Thomas Ray Connell (December 1, 1916 – November 14, 1986) was a politician in

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

. He was a Progressive Conservative member of 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 ...

from 1951 to 1971. He represented the ridings of Hamilton—Wentworth and Wentworth North. He was a member of cabinet in the governments of

Leslie Frost Leslie Miscampbell Frost (September 20, 1895 – May 4, 1973) was a politician in Ontario, Canada, who served as the province's 16th premier from May 4, 1949, to November 8, 1961. Due to his lengthy tenure, he gained the nickname "Old Man O ...

and

John Robarts John Parmenter Robarts (January 11, 1917 – October 18, 1982) was a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 17th premier of Ontario from 1961 to 1971. He was a member of the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario. Early life Roba ...

Background

A farmer, Connell married Irene Brenn in 1942. They raised two children, Allan and Brenda.

Politics

First elected in the general election in 1951, Connell was re-elected in the general elections in 1955, 1959, 1963, and 1967. During his first term in office, he served on variety of Standing Committees. On November 1, 1956, he was appointed to

's cabinet as a

Minister without Portfolio A minister without portfolio is either a government minister with no specific responsibilities or a minister who does not head a particular ministry. The sinecure is particularly common in countries ruled by coalition governments and a cabinet w ...

and, on April 28, 1958, he was appointed as the Minister of Reform Institutions. On December 22, 1958, he was promoted to a senior Cabinet post, as

Minister of Public Works This list indicates government departments in various countries dedicated to public works or infrastructure. See also * Public works * Ministry or Board of Public Works, the imperial Chinese ministry overseeing public projects from the Tang ...

, which he would go on to hold for a remarkable eleven years. On June 5, 1969, having already indicated that he would not be running in the next general election, Connell was dropped from Cabinet and he retired in 1971.

Later life

After retiring from politics, Connell became involved with the horse racing industry. He set about to develop a horse racing facility in the Flamborough area, north of Hamilton, Ontario. He secured three large investors and, in 1972, work began on the construction of what came to be known as

Flamboro Downs Flamboro Downs is a half-mile harness horse racing track in Flamborough, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. It is also home to Flamboro Slots, which has a total of 808 slot machines. The racetrack was founded in 1971 by Charles Juravinski and acquired in ...

racetrack. Connell served as President of the company until the mid-1980s. He died November 14, 1986, in Hamilton.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Connell, Thomas Ray 1916 births 1986 deaths Members of the Executive Council of Ontario Politicians from Hamilton, Ontario Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario MPPs