George Frederick Marter (6 June 1840 – 10 May 1907) was a politician in the

Canadian province Within the geographical areas of Canada, the ten provinces and three territories are sub-national administrative divisions under the jurisdiction of the Canadian Constitution. In the 1867 Canadian Confederation, three provinces of British North ...

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 ...

. He led the

Ontario Conservative Party The Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario (french: Parti progressiste-conservateur de l'Ontario), often shortened to the Ontario PC Party or simply the PCs, colloquially known as the Tories, is a centre-right political party in Ontario, Canada ...

from 1894 to 1896. Marter and Patrick Brown are the only permanent Ontario Conservative leaders who did not lead the party into an election.

Early career

After graduating from grammar school in Brantford Marter became a merchant and county councillor in Norfolk County, but later moved to operate a general store

Bracebridge, Ontario Bracebridge is a town and the seat of the Muskoka District Municipality in Ontario, Canada. The town was built around a waterfall on the Muskoka River in the centre of town, and is known for its other nearby waterfalls (Wilson's Falls, High Falls ...

Politics

Marter was elected for the riding of Muskoka from 1886 to 1894 and Toronto North from 1894 to 1902. In 1894, Marter became Conservative leader following William Ralph Meredith's acceptance of the position of Chief Justice of the Common Pleas. The Conservative Party he led was aligned with the

Protestant Protective Association The Protestant Protective Association was an anti-Catholic group in the 1890s based in Ontario, Canada, associated with the Orange Order. Originally a spinoff of the American group the American Protective Association, it became independent in 1892. ...

in the legislature, and was divided by religious conflict and narrow bigotry. Marter was essentially an interim leader. In 1896, he was replaced as leader by

James P. Whitney Sir James Pliny Whitney (October 2, 1843 – September 25, 1914) was a Canadian politician and lawyer in the province of Ontario. He served as Conservative member of the legislature for Dundas from 1888 and as the sixth premier of Ontario from ...

. He was defeated when he ran as an Independent in the 1902 election.

Later life

Following his political career Marter became an insurance agent/manager of the London and Lancashire Insurance Company of

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

and later co-founder of Marter Hall Company Limited with his son. Marter died in Toronto in 1907.

Legacy

Marter Township, Ontario Marter Township is an unincorporated geographic township in the Unorganized West part of Timiskaming District in Northeastern Ontario, Canada. The township is named for George Frederick Marter. The mouth of the Englehart River The Englehart Riv ...

is named for him.

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* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Marter, George 1840 births 1907 deaths Canadian Methodists Leaders of the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario MPPs