Joseph Wilfred Spooner (February 8, 1910 – February 14, 2001) was a politician in

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 C ...

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 was a Progressive Conservative member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1955 to 1967 who represented the northern Ontario riding of

Cochrane South Cochrane South was an electoral riding in Ontario, Canada. It represented in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1926 to 1999. It encompassed the southern part of the Cochrane District, including the city of Timmins. For the 1999 election ...

. He was a cabinet minister in the governments of

Leslie Frost Leslie Miscampbell Frost (September 20, 1895 – May 4, 1973) was a politician in Ontario, Canada, who served as the province's 16th premier from May 4, 1949, to November 8, 1961. Due to his lengthy tenure, he gained the nickname "Old Man O ...

and

John Robarts John Parmenter Robarts (January 11, 1917 – October 18, 1982) was a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 17th premier of Ontario from 1961 to 1971. He was a member of the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario. Early life Robar ...

. Prior to his provincial role he served as a municipal councillor for

Timmins City Council The Timmins City Council (french: Conseil municipal de Timmins) is the governing body for the city of Timmins, Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern h ...

from 1939 to 1951 and then as

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well ...

of Timmins from 1952 to 1955.

Background

Outside politics Spooner was an accountant and worked for an insurance agency serving clients in northeastern Ontario. Spooner was one of the charter members of the Rotary Club of Timmins.

Politics

He was considered an extremely influential voice for Northern Ontario during his time at Queen's Park. He held three different ministerial positions, including serving as Minister of Lands and Forests, Minister of Mines and Minister of Municipal Affairs. As Minister of Mines, he was credited with implementing important health and safety initiatives in response to the dire working conditions in the gold mines in the Kirkland Lake district. As Minister of Lands and Forests, he expanded the provincial park system. He officially opened

Cold Creek Conservation Area Cold Creek Conservation Area, usually Cold Creek, is an ecologically diverse protected Area of Natural and Scientific Interest in south-central Ontario, Canada. The conservation area was opened on 20 June 1962 by Wilf Spooner and the Toronto and R ...

in 1962.

Cabinet posts

Later life

In 1978, Premier

Bill Davis William Grenville Davis, (July 30, 1929 – August 8, 2021) was a Canadian politician who served as the 18th premier of Ontario from 1971 to 1985. Davis was first elected as the member of provincial Parliament for Peel in the 1959 provincia ...

appointed Spooner as the chair of the

Ontario Northland Transportation Commission The Ontario Northland Transportation Commission (ONTC), or simply Ontario Northland, is a Crown agency of the Government of Ontario responsible for providing transportation services for passengers and goods in northern Ontario. It reports to ...

. In 1987, he received an honorary doctorate from University of Sudbury.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Spooner, Joseph Wilfred 1910 births 2001 deaths Mayors of Timmins Members of the Executive Council of Ontario Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario MPPs Timmins city councillors