John Gunion Rutherford (December 25, 1857 – July 24, 1923) was a

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veterinarian, civil servant, and politician. Born in Mountain Cross, Newlands Parish, Peeblesshire,

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, the son of Rev. Robert Rutherford, Rutherford was educated at the High School in

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and by private tuition. He emigrated to Canada in 1875 and took a course at the

Ontario Agricultural College The Ontario Agricultural College (OAC) originated at the agricultural laboratories of the Toronto Normal School, and was officially founded in 1874 as an associate agricultural college of the University of Toronto. Since 1964, it has become affili ...

and afterwards attended the

Ontario Veterinary College The Ontario Veterinary College (OVC) is the oldest veterinary school in Canada. It is located on the campus of the University of Guelph in Guelph, Ontario. The OVC is one of five veterinary schools that offer the Doctor of Veterinary Medicine, ...

, graduating in 1879 with the rank of gold medalist. Settling in

Portage la Prairie, Manitoba Portage la Prairie () is a small city in the Central Plains Region of Manitoba, Canada. As of 2016, the population was 13,304 and the land area of the city was . Portage la Prairie is approximately west of Winnipeg, along the Trans-Canada Hi ...

, he was President of the Manitoba Liberal Printing Company and the owner of a large veterinary infirmary. During the North-West Rebellion in 1885, Rutherford served with the Winnipeg Field Battery as a Veterinary Surgeon, and was present at the engagements of Fish Creek and Batoche, for which he received the medal and clasp. In

1892 Events January–March * January 1 – Ellis Island begins accommodating immigrants to the United States. * February 1 - The historic Enterprise Bar and Grill was established in Rico, Colorado. * February 27 – Rudolf Diesel applies fo ...

, he was elected to the

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for the electoral district of Lakeside. A Manitoba Liberal, he served until 1896. He was elected to the House of Commons of Canada in an 1897 by-election for the electoral district of Macdonald. A

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, he was defeated in

1900 As of March 1 ( O.S. February 17), when the Julian calendar acknowledged a leap day and the Gregorian calendar did not, the Julian calendar fell one day further behind, bringing the difference to 13 days until February 28 ( O.S. February 15), 2 ...

. He was appointed Dominion Veterinary Director-General in 1902 and Dominion Livestock Commissioner in 1906. In 1912, he was appointed Superintendent of Agriculture and Animal Industry for the Canadian Pacific Railway. He was president of the American Veterinary Medical Association from 1908 to 1909. From 1918 until his death in 1923, he was a Board of Railway Commissioner and Transport Commissioner. He was appointed CMG in the 1910 Birthday Honours.

References

Personnel of the Senate and House of Commons, eighth Parliament of Canada, elected June 23, 1896
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John Gunion Rutherford - A Famous Manitoba Veterinarian

John Gunion Rutherford
at

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Board of Railway Commissioners and Transport Commissioners
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rutherford, John 1857 births 1923 deaths Liberal Party of Canada MPs Manitoba Liberal Party MLAs Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Manitoba Scottish emigrants to Canada People from the Scottish Borders Canadian Companions of the Order of St Michael and St George Canadian veterinarians Male veterinarians