Arthur Sturgis Hardy
Arthur Sturgis Hardy , QC (born December 14, 1837 in Mount Pleasant , Upper Canada , † June 13, 1901 in Toronto ) was a Canadian politician and lawyer . From July 21, 1896 to October 20, 1899 he was Prime Minister of the Province of Ontario and chairman of the Ontario Liberal Party .
biography
Hardy, the son of a farmer, attended a private school run by the village pastor in Mount Pleasant, then the Rockwood Academy in Rockwood . He studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1865. At first he was employed in his uncle's office until he opened his own in Brantford in 1867 . In 1866 he joined the Freemasons .
During his student days he gained his first political experience as a member of George Brown's election committee. For professional reasons, he had to turn down the offer of the Liberal Party of Canada to run for the general election in 1872 . A year later, however, he won a by-election in the Brant South constituency and entered the Ontario Legislative Assembly .
Prime Minister Oliver Mowat appointed Hardy provincial secretary in March 1877 . This post was the second highest after that of the head of government and comprised numerous tasks, including maintaining external relations, overseeing state administration and maintaining the seal. He remained in office until January 1889 when Mowat appointed him Commissioner for the Crown Land. As such, he was responsible for the province's most important source of income at the time, the granting of forest and mining licenses. In 1893 he initiated the establishment of the Algonquin Provincial Park , Ontario's first nature reserve.
After Mowat's switch to federal politics, Hardy was the longest-serving member of his cabinet, and on July 21, 1896, he assumed the offices of Prime Minister, Attorney General and Chairman of the Ontario Liberal Party. The most controversial decision of his government was a new forestry law at the end of December 1897. It stipulated that all trees felled on crown land had to be processed in Canada. The measure resulted in protests on the part of the competition in neighboring Michigan and an intervention by the US Secretary of State.
The election in March 1898 ended with a greatly reduced majority of the Liberals' seats. The defeated Conservatives, who had only won seven seats less, raised allegations of manipulation. Numerous people have cast their votes for the Liberals several times, and state employees are said to have acted as spurious election officers in several constituencies. On the advice of his doctor, Hardy , who was seriously ill with diabetes, resigned on October 20, 1899. A little over a year and a half later, he died as a result of a failed appendix operation.
Web links
- Arthur Sturgis Hardy . In: Dictionary of Canadian Biography . 24 volumes, 1966–2018. University of Toronto Press, Toronto ( English , French ).
- Arthur Sturgis Hardy ( English, French ) In: The Canadian Encyclopedia .
- Arthur Sturgis Hardy. In: Database of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario
Individual evidence
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Hardy, Arthur Sturgis |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Canadian politician |
| DATE OF BIRTH | December 14, 1837 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Mount Pleasant , Upper Canada |
| DATE OF DEATH | June 13, 1901 |
| Place of death | Toronto |