William Wilber Wilfred Wilson (October 6, 1885 in Birtle,

Manitoba Manitoba ( ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population o ...

– January 27, 1964) was a politician in

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 served in the

Legislative Assembly of Manitoba The Legislative Assembly of Manitoba (french: Assemblée législative du Manitoba) is the deliberative assembly of the Manitoba Legislature in the Canadian province of Manitoba. Fifty-seven members are elected to this assembly at provincial gener ...

from 1915 to 1922, and again from 1941 to 1949. The son of Edmund James Wilson and Mary Ann Dunsmore, Wilson was educated at Manitoba's Wesley College, and worked as an attorney-at-law. In 1909, he married Bertha Cairns. He was the

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 a ...

Russell, Manitoba Russell is an unincorporated urban community in the Municipality of Russell – Binscarth, Manitoba. It is located along PTH 16 and PTH 83, and is at the western terminus of PTH 45. Russell is approximately east of the Saskatchewan border and ...

from 1915 to 1918, concurrent with his early tenure in the legislature. Wilson was first elected to the Manitoba legislature in the provincial election of 1915. Running for the

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. __TOC__ Active liberal parties This is a li ...

, he easily defeated

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 ...

candidate J.P. Laycock in the constituency of

Russell Russell may refer to: People * Russell (given name) * Russell (surname) * Lady Russell (disambiguation) * Lord Russell (disambiguation) Places Australia *Russell, Australian Capital Territory *Russell Island, Queensland (disambiguation) **Ru ...

. Wilson was re-elected without difficulty in the 1920 election. During these years, he was a

backbench In Westminster and other parliamentary systems, a backbencher is a member of parliament (MP) or a legislator who occupies no governmental office and is not a frontbench spokesperson in the Opposition, being instead simply a member of the " ...

supporter of

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 ...

Tobias Norris Tobias Crawford Norris (September 5, 1861 – October 29, 1936) was a Canadian politician who served as the tenth premier of Manitoba from 1915 to 1922. Norris was a member of the Liberal Party.J. M. Bumsted"Tobias Crawford Norris" ''The Cana ...

's government. The Liberals were defeated in the 1922 provincial election, and Wilson lost his seat to Isaac Griffiths of the

United Farmers of Manitoba The Progressive Party of Manitoba, Canada, was a political party that developed from the United Farmers of Manitoba (UFM), an agrarian movement that became politically active following World War I. See also * List of political parties in Canada ...

. He sought re-election in

1927 Events January * January 1 – The British Broadcasting ''Company'' becomes the British Broadcasting ''Corporation'', when its Royal Charter of incorporation takes effect. John Reith becomes the first Director-General. * January 7 * ...

, but was again defeated. Wilson served as chair of the Russell School Board from 1935 to 1942. He was re-elected to the Manitoba legislature in the 1941 provincial election, following a nineteen-year absence. Previously, the United Farmers of Manitoba had evolved into the

Progressive Party Progressive Party may refer to: Active parties * Progressive Party, Brazil * Progressive Party (Chile) * Progressive Party of Working People, Cyprus * Dominica Progressive Party * Progressive Party (Iceland) * Progressive Party (Sardinia), Italy ...

, and had merged with the Liberals to create the "Liberal-Progressive Party". Wilson ran as a Liberal-Progressive, and defeated

Cooperative Commonwealth Federation The Co-operative Commonwealth Federation (CCF; french: Fédération du Commonwealth Coopératif, FCC); from 1955 the Social Democratic Party of Canada (''french: Parti social démocratique du Canada''), was a federal democratic socialistThe follo ...

candidate H.J. Peddies by 14 votes in Russell. He again served as a government backbencher, supporting the administrations of

John Bracken John Bracken (June 22, 1883 – March 18, 1969) was a Canadian agronomist and politician who was the 11th and longest-serving premier of Manitoba (1922–1943) and later the leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada (1942–19 ...

and, after 1943,

Stuart Garson Stuart Sinclair Garson (December 1, 1898 – May 5, 1977) was a Canadian politician and lawyer. He served as the 12th premier of Manitoba from 1943 to 1948, and later became a Federal cabinet minister. Life and career Born in St. Catharine ...

. Wilson again defeated a candidate of the CCF in the 1945 provincial election. He did not run in 1949.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wilson, William 1885 births 1964 deaths Manitoba Liberal Party MLAs