John McInnis (1879 – 1972) was a miner, business owner and MLA in

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, ...

. He represented

Grand Forks Grand Forks is the third-largest city in the state of North Dakota (after Fargo and Bismarck) and the county seat of Grand Forks County. According to the 2020 census, the city's population was 59,166. Grand Forks, along with its twin city o ...

from 1907 to 1909 as a

Socialist Party Socialist Party is the name of many different political parties around the world. All of these parties claim to uphold some form of socialism, though they may have very different interpretations of what "socialism" means. Statistically, most of th ...

member. He later represented Fort George from 1945 to 1949 as a

Co-operative Commonwealth Federation The Co-operative Commonwealth Federation (CCF; french: Fédération du Commonwealth Coopératif, FCC); from 1955 the Social Democratic Party of Canada (''french: Parti social démocratique du Canada''), was a federal democratic socialism, democra ...

(CCF) Member of the

Legislative Assembly of British Columbia The Legislative Assembly of British Columbia is the deliberative assembly of the Parliament of British Columbia, in the province of British Columbia, Canada. The Legislative Assembly meets in Victoria, British Columbia, Victoria. Members ar ...

. McInnis was born on June 25, 1879 in Springton, Prince Edward Island and was educated there. McInnis came to British Columbia at the age of 20. He worked as a carpenter and miner at

Phoenix Phoenix most often refers to: * Phoenix (mythology), a legendary bird from ancient Greek folklore * Phoenix, Arizona, a city in the United States Phoenix may also refer to: Mythology Greek mythological figures * Phoenix (son of Amyntor), a ...

and Greenwood from 1900 to 1910. McInnis was defeated when he ran for reelection in 1909. He then established a lumber business based in Prince George. McInnis ran unsuccessfully for the

Cariboo The Cariboo is an intermontane region of British Columbia, Canada, centered on a plateau stretching from Fraser Canyon to the Cariboo Mountains. The name is a reference to the caribou that were once abundant in the region. The Cariboo was the ...

federal seat in 1935 and for the Grand Forks seat in the provincial assembly in 1916 and again in 1937 before being elected in 1945. He was defeated when he ran for reelection in 1949 and 1952. In 1972, McInnis died in Prince George at the age of 92. He died March 23, 1972. John McInnis Jr. Secondary School was named in his honour.

References

Year of birth uncertain 1972 deaths British Columbia Co-operative Commonwealth Federation MLAs 20th-century Canadian politicians British Columbia Socialist Party MLAs 1879 births {{BritishColumbia-MLA-stub