- William Ross Macdonald
William Ross Macdonald, PC , OC , CD , QC (
December 25 1891 -May 28 1976 ), served as the 21st Lieutenant Governor ofOntario from 1968 to 1974, and asSpeaker of the Canadian House of Commons from 1949 to 1953.Early life
Macdonald was born in
Toronto ,Ontario , to a dry goods merchant who had immigrated fromScotland . He went on to study law at theUniversity of Toronto and theOsgoode Hall Law School . Upon completion, he practised law inBrantford, Ontario , and served with theCanadian Expeditionary Force in the First World War.In 1921, Macdonald married Muriel Whittaker.
Political career
Macdonald sought Liberal Party nomination to run for election to the
Canadian House of Commons for the 1926 election, but lost the nomination by a single vote. He won the nomination for the Brantford riding in the next election, but lost the election. Macdonald was elected in the 1935 election. He served asMember of Parliament (MP) until 1953.During
World War II , Macdonald was a staunch supporter ofconscription . His position is made clear in this wartime quote taken from a Canadian newspaper, "There is a victory to be won and that can be accomplished only by every Canadian taking part." After the war, he served as Deputy Speaker (1945-1949) and then as Speaker of the House of Commons (1949-1953).In 1953, Governor General
Vincent Massey , on the advice of Prime MinisterLouis St. Laurent , appointed Macdonald to theCanadian Senate , where he becameLeader of the Government in the Canadian Senate and aminister without portfolio in theCanadian Cabinet . From 1954 until the Liberal government's defeat in the 1957 election, Macdonald served asSolicitor General of Canada .With the defeat of the Liberals, he became
Leader of the Opposition in the Canadian Senate , and served again as Government Leader when the Liberals returned to power in 1963. He retired from the Cabinet in 1964. From 1964 to 1972, he was the second Chancellor ofWaterloo Lutheran University . [http://www.wlu.ca/page.php?grp_id=158&p=2233] Governor GeneralRoland Michener , on the advice ofLester Pearson , appointed Macdonald to serve as Lieutenant Governor from 1968 to 1974. In this role, he was involved with many service groups, such as theCanadian Order of Foresters and theKiwanis Club .In 1974, he was made an Officer of the
Order of Canada . The Ontario School for the Blind in Brantford was renamed theW. Ross Macdonald School in his honour.He died in Toronto in 1976.
Freemasonry
William Macdonald was a devoted
Freemason initiated on March 17th, 1917 at theDoric Lodge No. 121 inBrantford, Ontario .External links
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