Thomas H. Butters, (June 1925 – March 2, 2015) was a politician from

Northwest Territories The Northwest Territories (abbreviated ''NT'' or ''NWT''; french: Territoires du Nord-Ouest, formerly ''North-Western Territory'' and ''North-West Territories'' and namely shortened as ''Northwest Territory'') is a federal territory of Canada. ...

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 had a long career as a Member of the Northwest Territories Legislature from 1970 until 1991. Butters was first elected to the Northwest Territories Legislature in the

1970 Northwest Territories general election The 1970 Northwest Territories general election took place on December 21, 1970. It took place during the centennial of the territory. Among the festivities earlier in the year was an official visit by Queen Elizabeth II to open the first Arctic W ...

. He won the new electoral district of

Western Arctic Northwest Territories (french: Territoires du Nord-Ouest) is a federal electoral district represented in the House of Commons of Canada. The electoral district covers the entire territory. This riding was created in 1962 from Mackenzie River ...

defeating incumbent

Duncan Pryde Duncan McLean Pryde (June 8, 1937 – November 15, 1997) was a hunter, trapper, lexicographer and politician from Northwest Territories, Canada. He served as a member of the Northwest Territories Council from 1966 to 1975. His book based on ...

. Due to a significant redistribution of electoral district in 1975, Butters ran for re-election in the

1975 Northwest Territories general election The 1975 Northwest Territories general election was on March 10, 1975. This was the first general election since 1902 that all the members of the assembly were elected. Fifteen members were elected to the Legislative Council. Election summary Mem ...

in the new

Inuvik Inuvik (''place of man'') is the only town in the Inuvik Region, and the third largest community in Canada's Northwest Territories. Located in what is sometimes called the Beaufort Delta Region, it serves as its administrative and service cen ...

electoral district because Western Arctic no longer covered his home in Inuvik. He won re-election in the new riding. Butters was re-elected for a third term in the

1979 Northwest Territories general election The 1979 Northwest Territories general election was held on October 1, 1979. Twenty-two members were elected to the Northwest Territories Legislative Assembly. In 1980, George Braden was named "Government Leader", the first democratic leader of t ...

. In his third term he was appointed as the Minister of Finance by Premier

George Braden George Braden (November 4, 1949 – May 25, 2015) was a Canadian politician from the Northwest Territories, Canada. Elected as "Government Leader", Braden would retroactively become the second premier of the Northwest Territories, after a motion ...

in 1981. The posting was significant as Butters became the first elected member to hold the role since

Frederick Haultain 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 ...

, who was acting territorial treasurer in 1905. Butters sought a fourth term in the

1983 Northwest Territories general election The 1983 Northwest Territories general election was held on November 21, 1983. This was the first election in the Northwest Territories with live television coverage of vote returns. Election Results The election was held in 24 constituencies, up ...

, and was re-elected for his fifth and final term in the

1987 Northwest Territories general election File:1987 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The MS Herald of Free Enterprise capsizes after leaving the Port of Zeebrugge in Belgium, killing 193; Northwest Airlines Flight 255 crashes after takeoff from Detroit Metropolitan Airport, ...

, retiring in 1991. He served as Minister of the Northwest Territories Housing Corporation from 1989 until 1991. In 1994, he was made a Member of the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada (french: Ordre du Canada; abbreviated as OC) is a Canadian state order and the second-highest honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the ...

. He died in

Duncan, British Columbia Duncan (pop. 5,047 in 2021) is a city on southern Vancouver Island in British Columbia, Canada. It is the smallest city by area (2.07 square kilometres, 0.8 square miles) in Canada. It was incorporated in 1912. Location The city is about 45 kilo ...

in 2015, aged 89.

References

Members of the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories 2015 deaths People from Inuvik 1925 births Members of the Order of Canada {{NorthwestTerritories-politician-stub