Misplaced Pages

Lomer Gouin

Article snapshot taken from Wikipedia with creative commons attribution-sharealike license. Give it a read and then ask your questions in the chat. We can research this topic together.
Premier and lieutenant governor of Quebec (1861–1929)
This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations. Please help to improve this article by introducing more precise citations. (September 2022) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

The HonourableSir Lomer Gouin
13th Premier of Quebec
In office
March 23, 1905 – July 8, 1920
MonarchsEdward VII
George V
Lieutenant GovernorLouis-Amable Jetté
Charles Alphonse Pantaléon Pelletier
François Langelier
Pierre-Évariste Leblanc
Charles Fitzpatrick
Preceded bySimon-Napoléon Parent
Succeeded byLouis-Alexandre Taschereau
15th Lieutenant Governor of Quebec
In office
January 10, 1929 – March 28, 1929
MonarchGeorge V
Governor GeneralThe Earl of Willingdon
PremierLouis-Alexandre Taschereau
Preceded byNarcisse Pérodeau
Succeeded byHenry George Carroll
MNA for Montréal no. 2
In office
May 11, 1897 – June 8, 1908
Preceded byOlivier-Maurice Augé
Succeeded byHenri Bourassa
MNA for Portneuf
In office
June 8, 1908 – July 8, 1920
Preceded byÉdouard-Antill Panet
Succeeded byÉdouard Hamel
MNA for Saint-Jean
In office
May 15, 1912 – November 10, 1913
Preceded byMarcellin Robert
Succeeded byMarcellin Robert
Member of Legislative Council for De Salaberry
In office
July 8, 1920 – December 6, 1921
Appointed byCharles Fitzpatrick
Member of Parliament
for Laurier—Outremont
In office
December 6, 1921 – October 29, 1925
Preceded byPamphile-Réal Du Tremblay
Succeeded byJoseph-Alexandre Mercier
Personal details
BornJean Lomer Gouin
(1861-03-19)March 19, 1861
Saint-Charles-des-Grondines (Grondines), Canada East
DiedMarch 28, 1929(1929-03-28) (aged 68)
Quebec City, Quebec
Political partyLiberal
Spouse(s)Éliza Mercier
Alice Amos
ProfessionLawyer

Sir Jean Lomer Gouin, KCMG PC (March 19, 1861 – March 28, 1929) was a Canadian politician. He served as 13th premier of Quebec, as a Cabinet minister in the federal government of Canada, and as the 15th lieutenant governor of Quebec.

Biography

He was born in Grondines, Quebec to Dr. Joseph-Nérée Gouin, a doctor and Séraphine Fugère and was educated at Sorel College, Lévis College and Laval University in Montreal. He was called to the Bar in 1884. He practised with people heavily involved in Canadian and Quebec politics: Honoré Mercier, whose daughter he married, Louis-Olivier Taillon, Raymond Préfontaine, Joseph-Émery Robidoux, Louis-Philippe Bérard and Rodolphe Lemieux. He represented major railway companies. He was President of the Quebec Bar in 1910 and 1911. On May 24, 1888, he married Éliza Mercier, daughter of Honoré Mercier. Their son, Paul Gouin, later led the Action libérale nationale party.

He began his long political career by losing as a Liberal candidate in the riding of Richelieu in the 1891 federal election. His first electoral success came in 1897 when he was elected MNA for Montréal No. 2. He was re-elected in 1900 and 1904. He held the positions of Commissioner of Public Works (1900-1901), then Minister of Colonization and Public Works (1901-1905) in the cabinet of Simon-Napoléon Parent. Along with his colleagues Alexander Weir and Adélard Turgeon, he resigned with a view to overthrowing Parent, who had to leave in the face of this rebellion in his own party. He was appointed Premier of Quebec on 23 March 1905, a position he held until his resignation in 1920, while also holding the position of Attorney General (1905-1919) and, briefly, Minister of Colonization, Mines and Fisheries in 1907. In the 1908 election, faced with a surge of nationalists led by Henri Bourassa and Armand Lavergne, he ran in both Portneuf and Saint-Hyacinthe, as the law of the day allowed. He was elected in the first constituency and defeated by Bourassa in the second. Re-elected in both Portneuf and Saint-Jean in 1912, he chose Portneuf and was re-elected there in 1916 and 1919. He was responsible for the Workmen's Compensation Act, passed in 1909, the incorporation of Ungava into Quebec in 1912 and the Good Roads Act. He created the Ministère de la Voirie in 1912. He reorganised municipal administration in Montreal and developed education by creating normal schools for girls and technical schools in Montreal and Quebec City. He was also responsible for the École des hautes études commerciales in Montreal, the École centrale de préparation et d'arpentage and the École forestières opened in 1907 at Université Laval.

In 1920, he was appointed to the Legislative Council as the representative for the Salaberry division. He resigned the following year to run successfully as a Liberal candidate in the federal riding of Laurier—Outremont in the general election. William Lyon Mackenzie King's Liberals then took power and Gouin was appointed Minister of Justice (1921-1924). He did not stand for re-election in 1925 and returned to the practice of law while sitting on the boards of directors of numerous companies.

He was appointed Lieutenant-Governor on 10 January 1929. On the following 18 March, while in Parliament to prorogue a session that was running late, he suffered a heart attack and died in his office. His death caused a stir.

Lomer Gouin is interred in the Notre Dame des Neiges Cemetery in Montreal.

Elections as party leader

He won the 1908 election, 1912 election, 1916 election and 1919 election and resigned in 1920.

Honours

Many sites and landmarks were named to honour Lomer Gouin. They include:

1891 Canadian federal election: Richelieu
Party Candidate Votes
Conservative Hector-Louis Langevin 1,701
Liberal Lomer Gouin 1,393

See also

References

  1. Racine, D. (2023). La médaille du lieutenant-gouverneur Lomer Gouin. Cap-Aux Diamants, 154(Été 2023), 47–48.
  2. Racine, D. (2023). La médaille du lieutenant-gouverneur Lomer Gouin. Cap-Aux Diamants, 154(Été 2023), 47–48.
  3. Racine, D. (2023). La médaille du lieutenant-gouverneur Lomer Gouin. Cap-Aux Diamants, 154(Été 2023), 47–48.
  4. Racine, D. (2023). La médaille du lieutenant-gouverneur Lomer Gouin. Cap-Aux Diamants, 154(Été 2023), 47–48.

External links

Political offices
Preceded byHenry Thomas Duffy Minister of Public Works
1900–1905 		Succeeded byDominique Monet
Preceded byR. B. Bennett Minister of Justice
1921–1924 		Succeeded byErnest Lapointe
Premiers of Quebec
Flag of Quebec
Leaders of the Quebec Liberal Party
Lieutenant-governors of Quebec
Post-Confederation (1867–present)
Province of Canada (1841–66)*
Lower Canada (1791–1841)
British Province of Quebec (1759–91)*
  • The Crown's representative from 1759 to 1791, and from 1841 to 1866 held the office and rank of Governor-General
Ministers of justice and attorneys general
Categories: