Michael P. Gibbs, (March 25, 1870 – November 7, 1944) was a

Newfoundland Newfoundland and Labrador (; french: Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador; frequently abbreviated as NL) is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region ...

lawyer A lawyer is a person who practices law. The role of a lawyer varies greatly across different legal jurisdictions. A lawyer can be classified as an advocate, attorney, barrister, canon lawyer, civil law notary, counsel, counselor, solic ...

and

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

, who served as the

second The second (symbol: s) is the unit of time in the International System of Units (SI), historically defined as of a day – this factor derived from the division of the day first into 24 hours, then to 60 minutes and finally to 60 seconds ...

mayor of St. John's. Born St. John's,

, the son of John Gibbs and Marguerite Murray, he was educated at the

Christian Brothers School The following is a list of the schools, colleges, and other educational institutions founded, run or staffed (in any capacity) by the Congregation of Christian Brothers (sometimes called the Irish Christian Brothers) since 1802. Some schools no l ...

in St. John's, and articled in law with the Hon. M.H. Carty. Gibbs was

called to the bar The call to the bar is a legal term of art in most common law jurisdictions where persons must be qualified to be allowed to argue in court on behalf of another party and are then said to have been "called to the bar" or to have received "call to ...

in 1896, and created

King's Counsel In the United Kingdom and in some Commonwealth countries, a King's Counsel ( post-nominal initials KC) during the reign of a king, or Queen's Counsel (post-nominal initials QC) during the reign of a queen, is a lawyer (usually a barrister or ...

in 1911. In 1898, he married Barbara Mary Eadie. Gibbs established a Tenant's League in 1892 in an attempt to have land courts established, and became in 1893 editor of the '' Terra Nova Advocate''. He was elected as a Conservative in St. George's district in 1897, in his second attempt at a seat in the

House of Assembly House of Assembly is a name given to the legislature or lower house of a bicameral parliament. In some countries this may be at a subnational level. Historically, in British Crown colonies as the colony gained more internal responsible governme ...

. He was defeated in four subsequent general elections, however, contesting a variety of districts. While a member for St. George's (1887–1900) Gibbs established a reputation as an advocate of trade unionism and as a skilled negotiator on behalf of labour. He was instrumental in launching the Longshoremen's Protective Union (LSPU) in 1903 and remained LSPU counsel until his death. Gibbs also helped St. John's bakers and carpenters to organize, and he became Mayor of St. John's in 1906 as a Labour candidate. When

Edward Patrick Morris Edward Patrick Morris, 1st Baron Morris (May 8, 1859 – October 24, 1935) was a Newfoundlander lawyer and Prime Minister of Newfoundland. Born in St. John's, the son of Edward Morris and Catherine Fitzgerald, he was educated at Saint Bonaven ...

resigned from the Bond Administration Gibbs was offered Morris's cabinet post as Minister of Justice and Attorney General, but declined and joined Morris in forming the

Newfoundland People's Party {{Infobox political party , name = Newfoundland People's Party , colorcode = {{Canadian party colour, NF, People's , foundation = 1907 , ideology = Social democracyIrish Catholic interests , headquarters = St. John's , country = Canada , di ...

. After defeats in the ensuing general elections of 1908 and 1909 Gibbs was appointed to the Legislative Council and made Minister without portfolio in the Morris Administration, refusing further cabinet posts after Morris's resignation in 1918. Gibbs was appointed President of the Legislative Council in 1930, maintaining that position until 1934 when the council was disbanded. He died in St. John's at the age of 73.

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* 1870 births 1943 deaths Members of the Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly Mayors of St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador Canadian King's Counsel Members of the Legislative Council of Newfoundland Government ministers of the Dominion of Newfoundland Newfoundland Colony people {{Newfoundland-mayor-stub