William Smithe (born William Smith; June 30, 1842 in

Matfen Matfen is a village and a civil parish in Northumberland, England, near the town of Hexham and the city of Newcastle upon Tyne. It is an example of a 19th-century planned estate village. It was the birthplace of the 7th Premier of British Colum ...

, Northumberland, England – March 28, 1887 in

Victoria, British Columbia Victoria is the capital city of the Canadian province of British Columbia, on the southern tip of Vancouver Island off Canada's Pacific coast. The city has a population of 91,867, and the Greater Victoria area has a population of 397,237. Th ...

) was a

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, ...

politician. Smithe was born William Smith in

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and moved to Canada in his youth, settling on

Vancouver Island Vancouver Island is an island in the northeastern Pacific Ocean and part of the Canadian Provinces and territories of Canada, province of British Columbia. The island is in length, in width at its widest point, and in total area, while are o ...

in 1862 as a

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. In 1871, he ran and won a

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in the new provincial

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. There he added the final "e" to his name. De Cosmos, also then a member of the legislature, had likewise been born as "William Smith," but in a characteristically grand gesture had legally adopted instead a new name meaning "Love of the Universe." By 1875 Smithe had become the informal

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 ...

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 ...

George Anthony Walkem George Anthony "Boomer" Walkem (November 15, 1834 – January 13, 1908) was a British Columbian politician and jurist. Life and career Born in Newry, Ireland, Walkem moved to then Colony of British Columbia in 1862 and served as a member of ...

's government, but yielded the leadership to

Andrew Charles Elliott Andrew Charles Elliott (June 22, 1829 – April 9, 1889) was a British Columbian politician and jurist. Career Elliott's varied career in British Columbia included gold commissioner, stipendiary magistrate, and, following the union of the Is ...

. Smithe was in Elliott's short lived

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 ...

from 1876 to 1878 before returning to the

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benches and again became opposition leader. In 1883, Smithe became the seventh

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 ...

and initiated the ''Great Potlatch'' era in which governments made generous grants of public resources and land to private

entrepreneur Entrepreneurship is the creation or extraction of economic value. With this definition, entrepreneurship is viewed as change, generally entailing risk beyond what is normally encountered in starting a business, which may include other values th ...

s. He also settled disputes with the federal government which had stalled the construction of the transcontinental

Canadian Pacific Railway The Canadian Pacific Railway (french: Chemin de fer Canadien Pacifique) , also known simply as CPR or Canadian Pacific and formerly as CP Rail (1968–1996), is a Canadian Class I railway incorporated in 1881. The railway is owned by Canadi ...

. Asked on one occasion whether he thought British Columbia should be annexed to the United States, he suggested instead that Washington and Oregon be annexed to British Columbia. Smithe remained premier until he died in office in 1887.

External links

Biography at the ''Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online''
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Smithe, William 1842 births 1887 deaths Premiers of British Columbia English emigrants to pre-Confederation British Columbia Independent MLAs in British Columbia People from Matfen