Sidney Labe Buckwold, (November 3, 1916 – June 27, 2001) was a Canadian politician, soldier, and businessman. Buckwold served as a

Senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

for 20 years and as mayor of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, for 11 years in two separate tenures.

Early life

Buckwold was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba to Harry Buckwold and Dorothy Friedman in 1916. The family moved to Saskatoon in 1925, where Buckwold attended Buena Vista School, Nutana Collegiate and the University of Saskatchewan, before going to Montreal and receiving a Bachelor of Commerce from McGill University. Afterwards, he returned to Saskatoon and worked for his father's dry goods store, Buckwold’s Ltd. During the Second World War he served as an officer with the Canadian Army Service Corps from 1942 to 1945. After the war he returned to Saskatoon and Buckwold's Ltd.

Political career

Saskatoon City Council

Buckwold was first elected to Saskatoon City Council as an alderman in 1953. When John D. McAskill resigned as mayor in 1958, Buckwold ran to replace him, and was elected mayor. Buckwold was the first Jewish mayor in Saskatoon's history. Buckwold himself resigned as mayor in 1963 in order to run as a Liberal candidate in the

federal election An election is a formal group decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy has operated ...

in the Saskatoon riding. He lost to the Progressive Conservative candidate,

Henry Frank Jones Henry Frank Jones (21 August 1920 – 4 March 1964) was a Canadian lawyer and politician. Jones served as a Progressive Conservative party member of the House of Commons of Canada. He was born in Lloydminster, Saskatchewan and became a barri ...

. He ran again in the 1964 by-election after Jones' death, but lost again, this time to Jones' widow, Eloise. In 1967, Buckwold returned to the mayor's office, and served in the role until 1971. During his time in office, Buckwold help to lay the groundwork for a revitalization of downtown Saskatoon by moving the

Canadian National Railway The Canadian National Railway Company (french: Compagnie des chemins de fer nationaux du Canada) is a Canadian Class I freight railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, which serves Canada and the Midwestern and Southern United States. CN i ...

lines outside of the city. In their place the city constructed a new cultural centre, Centennial Auditorium, and a shopping centre. The federal government was so impressed with this successful vision of urban renewal that it began providing grants to other Canadian cities to move rail lines out of core urban areas. Outside of the downtown core, Buckwold established the Mendel Art Gallery, which would be the city's main gallery well into the twenty first century. He also oversaw the construction of the city's first freeway and the Idylwyld Bridge. Buckwold was generally known as a booster of Saskatoon, and another former Senator from Saskatchewan,

David Tkachuk David Tkachuk (born February 18, 1945) is a Canadian teacher, executive and politician. Tkachuk was a member of the Senate of Canada, representing Saskatchewan from 1993 to 2020. Life and career David Tkachuk was born on February 18, 1945, to G ...

, credited Buckwold with taking "a sleepy prairie agricultural town and imbu ngit with spirit and pride." To help raise the profile of the city, he brought the

Canada Winter Games 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 total ...

to Saskatoon in 1971, for which the city constructed a small ski hill.

Canadian Senate

In 1971, he resigned again as mayor, this time to accept an appointment to the

Canadian Senate The Senate of Canada (french: region=CA, Sénat du Canada) is the upper house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Crown and the House of Commons, they comprise the bicameral legislature of Canada. The Senate is modelled after the B ...

on the recommendation of Prime Minister

Pierre Trudeau Joseph Philippe Pierre Yves Elliott Trudeau ( , ; October 18, 1919 – September 28, 2000), also referred to by his initials PET, was a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 15th prime minister of Canada The prime mini ...

. A Liberal, he served as Government

Whip A whip is a tool or weapon designed to strike humans or other animals to exert control through pain compliance or fear of pain. They can also be used without inflicting pain, for audiovisual cues, such as in equestrianism. They are generally e ...

in the Senate and as Vice-Chairman of the National Liberal Caucus, and he became affectionately known as "Senator Sid." However, he was an advocate for Senate reform, arguing in favour of an elected Senate with better regional representation and less partisanship. He served as a Senator until retiring in 1991 at age 75.

Personal life and legacy

Buckwold married Clarice Rabinovitch in 1939 and they had three children named Jay, Judy, and Linda. He remained active in community life for many years, serving with organizations such as Community Chest and the Rotary Club, and he was a founding member of the local branch of the Canadian Diabetes Association. Buckwold received numerous honours throughout his life and career. He was named Saskatoon Citizen of the Year in 1971. In 1982, he received an honorary Doctor of Laws degree from the University of Saskatchewan. In 1995, he was made an Officer of the Order of Canada. He was also made an honorary Colonel of the

North Saskatchewan Regiment , garrison = Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, and Prince Albert, Saskatchewan , battles = North-West RebellionFirst World WarSecond World WarWar in Afghanistan , battle_honours = See #Battle hon ...

for his military service. Buckwold died on June 27, 2001, aged 84. After his death, the City of Saskatoon renamed the Idylwyld Bridge, which was built during his time as mayor, to

Senator Sid Buckwold Bridge The Senator Sid Buckwold Bridge is a bridge that spans the South Saskatchewan River between west and east shore in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada. It was built in 1966, on the same site as the original Qu'Appelle, Long Lake and Saskatchewan (lat ...

in his honour. Buckwold Cove in the

Arbor Creek Arbor(s) or Arbour(s) may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Arbor'' (installation), a 2013 public artwork in Indianapolis, Indiana, US * Arbor, a counterweight-carrying device found in theater fly systems * ''The Arbor'', a 1980 play by Andr ...

neighbourhood and Sidney L. Buckwold Park in East College Park also bear his name.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Buckwold, Sidney 1916 births 2001 deaths Canadian senators from Saskatchewan Candidates in the 1963 Canadian federal election Liberal Party of Canada senators Mayors of Saskatoon McGill University Faculty of Management alumni Officers of the Order of Canada Politicians from Winnipeg Jewish mayors of places in Canada Liberal Party of Canada candidates for the Canadian House of Commons Saskatoon city councillors Canadian Army personnel of World War II Royal Canadian Army Service Corps officers Canadian military personnel from Manitoba