Sir Clifford Sifton, (March 10, 1861 – April 17, 1929), was a Canadian lawyer and a long-time
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 ...
politician, best known for being
Minister of the Interior under Sir
Wilfrid Laurier
Sir Henri Charles Wilfrid Laurier, ( ; ; November 20, 1841 – February 17, 1919) was a Canadian lawyer, statesman, and politician who served as the seventh prime minister of Canada from 1896 to 1911. The first French Canadian prime minis ...
.
He was responsible for encouraging the massive amount of immigration to Canada which occurred during the first decade of the 20th century. In 1905, he broke with Laurier and resigned from cabinet over the issue of publicly funded religious education in the new provinces of
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 ...
and
Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan ( ; ) is a province in western Canada, bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and on the south by the U.S. states of Montana and North Dak ...
.
Early life
Sifton was born in
Middlesex County,
Canada West
The Province of Canada (or the United Province of Canada or the United Canadas) was a British colony in North America from 1841 to 1867. Its formation reflected recommendations made by John Lambton, 1st Earl of Durham, in the Report on the ...
(now
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 C ...
). Sifton's father,
John Wright Sifton, was a contractor and businessman who moved with his family to
Manitoba
, image_map = Manitoba in Canada 2.svg
, map_alt = Map showing Manitoba's location in the centre of Southern Canada
, Label_map = yes
, coordinates =
, capital = Winn ...
when Sifton was a boy.
Sifton trained as a lawyer and graduated from
Victoria University in the University of Toronto
Victoria University is a federated university forming part of the wider University of Toronto, and was founded in 1836.
The undergraduate section of the university is Victoria College, informally ''Vic'', after the original name of the univers ...
, where he was the founding manager of ''
Acta Victoriana
''Acta Victoriana'' is the literary journal of Victoria University, Toronto. It was founded in May 1878 and is the oldest continuous university publication in Canada; its 140th volume was published in 2016. It is published twice a year. Though ori ...
''.
Political career
Manitoba provincial politics: Attorney General for Manitoba
Sifton worked on his father's political campaigns before being himself elected to the legislative assembly of Manitoba in 1888. Sifton served in the cabinet of
Thomas Greenway
Thomas Greenway (March 25, 1838 – October 30, 1908) was a Canadian politician, merchant and farmer. He served as the seventh premier of Manitoba from 1888 to 1900. A Liberal, his ministry formally ended Manitoba's non-partisan government, al ...
from 1891 to 1896 as attorney general and Provincial Lands Commissioner. He played a role in negotiating the Laurier-Greenway Compromise, which temporarily resolved the
Manitoba Schools Question
The Manitoba Schools Question () was a political crisis in the Canadian province of Manitoba that occurred late in the 19th century, attacking publicly-funded separate schools for Roman Catholics and Protestants. The crisis was precipitated by a se ...
.
Federal politics: Minister of the Interior
In 1896, Sifton was first elected a
Member of Parliament
A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members o ...
after being acclaimed in a by-election in
Brandon
Brandon may refer to:
Names and people
*Brandon (given name), a male given name
*Brandon (surname), a surname with several different origins
Places
Australia
*Brandon, a farm and 19th century homestead in Seaham, New South Wales
*Brandon, Q ...
. He was re-elected in the
1900 Canadian federal election
The 1900 Canadian federal election was held on November 7, 1900 to elect members of the House of Commons of Canada of the 9th Parliament of Canada. As a result of the election, the Liberal Party, led by Prime Minister Wilfrid Laurier, was re-ele ...
against a strong challenge from former
Manitoba premier Hugh John Macdonald. Sifton would be re-elected two more times, in
1904
Events
January
* January 7 – The distress signal ''CQD'' is established, only to be replaced 2 years later by ''SOS''.
* January 8 – The Blackstone Library is dedicated, marking the beginning of the Chicago Public Library syst ...
and
1908.
Sifton was appointed Minister of the Interior under Laurier and implemented a vigorous immigration policy to encourage people to settle and populate the
West
West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sun sets on the Earth.
Etymology
The word "west" is a Germanic word passed into some ...
. Sifton established colonial offices in
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...
and the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
. He enticed people to come to western Canada. While many of the immigrants came from
Britain
Britain most often refers to:
* The United Kingdom, a sovereign state in Europe comprising the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland and many smaller islands
* Great Britain, the largest island in the United King ...
and the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
, there was also, to Canada, a large influx of
Ukrainians
Ukrainians ( uk, Українці, Ukraintsi, ) are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Ukraine. They are the seventh-largest nation in Europe. The native language of the Ukrainians is Ukrainian. The majority of Ukrainians are Eastern Ort ...
