Robert Dick Orok (October 2, 1878 – November 8, 1957) was a politician in

Manitoba Manitoba ( ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population o ...

, Canada. He served in the

Legislative Assembly of Manitoba The Legislative Assembly of Manitoba (french: Assemblée législative du Manitoba) is the deliberative assembly of the Manitoba Legislature in the Canadian province of Manitoba. Fifty-seven members are elected to this assembly at provincial gener ...

from 1912 to 1915, as a member of the

Conservative Party The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right. Political parties called The Conservative P ...

Biography

Orok was born in

Midhurst Midhurst () is a market town, parish and civil parish in West Sussex, England. It lies on the River Rother inland from the English Channel, and north of the county town of Chichester. The name Midhurst was first recorded in 1186 as ''Middeh ...

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 ...

, the son of William Orok and Mary Johnston. He was educated at the

Barrie Barrie is a city in Southern Ontario, Canada, about north of Toronto. The city is within Simcoe County and located along the shores of Kempenfelt Bay, the western arm of Lake Simcoe. Although physically in Simcoe County, Barrie is politically i ...

Collegiate Institute and the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution ...

, and received a certification as a medical doctor. Orok pursued post-graduate studies at Queen's University and the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...

. He spent time in the

Yukon Yukon (; ; formerly called Yukon Territory and also referred to as the Yukon) is the smallest and westernmost of Canada's three territories. It also is the second-least populated province or territory in Canada, with a population of 43,964 as ...

gold fields and then practised medicine in

Cookstown, Ontario Innisfil is a town in Ontario, Canada, located on the western shore of Lake Simcoe in Simcoe County, immediately south of Barrie and north of Toronto. It has historically been a rural area, but due to being geographically sandwiched in between ...

from 1909 to 1911 and, from 1911, at

The Pas The Pas ( ; french: Le Pas) is a town in Manitoba, Canada, located at the confluence of the Pasquia River and the Saskatchewan River and surrounded by the unorganized Northern Region of the province. It is approximately northwest of the provinc ...

. He also worked as a surgeon on the Hudson Bay Railway. In religion, Orok was a

Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their nam ...

. In 1904, he married Louise M. Smith. In 1907, Orork married Bessie Vair. He was first elected to the Manitoba legislature in a

by-election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India, or a Zimni election (Urdu: ضمنی انتخاب, supplementary election) in Pakistan, is an election used to f ...

held on October 22, 1912, in the nearly-created northern constituency of

. The constituency occupied at the time, and Orok claimed that it was the largest in the world. Orok won his seat by acclamation, and served as a backbench supporter of

premier Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier. A premier will normally be a head of governm ...

Rodmond Roblin Sir Rodmond Palen Roblin (February 15, 1853 – February 16, 1937) was a businessman and politician in Manitoba, Canada. Early life and career Roblin was born in Sophiasburgh Township, Ontario, Sophiasburgh, in Prince Edward County, Ontario, ...

's government. Orok was again returned by acclamation through a deferred vote in the 1914 election, after the Conservatives had won a majority government in the rest of the province. Roblin's administration was forced to resign in 1915 amid a serious corruption scandal. A new election was held, which the Liberals won in a landslide. Orok did not seek re-election. He served as a captain in the

Canadian Machine Gun Corps The Canadian Machine Gun Corps (CMGC) was an administrative corps of the Canadian Expeditionary Force (CEF) and of the Canadian Militia. It was part of the CEF sent to France during World War I. The Canadian Permanent Machine Gun Brigade was org ...

and the

Royal Canadian Army Medical Corps The Royal Canadian Army Medical Corps (RCAMC) was an administrative corps of the Canadian Army. The Militia Medical Service was established in 1898. It consisted of an Army Medical Service (officers) and an Army Medical Corps (other ranks). ...

during

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 ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Orok, Robert 1878 births 1957 deaths Politicians from Simcoe County Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba MLAs Canadian military personnel of World War I Canadian Machine Gun Corps officers Royal Canadian Army Medical Corps officers Canadian military personnel from Ontario University of Toronto alumni