Antoine Joseph Léger (October 16, 1880 – April 7, 1950) was a lawyer, author and political figure of

Acadian The Acadians (french: Acadiens , ) are an ethnic group descended from the French who settled in the New France colony of Acadia during the 17th and 18th centuries. Most Acadians live in the region of Acadia, as it is the region where the de ...

descent in

New Brunswick New Brunswick (french: Nouveau-Brunswick, , locally ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. It is the only province with both English and ...

. He represented Westmorland County in the

Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick A legislature is an deliberative assembly, assembly with the authority to make laws for a Polity, political entity such as a Sovereign state, country or city. They are often contrasted with the Executive (government), executive and Judiciary, ...

from 1925 to 1935 as a

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 ...

member and then represented the division of L'Acadie in the

Senate of Canada The Senate of Canada (french: region=CA, Sénat du Canada) is the upper house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Crown and the House of Commons, they comprise the bicameral legislature of Canada. The Senate is modelled after the B ...

from 1935 to 1950. Léger was born in

Memramcook, New Brunswick Memramcook, sometimes also spelled Memramcouke or Memramkouke, is a village in Westmorland County, New Brunswick, Canada. Located in south-eastern New Brunswick, the community is predominantly people of Acadian descent who speak the Chiac deri ...

. He was educated there and at the St. Joseph's College. Léger then attended the

normal school A normal school or normal college is an institution created to Teacher education, train teachers by educating them in the norms of pedagogy and curriculum. In the 19th century in the United States, instruction in normal schools was at the high s ...

Fredericton Fredericton (; ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of New Brunswick. The city is situated in the west-central portion of the province along the Saint John River, which flows west to east as it bisects the city. The river is the do ...

and worked for several months in

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

. He returned to New Brunswick to article in law with Alfred LaForest in

Edmundston Edmundston is a city in Madawaska County, New Brunswick, Canada. On 1 January 2023, Edmundston will expanded, annexing the village of Rivière-Verte and parts of the local service districts of the parish of Saint-Jacques and the parish of Sai ...

, was called to the Bar of New Brunswick in 1907 and set up practice in

Moncton Moncton (; ) is the most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of New Brunswick. Situated in the Petitcodiac River Valley, Moncton lies at the geographic centre of the The Maritimes, Maritime Provinces. The ...

. Antoine Léger ran unsuccessfully for a seat in the

in 1917 but won in the

1925 New Brunswick general election The 1925 New Brunswick general election was held on 10 August 1925, to elect 48 members to the 36th New Brunswick Legislative Assembly, the governing house of the province of New Brunswick, Canada. Although political parties had no standing in law ...

as a declared candidate in the Westmorland County Electoral District for the then unofficial Progressive Conservative Party. On September 14, 1925, new

Premier Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier. A premier will normally be a head of governm ...

John B. M. Baxter John Babington Macaulay Baxter (February 16, 1868 – December 27, 1946) was a New Brunswick lawyer, jurist and the 19th premier of New Brunswick. Baxter served in the Canadian Army and was the author of ''Historical Records of the New Bruns ...

appointed him to his

Cabinet Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to: Furniture * Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers * Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets * Filing ...

as the Provincial Secretary-Treasurer (Minister of Finance). Léger held the position until July 16, 1935, when he was defeated in a bid for reelection. On August 14, 1935,

Canadian Prime Minister The prime minister of Canada (french: premier ministre du Canada, link=no) is the head of government of Canada. Under the Westminster system, the prime minister governs with the confidence of a majority the elected House of Commons; as such ...

Richard B. Bennett Richard Bedford Bennett, 1st Viscount Bennett, (July 3, 1870 – June 26, 1947), was a Canadian lawyer, businessman, philanthropist, and politician who served as the 11th prime minister of Canada from 1930 to 1935. Bennett was born in ...

appointed Antoine Léger to the

. Léger died in office at the age of 69. He married twice, first to Alvina Léger. Widowed, he later married Marie Bourgeois (née Drisdelle). Léger published ''Les grandes lignes de l'histoire de la Société l'Assomption'', the history of an Acadian association, and wrote articles on Acadian history as well as several historical novels.

References

*
Fonds Antoine-J.-Léger, University of Moncton archives
(French language) {{DEFAULTSORT:Leger, Antoine J 1880 births 1950 deaths St. Joseph's College alumni Lawyers in New Brunswick Writers from New Brunswick Members of the Executive Council of New Brunswick Canadian senators from New Brunswick Acadian people People from Westmorland County, New Brunswick Progressive Conservative Party of New Brunswick MLAs Finance ministers of New Brunswick