William John Bowser (

Rexton, New Brunswick Rexton is a formerly incorporated village in Kent County, New Brunswick, Kent County, New Brunswick, Canada. On 1 January 2023, Rexton annexed parts of five Local service district, local service districts to form the new village of Five Rivers, ...

December 3, 1867 – October 25, 1933

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

) was a politician in

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

, Canada. He served as the 17th

premier of British Columbia Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier. A premier will normally be a head of governm ...

from 1915 to 1916. The son of William Bowser and Margaret Gordon, Bowser was educated at

Mount Allison University Mount Allison University (also Mount A or MtA) is a Canadian primarily undergraduate liberal arts university located in Sackville, New Brunswick, founded in 1839. Like other liberal arts colleges in North America, Mount Allison does not parti ...

and

Dalhousie University Dalhousie University (commonly known as Dal) is a large public research university in Nova Scotia Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the fou ...

. He moved to

to practice law in 1891, and was first elected to the provincial

legislature A legislature is an assembly with the authority to make law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its p ...

in the 1903 election as a

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...

. Bowser served as

Attorney-General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general or attorney-general (sometimes abbreviated AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. The plural is attorneys general. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have exec ...

in the

cabinet Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to: Furniture * Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers * Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets * Filing ...

of Sir

Richard McBride Sir Richard McBride, (December 15, 1870 – August 6, 1917) was a British Columbia politician and is often considered the founder of the British Columbia Conservative Party. McBride was first elected to the provincial legislature in the 1898 ...

from 1907 until 1915. As Attorney-General, Bowser forced the Squamish First Nation, then the False Creek Indian Band, off Kitsilano Indian Reserve no.6. In 1915, he succeeded McBride as

Premier Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier. A premier will normally be a head of governm ...

. The Conservative party was deeply divided and unpopular and the change in leadership did not improve matters. Accusations of corruption and "

machine politics In the politics of representative democracies, a political machine is a party organization that recruits its members by the use of tangible incentives (such as money or political jobs) and that is characterized by a high degree of leadership co ...

" were rife. The Conservatives also neglected to address popular demands for

women's suffrage Women's suffrage is the right of women to vote in elections. Beginning in the start of the 18th century, some people sought to change voting laws to allow women to vote. Liberal political parties would go on to grant women the right to vot ...

and

prohibition Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption of alcoholic ...

. Bowser's government was defeated in the 1916 election, losing to Liberal leader Harlan Carey Brewster, who two years later was succeeded by the more memorable

John Oliver John William Oliver (born 23 April 1977) is a British-American comedian, writer, producer, political commentator, actor, and television host. Oliver started his career as a stand-up comedian in the United Kingdom. He came to wider attention ...

. Bowser continued as

leader of the opposition The Leader of the Opposition is a title traditionally held by the leader of the largest political party not in government, typical in countries utilizing the parliamentary system form of government. The leader of the opposition is typically se ...

until he lost his seat in the 1924 election. He returned to politics in the 1933 election to lead the Non-Partisan Independent Group of candidates, but died during the election campaign. A river, a lake and the small community of

Bowser , or King Koopa, is a fictional character, the primary antagonist in Nintendo's Mario (franchise), ''Mario'' franchise, and the arch-nemesis of Mario. In Japan, the character bears the title of . Bowser is the leader of the turtle-like Koopa ...

on Vancouver Island, between Parksville and the Comox Valley, are named for Bowser.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bowser, William John 1867 births 1933 deaths Premiers of British Columbia British Columbia Conservative Party leaders British Columbia Conservative Party MLAs Canadian Presbyterians People from Kent County, New Brunswick Attorneys General of British Columbia Mount Allison University alumni Dalhousie University alumni