Peter Heenan, (February 19, 1875 – May 12, 1948) was a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

union leader and politician, and also served as a cabinet minister at the federal and provincial levels.

Early life

Born in Tullaree, near

Newcastle, County Down Newcastle () is a small seaside resort town in County Down, Northern Ireland, which had a population of 7,672 at the 2011 Census. It lies by the Irish Sea at the foot of Slieve Donard, the highest of the Mourne Mountains. Newcastle is known fo ...

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

, Heenan worked as a pit boy at St Helen's Colliery in

Cumberland Cumberland ( ) is a historic county in the far North West England. It covers part of the Lake District as well as the north Pennines and Solway Firth coast. Cumberland had an administrative function from the 12th century until 1974. From 19 ...

, where he tested work on the mine's railways, and then worked on the Costa Rica Railway in

Central America Central America ( es, América Central or ) is a subregion of the Americas. Its boundaries are defined as bordering the United States to the north, Colombia to the south, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. ...

. An attack of

yellow fever Yellow fever is a viral disease of typically short duration. In most cases, symptoms include fever, chills, loss of appetite, nausea, muscle pains – particularly in the back – and headaches. Symptoms typically improve within five days. In ...

forced Heenan to move to Canada in 1902, where he first worked on a Western ranch, and then as a locomotive engineer for the

Canadian Pacific Railway The Canadian Pacific Railway (french: Chemin de fer Canadien Pacifique) , also known simply as CPR or Canadian Pacific and formerly as CP Rail (1968–1996), is a Canadian Class I railway incorporated in 1881. The railway is owned by Canadi ...

on the run between

Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749,6 ...

and

Kenora Kenora (), previously named Rat Portage (french: Portage-aux-Rats), is a city situated on the Lake of the Woods in Ontario, Canada, close to the Manitoba boundary, and about east of Winnipeg by road. It is the seat of Kenora District. The his ...

. The experience he had acquired in Costa Rica as a diver also proved useful when he was called to help out in a train wreck just outside Kenora, where the locomotive had plunged down underwater. Heenan became involved in the labour movement in

Northwestern Ontario Northwestern Ontario is a secondary region of Northern Ontario in the Canadian province of Ontario which lies north and west of Lake Superior and west of Hudson Bay and James Bay. It includes most of subarctic Ontario. Its western boundary is the ...

, becoming its most prominent leader by the beginning of

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. He also became an alderman on Kenora's town council, serving for five years, and was also chairman of the local public utilities commission for two years.

Political career

Labour MPP in Ontario (1919-1926)

Elected to the

Legislative Assembly of Ontario The Legislative Assembly of Ontario (OLA, french: Assemblée législative de l'Ontario) is the legislative chamber of the Canadian province of Ontario. Its elected members are known as Members of Provincial Parliament (MPPs). Bills passed by ...

as the

Labour Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the labour ...

candidate for the riding of

in the 1919 election, Heenan was re-elected in

1923 Events January–February * January 9 – Lithuania begins the Klaipėda Revolt to annex the Klaipėda Region (Memel Territory). * January 11 – Despite strong British protests, troops from France and Belgium occupy the Ruhr area, t ...

. When the Legislature was not in session, he would resume driving locomotives. Under Heenan's leadership, the Labour MPPs joined with the

United Farmers of Ontario The United Farmers of Ontario (UFO) was an agrarian and populist provincial political party in Ontario, Canada. It was the Ontario provincial branch of the United Farmers movement of the early part of the 20th century. History Foundation and r ...

to form a coalition government under

E.C. Drury Ernest Charles Drury (January 22, 1878 – February 17, 1968) was a farmer, politician and writer who served as the eighth premier of Ontario, from 1919 to 1923 as the head of a United Farmers of Ontario–Labour coalition government. ...

, with the understanding that Drury would support

Edward Wellington Backus Edward Wellington Backus (December 1, 1861 – October 29, 1934) was a timber baron, dam builder, mill owner, financier, developer of the northern reaches of Minnesota, and president of the Ontario & Minnesota Power Company and Minnesota and Ontario ...

' plans for erecting a newsprint mill in Kenora. Heenan was also instrumental in getting Harry Mills appointed as the Province's first Minister of Mines.

