Sir Frederick William Alpin Gordon Haultain (November 25, 1857 – January 30, 1942) was a lawyer and a long-serving Canadian politician and judge. His career in provincial and territorial legislatures stretched into four decades. He served as the first

premier of the Northwest Territories The premier of the Northwest Territories is the Premier (Canada), first minister and head of government for the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian territory of the Northwest Territories. The premier is the territory's head of government ...

from 1897 to 1905 as is recognized as having a significant contribution towards the creation of the provinces of

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

and

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan ( ; ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Western Canada, western Canada, bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and on t ...

. From 1905 on he served as Leader of the Official Opposition in Saskatchewan as well as Leader of the Provincial Rights Party. His legislative career ended when he was appointed to the judiciary in 1912.

Early life

He was born in

Woolwich Woolwich () is a district in southeast London, England, within the Royal Borough of Greenwich. The district's location on the River Thames led to its status as an important naval, military and industrial area; a role that was maintained throu ...

, England in 1857, the son of Frederick W. Haultain (1821–1882) and Lucinde Helen Gordon (1828–1915), and came to Peterborough, Canada West, with his family in 1860. He grew up in Peterborough and

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

, where he was educated at the

High School of Montreal The High School of Montreal was an English-language high school founded in 1843, serving Montreal, Quebec, Canada, in the area eventually known as the Golden Square Mile. It was less formally known as Montreal High School and from 1853 to 1870 was ...

, later receiving a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

from 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 ...

. He later studied law at

Osgoode Hall Osgoode Hall is a landmark building in downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The original -storey building was started in 1829 and finished in 1832 from a design by John Ewart and William Warren Baldwin. The structure is named for William Osgoode, ...

and was called to the bar in Ontario in 1882 and in the North-West Territories in 1884.

Northwest Territories politics

left, Haultain in 1884 In 1884, Haultain opened a law practice in

Fort Macleod Fort Macleod ( ) is a town in southern Alberta, Canada. It was originally named Macleod to distinguish it from the North-West Mounted Police barracks (Fort Macleod, built 1874) it had grown around. The fort was named in honour of the then Commis ...

. He also served as Crown Prosecutor there for several years, and also was an editor for newspapers in Fort Macleod and

Lethbridge Lethbridge ( ) is a city in the province of Alberta, Canada. With a population of 101,482 in its 2019 Alberta municipal censuses, 2019 municipal census, Lethbridge became the fourth Alberta city to surpass 100,000 people. The nearby Canadian ...

. Haultain was first elected to the

Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories The Northwest Territories Legislative Assembly, or Legislative Council of the Northwest Territories (with Northwest hyphenated as North-West until 1906), is the legislature and the seat of government of Northwest Territories in Canada. It is a uni ...

in a by-election held on September 5, 1887. He defeated Charles Conybeare by a large margin. Representing the electoral district of Macleod in the North-West Territories Council from 1887-88. Haultain would win his next five elections by acclamation. The editor of the Calgary Herald once wrote of him saying that "He is a man of academic training and large, clear perception; straightforward and manly even towards his enemies. In some respects, he is the most finished debater ever heard on a Western platform, arraying his Facts in crisp, clear-cut sentences, and then pressing home his argument with logic and Force?"

Premier

Hault was appointed premier of the Northwest Territories on October 7, 1897. Haultain also served as Attorney General and Commissioner of Education. As premier, Haultain led negotiations for the granting of provincial status. He argued for Alberta and Saskatchewan to be admitted as a single province named Buffalo, and wanted the new province to be governed by non-partisan governments. The federal

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 ...

government of Sir

Wilfrid Laurier Sir Henri Charles Wilfrid Laurier, ( ; ; November 20, 1841 – February 17, 1919) was a Canadian lawyer, statesman, and politician who served as the seventh prime minister of Canada from 1896 to 1911. The first French Canadian prime minis ...

, however, decided that such a province would challenge the power of

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 ...

, and

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

. Instead wanting to carve up the province to create, Alberta and Saskatchewan, in 1905. Frederick WAG Haultain

Frustrated in negotiations with the federal Liberal government, Haultain became increasingly identified with 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 ...

and campaigned for it in the 1904 federal election. Laurier's Liberals were re-elected.

Saskatchewan politics

Haultain led the

Provincial Rights Party The Provincial Rights Party was a Canadian political party founded and led by Frederick W. A. G. Haultain in 1905 to contest elections in the new province of Saskatchewan. It was the successor to the eastern branch of the Northwest Territories Con ...

in the 1905 Saskatchewan provincial election, which was won by the

Liberal Party of Saskatchewan The Saskatchewan Liberal Party is a liberal political party in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. The party was the provincial affiliate of the Liberal Party of Canada until 2009. It was previously one of the two largest parties in the provinc ...

. From 1905 to 1912, Haultain sat in the

Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan The Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan is the legislative chamber of the Saskatchewan Legislature in the province of Saskatchewan, Canada. Bills passed by the assembly are given royal assent by the Lieutenant Governor of Saskatchewan, in the na ...

leader of the Opposition The Leader of the Opposition is a title traditionally held by the leader of the largest political party not in government, typical in countries utilizing the parliamentary system form of government. The leader of the opposition is typically se ...

Later life

In 1912, the newly-elected Conservative federal government of Sir

Robert Borden Sir Robert Laird Borden (June 26, 1854 – June 10, 1937) was a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the eighth prime minister of Canada from 1911 to 1920. He is best known for his leadership of Canada during World War I. Borde ...

made Haultain Chief Justice of Saskatchewan's

superior court In common law systems, a superior court is a court of general jurisdiction over civil and criminal legal cases. A superior court is "superior" in relation to a court with limited jurisdiction (see small claims court), which is restricted to civil ...

. Haultain was

knighted A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the Christian denomination, church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood ...

in 1916. The next year, he became Chief Justice of the Saskatchewan

Court of Appeal A court of appeals, also called a court of appeal, appellate court, appeal court, court of second instance or second instance court, is any court of law that is empowered to hear an appeal of a trial court or other lower tribunal. In much of t ...

, a position that he held until his retirement in 1938. Haultain died on January 30, 1942, at Montreal.

References

Bibliography

* * * *

External links

Frederick Haultain biography
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Haultain, Frederick 1857 births 1942 deaths Canadian Anglicans Canadian Knights Bachelor Chancellors of the University of Saskatchewan English emigrants to pre-Confederation Ontario High School of Montreal alumni Northwest Territories Liberal-Conservative Party MLAs People from Woolwich Premiers of the Northwest Territories Members of the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories Lawyers in Saskatchewan Judges in Saskatchewan University of Toronto alumni Pre-Confederation Saskatchewan people Saskatchewan Provincial Rights Party MLAs Persons of National Historic Significance (Canada) Progressive Conservative Party of Saskatchewan MLAs Immigrants to the Province of Canada