Aldis Bernard

Aldis Bernard (* approx. 1810 ; † July 3, 1876 in San José , California ) was a Canadian politician and dentist . From 1873 to 1875 he was mayor of Montreal . He was also the first president of the Québec Province Dental Association .

biography

Little is known about Bernard's origins. Possibly he was born around 1810 as the son of loyalists in the Estrie region, in the southeast of what is now the Canadian province of Quebec. He studied dentistry in Philadelphia and practiced later in the southern states of the USA . In 1840 he lived on the Niagara Peninsula ; a year later he settled in Montreal , where he opened a dental practice. When the government of the Province of Canada wanted to standardize medical training in 1847, Bernard strove to have his profession recognized. Dentistry had a bad reputation at the time and was not considered. In 1869, the Québec dentists founded the Ordre des dentistes du Québec ; Bernard was its first president until his death.

Bernard was a member of the Montreal City Council from 1858 to 1861 and from 1866. He presided over the public order, health and finance commissions. He also proposed a regulation to operate the first horse-drawn tram , which opened in 1861. In 1872 he succeeded in negotiating the first municipal loan on the London financial market after the treasurer had failed in this task. When Mayor Francis Cassidy died on June 14, 1873, the city council elected Bernard as his interim successor. In 1874 it was confirmed in a popular election. During his tenure, the construction of the Parc du Mont-Royal and the construction of the new town hall began . In 1875 Bernard did not stand for re-election. He moved to San José, California, where he died in July 1876. His remains were interred in Montreal.

Web links

Aldis Bernard . In: Dictionary of Canadian Biography . 24 volumes, 1966–2018. University of Toronto Press, Toronto ( English , French ).
Biography on the website of the city administration (French)

Individual evidence

↑ "A Century of Service" (PDF) Canadian Dental Association on the centenary of its existence, accessed on November 29, 2019.

personal data
SURNAME	Bernard, Aldis
BRIEF DESCRIPTION	Canadian politician and dentist
DATE OF BIRTH	around 1810
DATE OF DEATH	July 3, 1876
Place of death	San Jose , California

[1] "A Century of Service" (PDF) Canadian Dental Association on the centenary of its existence, accessed on November 29, 2019.