Liberal MP and federal Minister of Labour (1926-1934)

He was elected as the

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

candidate to the

House of Commons of Canada The House of Commons of Canada (french: Chambre des communes du Canada) is the lower house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Crown and the Senate of Canada, they comprise the bicameral legislature of Canada. The House of Common ...

representing the riding of

Kenora—Rainy River Kenora—Rainy River was a federal electoral district represented in the House of Commons of Canada from 1925 to 2004. It was located in the province of Ontario. This riding was created in 1924 from parts of Fort William and Rainy River and Por ...

in the 1925 federal election. He was re-elected in

1926 Events January * January 3 – Theodoros Pangalos declares himself dictator in Greece. * January 8 **Abdul-Aziz ibn Saud is crowned King of Hejaz. ** Crown Prince Nguyễn Phúc Vĩnh Thuy ascends the throne, the last monarch of V ...

and

1930 Events January * January 15 – The Moon moves into its nearest point to Earth, called perigee, at the same time as its fullest phase of the Lunar Cycle. This is the closest moon distance at in recent history, and the next one will be ...

. From 1926 to 1930, he was the Minister of Labour, and became known as "Peter the Peacemaker" for settling 160 labour disputes in his first three years. He secured the passage of the ''Mother's Allowance Act'' and the ''Old Age Pensions Act''. Heenan still found time to work as a locomotive engineer when the House was not in session. In 1934, during a debate, he exclaimed, "I wanted to be unique. I wanted to be the only man that the Conservatives have put into

overalls Overalls, also called bib-and-brace overalls or dungarees, are a type of garment usually used as protective clothing when working. The garments are commonly referred to as a "pair of overalls" by analogy with "pair of trousers". Overalls were ...

Liberal MPP and Ontario Cabinet Minister (1934-1943)

Heenan resigned his federal seat, after winning a provincial seat as the Liberal Party of Ontario candidate in the 1934 election for the riding of Kenora. He was re-elected in

1937 Events January * January 1 – Anastasio Somoza García becomes President of Nicaragua. * January 5 – Water levels begin to rise in the Ohio River in the United States, leading to the Ohio River flood of 1937, which continues into Fe ...

. From 1934 to 1941, he was the Minister of Lands and Forests in the provincial government of Mitchell Hepburn. Heenan was charged with promoting Hepburn's policies on natural resource development, including the aggressive position with respect to timber licenses in

Northern Ontario Northern Ontario is a primary geographic and quasi-administrative region of the Canadian province of Ontario, the other primary region being Southern Ontario. Most of the core geographic region is located on part of the Superior Geological Provi ...

that were being held by companies that would not (or could not) cut wood on them. In that regard, in 1936 the ''Forest Resources Regulation Act'' was passed that granted the government broad powers for mandating minimum production quotas, maximum limits in line with good forestry practice, reducing licensed acreages where they were in excess of requirements, and increasing

stumpage Stumpage is the price a private firm pays for the right to harvest timber from a given land base. It is paid to the current owner of the land. Historically, the price was determined on a basis of the number of trees harvested, or "per stump". Curr ...

fees on companies "operating or carrying on business in a manner detrimental to the public interest."

Great Lakes Paper The Great Lakes Paper Company was the operator of the largest and most modern pulp and paper manufacturing facility in the world. The Company employed over 4,000 in Northern Ontario, starting in 1924 as a pulp mill at Fort William, Ontario (now Thu ...

saw its holdings reduced from to , and was assessed a $500,000 penalty ($ in current terms) for refusing to participate in a minimum price agreement set up by the Ontario and Quebec governments. He also sought to exploit other uses for provincial lands. In 1941, he announced that one-seventh of all Crown land, amounting to , was being made available for lease to individuals, sportsmen's clubs and commercial camp owners. The 1938 collapse of the Lake Sulphite Pulp Company's operation at Red Rock led to Opposition charges of ineptness in the policies of the Department of Lands and Forests. Following hearings by a legislative committee in the matter, Heenan and his deputy minister tendered their resignations. He was subsequently appointed as provincial Minister of Labour. Heenan took good care of his constituents' interests, and arranged for many improvements for Northwestern Ontario, including the construction of the Heenan Highway (now Highway 71) to serve Kenora and Rainy River.

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Heenan, Peter 1875 births 1948 deaths Irish emigrants to Canada Labour MPPs in Ontario Liberal Party of Canada MPs Members of the Executive Council of Ontario Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Ontario Members of the King's Privy Council for Canada Ontario Liberal Party MPPs People from Kenora District Politicians from County Down British expatriates in Costa Rica People from Newcastle, County Down