,
Scandinavia
Scandinavia; Sámi languages: /. ( ) is a subregion in Northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. In English usage, ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, Norway, and Swe ...
ns,
Doukhobors
The Doukhobours or Dukhobors (russian: духоборы / духоборцы, dukhobory / dukhobortsy; ) are a Spiritual Christian ethnoreligious group of Russian origin. They are one of many non-Orthodox ethno-confessional faiths in Russia a ...
, and other groups from the
Austro-Hungarian Empire. He famously defended the "stalwart peasants in sheep-skin coats" who were turning some of the most difficult parts of the western plains into productive farms.
Between 1891 and 1914, more than three million people came to Canada, largely from continental Europe, following the path of the newly constructed transcontinental railway. In the same period, mining industries were begun in the
Klondike and the
Canadian Shield.
After presiding over the creation of
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 ...
and
Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan ( ; ) is a province in western Canada, bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and on the south by the U.S. states of Montana and North Dak ...
in 1905, Sifton resigned from cabinet following a dispute with Laurier over religious education.
Especially later in his life, Sifton battled increasing deafness, which precluded any further potential political advances.
Later life
Sifton retired from politics in 1911 but crusaded against the government policy of
reciprocity, because he believed that increased economic integration between Canada and the United States would result in Canada being taken over by the Americans.
Sifton died in 1929 in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
, where he had been visiting a heart specialist. He left a fortune estimated at $3.2 million, equivalent to about $ in present-day terminology. Sifton is buried at
Mount Pleasant Cemetery, Toronto
Mount Pleasant Cemetery is a cemetery located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, and is part of the Mount Pleasant Group of Cemeteries. It was opened in November 1876 and is located north of Moore Park, a neighbourhood of Toronto. The cemetery has k ...
.
Family
Sifton, then a young lawyer, was married in
Winnipeg, Manitoba
Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749,6 ...
, on August 18, 1884, to Elizabeth Armanella Burrows. She was the daughter of Henry James Burrows and his wife, Sarah Sparks. Elizabeth was born in
Ottawa, Ontario
Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...
, and educated at the
Ottawa Ladies' College
The Ottawa Ladies' College was a Nondenominational Christianity, non-denominational Ottawa educational institution founded in 1869 for the purpose of providing a quality education to women. The private school operated on First Avenue in The Glebe ...
. The couple had five sons. She founded and presided over the
Woman's Christian Temperance Union
The Woman's Christian Temperance Union (WCTU) is an international temperance organization, originating among women in the United States Prohibition movement. It was among the first organizations of women devoted to social reform with a program th ...
(WCTU) in Brandon, Manitoba.
His brother-in-law
Theodore Arthur Burrows
Theodore Arthur Burrows (August 15, 1857 – January 18, 1929) was a politician and office-holder in Manitoba, Canada. He served as the tenth Lieutenant Governor of the province from October 6, 1926 until his death.
Burrows was born in ...
would also serve as a Liberal MP in the Laurier government, and he was later appointed the
tenth Lieutenant Governor of Manitoba.
His brother
Arthur Sifton served as the second
Premier of Alberta
The premier of Alberta is the first minister for the Canadian province of Alberta, and the province's head of government. The current premier is Danielle Smith, leader of the United Conservative Party, who was sworn in on October 11, 2022.
The ...
.
Archives
There is a Clifford Sifton
fonds
In archival science, a fonds is a group of documents that share the same origin and that have occurred naturally as an outgrowth of the daily workings of an agency, individual, or organization. An example of a fonds could be the writings of a poe ...
at
Library and Archives Canada.
References
Further reading
* Dafoe, John W. ''Clifford Sifton in Relation to His Times'' (1931).
* Hall, D.J. "Clifford Sifton: Immigration and Settlement Policy, 1896–1905," in Howard Palmer, ed. ''The Settlement of the West'' (1977) pp. 60–85.
*
*
*
*
Timlin, Mabel F. "Canada's Immigration Policy, 1896–1910," ''Canadian Journal of Economics and Political Science'' Vol. 26, No. 4 (Nov., 1960), pp. 517–53
in JSTOR
External links
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sifton, Clifford
1861 births
1929 deaths
Canadian Knights Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George
Canadian people of Anglo-Irish descent
Liberal Party of Canada MPs
Lawyers in Manitoba
University of Toronto alumni
Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Manitoba
Members of the King's Privy Council for Canada
People from Middlesex County, Ontario
Persons of National Historic Significance (Canada)
Members of the Executive Council of Manitoba