Anthony Wilfred James Whitford (born June 11, 1941) is a retired Canadian politician, who served as the

commissioner of the Northwest Territories The commissioner of the Northwest Territories (french: Commissaire des Territoires du Nord-Ouest) is the Government of Canada's representative in the Northwest Territories. Similar in certain functions to a lieutenant governor, the commissioner s ...

from 2005 to 2010. Whitford was born in 1941The Canadian Parliamentary Guide
1999 and raised in the

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. ...

, in the small town of Fort Smith, at the time the capital of the NWT. As a young man, he worked for

Northern Transportation Company Marine Transportation Services (MTS) formerly Northern Transportation Company Limited (NTCL) is a marine transportation company operating primarily in the Mackenzie River watershed of the Northwest Territories and northern Alberta, and the Arct ...

(NTCL) on the boats sailing the Mackenzie River and for

Northern Canada Power Commission The Northern Canada Power Commission, formerly the Northwest Territories Power Commission, was a federal Crown corporation established by the Government of Canada to serve as the electric utility for northern Canada. The assets of the NCPC were t ...

(NCPC) in Fort Smith and

Taltson River The Taltson River is a roughly river in the Northwest Territories of Canada that drains into the Great Slave Lake. There are three hydroelectric power control structures on the river, and one power station. Name The river was formerly known as t ...

. Whitford and family moved to

Calgary Calgary ( ) is the largest city in the western Canadian province of Alberta and the largest metro area of the three Prairie Provinces. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806, makin ...

in 1973 where he attended the

University of Calgary The University of Calgary (U of C or UCalgary) is a public research university located in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. The University of Calgary started in 1944 as the Calgary branch of the University of Alberta, founded in 1908, prior to being ins ...

. He moved to

Yellowknife Yellowknife (; Dogrib: ) is the capital, largest community, and only city in the Northwest Territories, Canada. It is on the northern shore of Great Slave Lake, about south of the Arctic Circle, on the west side of Yellowknife Bay near the ...

in 1977 and began a career with the Territorial and Federal governments. Whitford entered the political arena in 1988 and retired in 2010 after 22 years of civil service. In June 2010, Whitford was appointed as an Honorary Naval Captain of the

Royal Canadian Navy The Royal Canadian Navy (RCN; french: Marine royale canadienne, ''MRC'') is the Navy, naval force of Canada. The RCN is one of three environmental commands within the Canadian Armed Forces. As of 2021, the RCN operates 12 frigates, four attack s ...

Political career

Whitford was first elected to the Northwest Territories Legislative Assembly in 1988 to replace

Ted Richard J. Edward "Ted" Richard is a former territorial level politician, lawyer and senior judge of the Supreme Court of the Northwest Territories. Richards, a former lawyer, was a partner in the law firm of Richard, Vertes, Peterson & Schuler in Yellow ...

who had been appointed to the

Supreme Court of the Northwest Territories The Supreme Court of the Northwest Territories is the name of two different superior courts for the Canadian territory of the Northwest Territories, which have existed at different times. The first Supreme Court of the North-West Territories was c ...

. In the 1991 election he was elected to the 12th NWT Assembly representing

Yellowknife South Yellowknife South is a territorial electoral district for the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories, Canada. It is one of seven districts that represent Yellowknife Yellowknife (; Dogrib: ) is the capital, largest community, and ...

. While not elected in the 1995 election, he was elected, with over 80% of the vote, to the

Kam Lake Kam Lake is a territorial electoral district for the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories, Canada. It is one of seven districts that represent Yellowknife Yellowknife (; Dogrib: ) is the capital, largest community, and only ...

electoral district An electoral district, also known as an election district, legislative district, voting district, constituency, riding, ward, division, or (election) precinct is a subdivision of a larger state (a country, administrative region, or other polity ...

in the 1999 election sitting in the 24th NWT Assembly. On January 19, 2000 he was appointed

Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories The Speaker is the presiding officer of the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories. The speakership has changed many times: from 1876 to 1888 the presiding officer of the assembly was the Lieutenant-Governor of the North-West Territories ...

, replacing

Samuel Gargan Samuel Gargan (born ) is a former long serving politician and Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories. Gargan was first elected to the Northwest Territories Legislature in the 1983 Northwest Territories general electi ...

, a position he was to hold until December 11, 2003. In October 2004 he became Deputy Commissioner of the Northwest Territories and was appointed Commissioner of the Northwest Territories on April 29, 2005. Whitford completed his term as Commissioner in April 2010 and now serves as an Honorary Naval Captain of the Canadian Navy. He maintains a busy schedule with frequent travel to the communities of the Northwest Territories as well as tending to obligations in southern Canada and overseas. Whitford was made a member of the

Order of the Northwest Territories The Order of the Northwest Territories (french: Ordre des Territoires du Nord-Ouest) is a civil honour for merit in the Canadian territory of the Northwest Territories. Instituted in 2013, it is the highest honour which can be bestowed by the Gove ...

in 2016.

Personal life

Whitford married Mary Elaine Whitford (née Sweet) on November 9, 1966. The couple had three children, sons Warren (born June 19, 1968), Blair (born March 6, 1970), and Ian (born March 12, 1971). Elaine died of

breast cancer Breast cancer is cancer that develops from breast tissue. Signs of breast cancer may include a lump in the breast, a change in breast shape, dimpling of the skin, milk rejection, fluid coming from the nipple, a newly inverted nipple, or a re ...

on February 23, 2003. He attended the University of Calgary and earned a Bachelor of Social Work in 1977. Whitford lives in Yellowknife and can often be found at the local

Tim Hortons Tim Hortons Inc., commonly nicknamed Tim's, or Timmie's is a Canadian multinational coffeehouse and restaurant chain. Based in Toronto, Tim Hortons serves coffee, doughnuts, and other fast-food items. It is Canada's largest quick-service rest ...

enjoying a coffee and discussing politics with the locals. His hobbies include wood working from which he crafts bird houses.

References

External links

Biography
ainc-inac.gc.ca; accessed June 14, 2017. {{DEFAULTSORT:Whitford, Tony Members of the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories 1941 births Living people Métis politicians Northwest Territories Deputy Commissioners Commissioners of the Northwest Territories Speakers of the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories People from Fort Smith, Northwest Territories Members of the Order of the Northwest Territories Canadian Métis people