George Anthony "Boomer" Walkem (November 15, 1834 – January 13, 1908) was a British Columbian politician and jurist.

Life and career

Born in Newry,

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, Walkem moved to then Colony of British Columbia in 1862 and served as a member of the Colonial Assembly (Cariboo East and Quesnel Forks District) from 1864 to 1866 and the appointed Legislative Council (Cariboo) from 1866 to 1870. He was a supporter of

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. With the admission of the colony into

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, Walkem was elected to the provincial

legislature A legislature is an assembly with the authority to make laws for a political entity such as a country or city. They are often contrasted with the executive and judicial powers of government. Laws enacted by legislatures are usually known ...

from the riding of Cariboo in 1871 and became

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in the

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Amor De Cosmos and succeeded him to become the third

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 gov ...

. Walkem's government pressured

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to meet its commitment to build a railway to the Pacific Ocean but was initially unsuccessful. Walkem fought the 1875 election facing charges that he had failed to secure railway construction and had increased the province's debts by engaging in expensive public works projects. The government was re-elected with a reduced majority but he was also accused of plunging the province into debt by engaging in public works that it could ill afford (see

Lillooet Cattle Trail The Lillooet Cattle Trail, also known as the Lillooet-Burrard Cattle Trail and also as the Lillooet Trail, was an unusual and daring public works undertaking by the Province of British Columbia in the 1877, and was the largest 19th century public ...

). Nevertheless, his government was returned, albeit with a reduced majority but grievances continued. The Walkem government's financial difficulties mounted and his government lost a

Motion of No Confidence A motion of no confidence, also variously called a vote of no confidence, no-confidence motion, motion of confidence, or vote of confidence, is a statement or vote about whether a person in a position of responsibility like in government or mana ...

in early 1876 and was replaced by a new government formed by

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 ...

with Walkem becoming

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. Elliot's government was unstable and collapsed within two years leading to early elections which allowed Walkem to form a second government in 1878 as the fifth premier, with a comfortable majority. The new Walkem government opposed "cheap Chinese labour" and inserted a clause banning the hiring of Chinese workers in all its contracts. The government also attempted to levy a special tax restricted to Chinese which was struck down by the

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. In the election campaign Walkem had threatened to lead British Columbia out of confederation if the federal government did not commence construction of the promised railway by 1879. The provincial government appealed directly to

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resulting in the British government pressuring Ottawa to fulfill the deal. In 1882 Walkem narrowly survived a

due to rising costs of a project to build a dock on

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but lost the subsequent election due to hostility from Islanders who had a disproportionate number of

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s in the legislature and thus were able to bring down the Walkem government. Walkem was appointed to the

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upon retiring from politics in 1882, sitting on the court until his retirement in 1904. George Anthony Walkem is interred in the

Ross Bay Cemetery Ross Bay Cemetery is located at 1516 Fairfield Road in Victoria, British Columbia, on Vancouver Island, Canada. Many historical figures from the early days of the province and colony of British Columbia are buried at Ross Bay. History The ceme ...

Victoria, British Columbia Victoria is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of British Columbia, on the southern tip of Vancouver Island off Canada's Pacific Ocean, Pacific coast. The city has a population of 91,867, and the Gre ...

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Walkem, George Anthony Irish emigrants to pre-Confederation British Columbia Attorneys General of British Columbia Canadian Anglicans Premiers of British Columbia Members of the Colonial Assembly of British Columbia Politicians from County Down People from Newry 1834 births 1908 deaths Members of the Legislative Council of British Columbia