- Stuart Milton Hodgson
Stuart (Stu) Milton Hodgson, OC , LL.D (born
1924 April 1 inVancouver ,British Columbia ,Canada ) was Commissioner of the Northwest Territories (NWT) from1967 March 2 until1979 April 6 . The first Commissioner to actually reside in theNorthwest Territories , he was a leader in the construction of a semiautonomous, responsible self-government run by residents of the territory.Hodgson was also one of the founders of the
Arctic Winter Games - which began in Yellowknife in 1970 for athletes fromAlaska ,Yukon , and the NWT – and which now also includeGreenland , parts of ArcticRussia , as well asNorthern Alberta andNunavik (Northern Quebec), and the new territoryNunavut which was formed from NWT in 1999.When rapid changes in socio-economic conditions threatened the continuity of Inuit oral history, Commissioner Hodgson urged the taping of elders' stories. In 1974, the residents of Pangnirtung (since then becoming part of Nunavut) presented the Commissioner with eleven stories which were later compiled into a book. Hodgson was nicknamed "Umingmak" by the
Inuit . For his services in the NWT, he was presented the public service's Outstanding Achievement Award in 1976.From 1942 to 1945 he served with the
Royal Canadian Navy on convoy duty in the North Atlantic for which he received theAtlantic Star and otherWorld War II medals.From 1979 to 1981 he was Canadian co-chairman of the U.S.-Canadian
International Joint Commission . He was recruited by Premier William R. Bennett of British Columbia to runBC Ferries for a time in the 1980s.He was appointed chairman and chief executive officer of the
BC Transit in 1985. Appointed aCitizenship Judge in British Columbia in December 1997, Judge Hodgson is an Officer of theOrder of Canada .External links
* [http://www.assembly.gov.nt.ca/visitorinfo/imagegallery/historicalmemories.html Commissioner Hodgson (standing) at the 1967 NWT Legislative Assembly]
* [http://www.gg.ca/honours/search-recherche/honours-desc.asp?lang=e&TypeID=orc&id=779 Stuart M. Hodgson Order of Canada]
* [http://www.nunatsiaq.com/archives/back-issues/week/60308.html#8 My Little Corner of Canada - "The last colonial czar" by John Amagoalik]
* [http://www.canadianencyclopedia.ca/index.cfm?PgNm=TCE&Params=A1ARTA0003801 Stuart M. Hodgson at the Canadian Encyclopedia]
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