Valentine Ratz (November 12, 1848 – March 1, 1924) was a Canadian lumber merchant and politician in the province of

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. Born in

St. Jacobs St. Jacobs is a community and former village located in the township of Woolwich, Ontario, Woolwich in Waterloo Regional Municipality, Ontario, Waterloo Region, Ontario, just north of the city of Waterloo, Ontario, Waterloo. It is a popular locati ...

, County of Waterloo,

Canada West The Province of Canada (or the United Province of Canada or the United Canadas) was a British colony in North America from 1841 to 1867. Its formation reflected recommendations made by John Lambton, 1st Earl of Durham, in the Report on the ...

, the son of Jacob Ratz, Ratz received his education at Pine Hill Public School. As a lumber merchant, he was President of the South River Lumber Company of Parry Sound District. In 1879 he entered the municipal council of the Township of Stephen and was Deputy Reeve and Reeve. He was also elected Warden of the County of Huron in 1886. In 1873, Ratz married Mary Yagers. He was first elected to the

House of Commons of Canada The House of Commons of Canada (french: Chambre des communes du Canada) is the lower house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Crown and the Senate of Canada, they comprise the bicameral legislature of Canada. The House of Common ...

for the electoral district of

Middlesex North Middlesex North was a federal electoral district (Canada), electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that was represented in the House of Commons of Canada from 1867 to 1917. It was created by the British North America Act of 1867 which divided the ...

in the general election of 1896. A

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 ...

, he was defeated in the 1900 federal election and was re-elected in the 1904 federal election. He was summoned to the

Senate of Canada 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 ...

for the

senatorial division Canadian Senate divisions refers to two aspects of the Senate of Canada. First, it refers to the division of Canada into four regional Senate divisions of 24 senators each, as set out in section 22 of the Constitution Act, 1867.The Constitution Act ...

of Parkhill, Ontario on the advice of

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...

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 ...

in 1909. He served until his death in

Guelph Guelph ( ; 2021 Canadian Census population 143,740) is a city in Southwestern Ontario, Canada. Known as "The Royal City", Guelph is roughly east of Kitchener and west of Downtown Toronto, at the intersection of Highway 6, Highway 7 and Wel ...

in 1924.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ratz, Valentine 1848 births 1924 deaths Canadian senators from Ontario Liberal Party of Canada MPs Liberal Party of Canada senators Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Ontario People from Woolwich, Ontario Politicians from the Regional Municipality of Waterloo