Thelma Bessie Forbes (September 26, 1910 – January 5, 2012) was a

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

in Manitoba,

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 ...

. She was a Progressive Conservative member of 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 1959 to 1969, and served as a

cabinet minister A minister is a politician who heads a ministry, making and implementing decisions on policies in conjunction with the other ministers. In some jurisdictions the head of government is also a minister and is designated the ‘prime minister’, � ...

in the governments of

Dufferin Roblin Dufferin "Duff" Roblin, (June 17, 1917 – May 30, 2010) was a Canadian businessman and politician. He served as the 14th premier of Manitoba from 1958 to 1967. Roblin was appointed to the Senate of Canada on the advice of Prime Minister Pierre ...

and

Walter Weir Walter Cocksmith Weir (June 7, 1929 – April 17, 1985) was a Canadian politician. Weir served as the 15th premier of Manitoba from 1967 to 1969. The son of James Dixon Weir, he was born in Hugh Bluff, Manitoba and was educated there and i ...

. Forbes was the third woman ever elected to serve in the Manitoba legislature, the first woman to serve as speaker for the legislature and the first to serve in cabinet. The daughter of Robert A. J. Brown and Annie Sheehan, she was born on a farm near

Manitou Manitou (), akin to the Iroquois ''orenda'', is the spiritual and fundamental life force among Algonquian groups in the Native American theology. It is omnipresent and manifests everywhere: organisms, the environment, events, etc. ''Aasha ...

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 ...

, was educated at Manitou Collegiate and the Manitou Normal School, going on to teach school in south central Manitoba. In 1940, she married Edgar Forbes. They operated an

Imperial Oil Imperial Oil Limited (French: ''Compagnie Pétrolière Impériale Ltée'') is a Canadian petroleum company. It is Canada's second-biggest integrated oil company. It is majority owned by American oil company ExxonMobil with around 69.6 percent ...

service station and an

International Harvester The International Harvester Company (often abbreviated by IHC, IH, or simply International ( colloq.)) was an American manufacturer of agricultural and construction equipment, automobiles, commercial trucks, lawn and garden products, household e ...

dealership in Rathwell. From 1954 until the 1970s, they operated a farm in the same area. In 1978, the couple moved to Treherne. She was a member of the Winnipeg Business and Professional Club. Forbes 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 November 26, 1959, defeating

Liberal-Progressive Liberal-Progressive was a label used by a number of candidates in Canadian elections between 1925 and 1953. In federal and Ontario politics, there was no Liberal-Progressive party: it was an alliance between two parties. In Manitoba, a party existe ...

candidate John Sundell by 724 votes in the riding of

Cypress Cypress is a common name for various coniferous trees or shrubs of northern temperate regions that belong to the family Cupressaceae. The word ''cypress'' is derived from Old French ''cipres'', which was imported from Latin ''cypressus'', the ...

. She was re-elected by roughly the same majority in the 1962 provincial election, and by a slightly reduced figure in the

1966 Events January * January 1 – In a coup, Colonel Jean-Bédel Bokassa takes over as military ruler of the Central African Republic, ousting President David Dacko. * January 3 – 1966 Upper Voltan coup d'état: President Maurice Yaméogo i ...

. She did not seek re-election in 1969, following the abolition of her riding. Forbes was appointed

Speaker Speaker may refer to: Society and politics * Speaker (politics), the presiding officer in a legislative assembly * Public speaker, one who gives a speech or lecture * A person producing speech: the producer of a given utterance, especially: ** I ...

of the Manitoba Legislature on February 28, 1963, and served in that position until December 5, 1966. Although considered a more successful Speaker than her predecessor, she is said not to have enjoyed the non-partisan position. She was later named Minister of Urban Development and Minister of Municipal Affairs on July 22, 1966, and held that position until September 24, 1968, when she was named

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 ...

. She served in the latter capacity until the 1969 election. After the death of her husband in 1982, Forbes moved to

Port Coquitlam, British Columbia Port Coquitlam ( ) is a city in British Columbia, Canada. Located east of Vancouver, it is on the north bank of the confluence of the Fraser River and the Pitt River. Coquitlam borders it on the north, the Coquitlam River borders it on the west, ...

, and died at the Burquitlam Lions Care Centre in

Coquitlam Coquitlam ( ) is a city in the Lower Mainland of British Columbia, Canada. Mainly suburban, Coquitlam is the List of cities in British Columbia, sixth-largest city in the province, with a population of 148,625 in 2021, and one of the 21 municipa ...

on January 5, 2012.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Forbes, Thelma 1910 births 2012 deaths Speakers of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba Women MLAs in Manitoba Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba MLAs People from Manitou, Manitoba Members of the Executive Council of Manitoba Canadian centenarians Women government ministers of Canada Women legislative speakers Women centenarians