After his political career he was appointed as a judge to the

Supreme Court of Alberta The Court of King's Bench of Alberta (abbreviated in citations as ABKB or Alta. K.B.) is the superior court of the Canadian province of Alberta. Until 2022, it was named Court of Queen's Bench of Alberta. The Court of Queen's Bench in Calgary wa ...

Early life

Albert Freeman Ewing was born June 29, 1871, in

Elora, Ontario Elora is a community in the township of Centre Wellington, Wellington County, Ontario, Canada. It is well known for its 19th-century limestone architecture and the geographically significant Elora Gorge. Elora is no longer an independent enti ...

to Alexander Ewing of Ireland and Mary Manarey, of

United Empire Loyalist United Empire Loyalists (or simply Loyalists) is an honorific title which was first given by the 1st Lord Dorchester, the Governor of Quebec, and Governor General of The Canadas, to American Loyalists who resettled in British North America duri ...

descent. He was educated at Elora High School and later

Toronto University The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution ...

where he attained a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

. He was married to Annie Lafferty, the daughter of James Delamere Lafferty who was the fifth

Mayor of Calgary This is a list of mayors of Calgary, Alberta, Canada. List of Mayors of Calgary See also *List of Calgary municipal elections *Calgary City Council Notes References SourcesBiographies of Calgary's mayors from the City of Calgary web pa ...

Political career

Ewing ran a seat to the Alberta Legislature as a Conservative candidate in the 1909 Alberta general election. He ran for office in the

Edmonton Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city ancho ...

electoral district. Ewing would be defeated finishing in third place out of four candidates in the block vote that elected Liberals Charles Cross and John McDougall. Ewing would run in his second attempt to gain a seat in the provincial legislature in a by-election held on May 27, 1912. He finished a close second in a very tight four-way race losing to William Henry. A year later Ewing ran in his third attempt at provincial office in the

1913 Alberta general election The 1913 Alberta general election was held in March 1913. The writ was dropped on 25 March 1913 and election day was held 17 April 1913 to elect 56 members to the 3rd Alberta Legislature. Elections in two northern districts took place on 30 July ...

. He would be elected to the second seat in the block vote by a very slim margin over

Alexander MacKay Alexander is a male given name. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history. Variants listed here are Aleksandar, Al ...

. The 1917 boundary redistribution saw the Edmonton electoral district would be divided up into three single member constituencies. Ewing would run in the district of Edmonton (West). He faced incumbent William Henry in a two-way race in the 1917 general election. Ewing would defeat Henry with a solid majority to win his second term in office and pickup the new district of his party. Edmonton would again be re-constituted into a single riding in the

1921 Alberta general election The 1921 Alberta general election was held on July 18, 1921, to elect members to the 5th Alberta Legislative Assembly. It was one of only five times that Alberta has changed governments. The Liberal Party, which had governed the province since it ...

Ewing would attempt to win his seat under the new Block vote system. He would finish seventh in the field of 26 candidates and be defeated. Ewing would also contest the 1924

by-election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India, or a Zimni election (Urdu: ضمنی انتخاب, supplementary election) in Pakistan, is an election used to f ...

in the Edmonton electoral district following

John Robert Boyle John Robert Boyle, (February 1, 1870 or February 3, 1871 – February 15, 1936) was a Canadian politician and jurist who served as a Member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta, a cabinet minister in the Government of Alberta, and a judge on ...

being appointed to the

, however he would be defeated by

William Thomas Henry William Thomas Henry (January 2, 1871 – March 12, 1952) was a politician, real estate agent and businessman in Alberta, Canada. He served numerous years on Edmonton City Council as an Alderman from 1900 to 1902 and later as mayor from 1914 to 1 ...

Judicial career

Ewing was appointed to the

. On December 12, 1934, Ewing was appointed to Chair the ''Royal Commission on the Condition of the Halfbreed Population of the Province of Alberta'' (Ewing Commission) along with members

James McCrie Douglas James McCrie Douglas (5 February 1867 – 16 March 1950) was a politician in Alberta, Canada, a mayor of Edmonton, and a member of Parliament serving in the House of Commons of Canada from 1909 to 1921. Early life Douglas was born 5 February ...

and Dr. Edward A. Brathwaite to look at issues affecting the

Métis The Métis ( ; Canadian ) are Indigenous peoples who inhabit Canada's three Prairie Provinces, as well as parts of British Columbia, the Northwest Territories, and the Northern United States. They have a shared history and culture which derives ...

population including land claims, hunting rights and treaty status. The commission would deliver its findings later in 1936

References

External links

Alberta Legislature Members Listing
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ewing, Albert 1870 births Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta MLAs Judges in Alberta 1946 deaths University of Toronto alumni