Charles Winnans Cox (July 7, 1882 - March 28, 1958) was a politician and timber contractor in

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

, Canada. He was a

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

member of the

Legislative Assembly of Ontario The Legislative Assembly of Ontario (OLA, french: Assemblée législative de l'Ontario) is the legislative chamber of the Canadian province of Ontario. Its elected members are known as Members of Provincial Parliament (MPPs). Bills passed by ...

representing the riding of Port Arthur from 1934 to 1943 and the riding of Fort William from 1948 to 1951. He was a member of

Mitchell Hepburn Mitchell Frederick Hepburn (August 12, 1896 – January 5, 1953) was the 11th premier of Ontario, from 1934 to 1942. He was the youngest premier in Ontario history, appointed at age 37. He was the only Ontario Liberal Party leader in the 20th cent ...

's cabinet from 1936 to 1937. He also served as mayor of

Port Arthur, Ontario Port Arthur was a city in Northern Ontario, Canada, located on Lake Superior. In January 1970, it amalgamated with Fort William and the townships of Neebing and McIntyre to form the city of Thunder Bay. Port Arthur had been the district seat of ...

from 1934 to 1948 and again in 1952.

Background

He was born on a farm in Westminster Township,

Middlesex County, Ontario Middlesex County (2016 population 71,551)Sum of the eight municipalities in Middlesex County from is a primarily rural county in Southwestern Ontario, Canada. Landlocked, the county is bordered by Huron and Perth counties on the north, Oxford Co ...

and worked as a farm and ranch hand near

Nanton, Alberta Nanton is a town in southern Alberta, Canada. Nanton was named after Sir Augustus Meredith Nanton of Winnipeg (1860–1925) who directed firms which offered financing for farms and ranches throughout the west. It is located south of Calgary at th ...

. In about 1908 he moved to

. He became one of the largest timber contractors in the Thunder Bay region, then branched into general contracting.

Politics

He was elected as a councillor of Port Arthur in 1932, and became mayor in 1934. He served as mayor until 1948, being re-elected for 15 years. A supporter of the

Conservative Party The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right. Political parties called The Conservative P ...

while they were in power, he sought the

nomination for Port Arthur riding for the June 1934 provincial election, and was elected to the

with 58.9% of the votes cast. Liberal

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 ...

named him to cabinet as a

minister without portfolio A minister without portfolio is either a government minister with no specific responsibilities or a minister who does not head a particular ministry. The sinecure is particularly common in countries ruled by coalition governments and a cabinet w ...

in December 1936. Any chances of remaining a cabinet minister vanished in February 1937 when one of his love affairs went sour, and a 32-year-old teacher threw acid at him, scarring his handsome face and impairing the sight in his left eye. The scandal did not hurt him locally, and he was re-elected in the October 1937 election, but not re-appointed to cabinet. He was defeated as a Liberal candidate in the 1943 election, and as an Independent in the 1945 election. Always an unpredictable and controversial figure, he astonished most observers by running and getting elected in the neighbouring riding of

Fort William, Ontario Fort William was a city in Ontario, Canada, located on the Kaministiquia River, at its entrance to Lake Superior. It amalgamated with Port Arthur and the townships of Neebing and McIntyre to form the city of Thunder Bay in January 1970. Since th ...

in the 1948 election as a Liberal candidate. That same year, still the retiring mayor of Port Arthur, he brazenly ran for mayor of Fort William, but lost to

Hubert Badanai Hubert Badanai (January 11, 1895 – September 19, 1986), born Umberto Badanai; was a Canadian automobile dealer and politician. He was the first Italian born member of Canadian Federal Parliament. Born in Azzano Decimo, Friuli-Venezia Gi ...

. He ran in the 1950 Ontario Liberal leadership convention, placing sixth with 24 votes. He was defeated in the 1951 election. His last political victory came in 1952 when he was again elected as mayor of Port Arthur. The death of his wife in July 1953 marked the end of his political career. He died in March 1958, tending furnace in a building he owned. A reporter for the ''Port Arthur News-Chronicle'' observed at his death, :An astute if unruly mayor he was once described as a man always in or on the brink of a consummate rage. Under a robust growth of steely-gray hair, his corrugated features approximated those of a truculent bulldog. He had the self-assurance of a man used to victory at the polls and was given to taunting his opponents with a tongue like a flame-thrower. "I can be mayor of Port Arthur as long as I wish", he said not long before his voluntary retirement from that position. "Do you think any other mayor is talked about as much as I am."Port Arthur News-Chronicle 28 March 1958.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Cox, Charles Winnans 1882 births 1958 deaths Mayors of Port Arthur, Ontario Ontario Liberal Party MPPs Politicians from Thunder Bay

Background

Politics

References

Further reading

External links