George Lane (6 March 1856 – 24 September 1925) was an American-born Canadian politician and rancher and known as one of the Big Four who helped found the

Calgary Stampede The Calgary Stampede is an annual rodeo, exhibition, and festival held every July in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. The ten-day event, which bills itself as "The Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth", attracts over one million visitors per year and featu ...

in 1912. In 2016, he was inducted into the

Hall of Great Westerners The Hall of Great Westerners was established by the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum in 1958. Located in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, U.S., the Hall was created to celebrate the contributions of more than 200 men and women of the American W ...

of the

National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum The National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum is a museum in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States, with more than 28,000 American West, Western and Native Americans in the United States, American Indian art works and Artifact (archaeology), ar ...

. George was foreman at the

Bar U Ranch The Bar U Ranch National Historic Site, located near Longview, Alberta, is a preserved ranch that for 70 years was one of the leading ranching operations in Canada. At its peak, the ranch extended over with 30,000 cattle and 1000 Percheron ho ...

and eventually returned in the early 1900s to purchase it for $250,000. In 1885 he married Elizabeth Sexsmith and they raised 8 children together. In the

1913 Alberta general election The 1913 Alberta general election was held in March 1913. The writ was dropped on 25 March 1913 and election day was held 17 April 1913 to elect 56 members to the 3rd Alberta Legislature. Elections in two northern districts took place on 30 July ...

George was elected as the first member for the

Bow Valley Bow Valley is a valley located along the upper Bow River in Alberta, Canada. The name "Bow" refers to the reeds that grew along its banks and which were used by the local First Nations people to make bows; the Blackfoot language name for the ...

riding for the

Alberta Liberal Party The Alberta Liberal Party (french: Parti libéral de l'Alberta) is a provincial political party in Alberta, Canada. Founded in 1905, it is the oldest active political party in Alberta and was the dominant political party until the 1921 election ...

. He was somewhat of a star candidate for the Liberal Party, and helped keep a critical southern Alberta seat from going Conservative. He defeated

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 ...

Incumbent Harold Riley who had changed from the Gleichen district. George would spend very little time as a member of the

Legislative Assembly of Alberta The Legislative Assembly of Alberta is the deliberative assembly of the province of Alberta, Canada. It sits in the Alberta Legislature Building in Edmonton. The Legislative Assembly currently has 87 members, elected first past the post from singl ...

, he would resign a short time later so that defeated Cabinet Minister

Charles R. Mitchell Charles Richmond Mitchell (November 30, 1872 – August 16, 1942) was a Canadian lawyer, judge, cabinet minister and former Leader of the Official Opposition in the Legislative Assembly of Alberta. Early life Mitchell was born in Newcastle, Ne ...

could re-gain a seat in the legislature.

Legacy

, 2016

Election results

References

External links

George Lane and his home in Calgary
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Lane, George Alberta Liberal Party MLAs American expatriates in Canada 1856 births 1925 deaths Canadian cattlemen Persons of National Historic Significance (Canada)