Sir ''Sir'' is a formal honorific address in English for men, derived from Sire in the High Middle Ages. Both are derived from the old French "Sieur" (Lord), brought to England by the French-speaking Normans, and which now exist in French only as ...

John Charles Puddester (4 October 1881 – 22 April 1947) was a businessman and political figure in Newfoundland. He represented Bay de Verde from 1924 to 1932 and Carbonear-Bay de Verde from 1932 to 1934. Puddester was then appointed to the

Commission of Government The Commission of Government was a non-elected body that governed the Dominion of Newfoundland from 1934 to 1949. Established following the collapse of Newfoundland's economy during the Great Depression, it was dissolved when the dominion beca ...

, serving until his death in 1947. He was born in Northern Bay, the son of Mark Puddester and Sarah Sellers. Puddester married Mary Moores and had nine children. After teaching school from 1899 to 1903, he became an accountant with Reid Newfoundland Company, working there until 1916. From 1916 to 1932, he was business manager for the ''St. John's Daily News''. Puddester ran unsuccessfully for a seat in the Newfoundland assembly in 1923 before being elected the following year. He served in the Executive Council as Secretary of State. Puddester was Commissioner of Public Health and Welfare and became vice-chairman of the Commission of Government in 1938. In the 1930s and 1940s, Puddester initiated a program to transcribe parish baptism and marriage records dating from the period before civil registration began in 1891. He was knighted in 1939. Puddester died in St. John's in 1947.

References

Members of the Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly Knights Bachelor 1881 births 1947 deaths Members of the Newfoundland Commission of Government Dominion of Newfoundland politicians {{Newfoundland-politician-stub