Fred W. Henne (January 14, 1914 – January 22, 1998) was a labour leader, businessman and politician in the

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. ...

, Canada. Henne arrived in

Yellowknife Yellowknife (; Dogrib: ) is the capital, largest community, and only city in the Northwest Territories, Canada. It is on the northern shore of Great Slave Lake, about south of the Arctic Circle, on the west side of Yellowknife Bay near the ...

, NWT from

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

as a labour union negotiator in early 1947, and successfully negotiated the first collective bargaining agreement at the

Con Mine The Con Mine (1938-2003) was the first gold mine developed in the Northwest Territories, Canada, just south of Yellowknife. The property was staked by Consolidated Mining and Smelting Company of Canada (Cominco) in September 1935 in response to t ...

and

Giant Mine The Giant Mine was a gold mine located on the Ingraham Trail, north of Yellowknife, Northwest Territories. Giant Mine was within the Kam Group, a part of the Yellowknife greenstone belt. Gold was discovered on the property and mineral claims sta ...

in Yellowknife. Soon thereafter, he decided to go into private business and purchased a controlling interest in the Frame & Perkins garage and automobile dealership in Yellowknife, which he operated from 1949 to 1980. Henne's political career began with various stints on the early Yellowknife Town Council, winning seats in the November 1947, November 1948, November 1950, November 1951 (appointed chairman of Trustee Council for 1952), and November 1953 elections. In January 1955, he was named deputy mayor under mayor Gordon A. Allen. In the November 1955 election, he ran a successful campaign as mayoral candidate against a single opponent. His term of office ran from January 1, 1956, to December 31, 1957. He was the first elected mayor of Yellowknife; the two municipal mayors previous were either acclaimed candidates or appointed. He left Yellowknife to live in Grimshaw, Alberta in 1958 but later returned, running for the office of Yellowknife mayor again and winning by acclamation in the December 1967 election. Subsequently, Henne again became mayor in the December 1969 election, December 1971 election, losing in the December 1973 election, returning to victory in the December 1975 election, and the December 1977 election, his final term in office. During his terms of office in the 1960s and 1970s, mayor Fred Henne guided Yellowknife as it grew from a mining town to capital of the Northwest Territories. Fred Henne left Yellowknife in 1980, and died in 1998 in Summerland, BC. Fred Henne Territorial Park is named in his memory."A Mayor for all Seasons" ''The Yellowknifer'', January 23, 1998

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Henne, Fred W. Mayors of Yellowknife 1914 births 1998 deaths