Manitoba Historical Society
     Keeping history alive for over 144 years

Premiers of Manitoba, 1870 to 1965

Manitoba Pageant, Winter 1966, Volume 11, Number 2

This article was published originally in Manitoba Pageant by the Manitoba Historical Society on the above date. We make this online version available as a free, public service. As an historical document, the article may contain language and views that are no longer in common use and may be culturally sensitive in nature.

Please direct inquiries to webmaster@mhs.mb.ca.

Help us keep
history alive!

Name

Term

Birthplace

Alfred Boyd *

Sept 1870 - Dec 1871

England

Marc Amable Girard *

Dec 1871 - Mar 1872

Varenne, QC

Henry James Clarke *

Mar 1872 - July 1874

Donegal, Ireland

Marc Amable Girard

July - Dec 1874

Varenne, QC

Robert Atkinson Davis

Dec 1874 - Oct 1878

Dudswell, QC

John Norquay

Oct 1878 - Dec 1887

Red River Settlement

David Howard Harrison

Dec 1887 - Jan 1888

London, ON

Thomas Greenway

Jan 1888 - Jan 1900

Cornwall, England

Hugh John Macdonald

Jan - Oct 1900

Kingston, ON

Rodmond Palen Roblin

Oct 1900 - May 1915

Sophiasburgh, ON

Tobias Crawford Norris

May 1915 - Aug 1922

Brampton, ON

John Bracken

Aug 1922 - Jan 1943

Ellisville, ON

Stuart Sinclair Garson

Jan 1943 - Nov 1948

St. Catharines, ON

Douglas L. Campbell

Nov 1948 - June 1958

Portage la Prairie, MB

Dufferin Roblin

June 1958 -

Winnipeg, MB

* Although Alfred Boyd, M. A. Girard, and H. J. Clarke are listed here and in other lists as the first three Premiers some authorities question whether the Office of Premier can be said to have existed before M. A. Girard's administration in 1874. In this connection the following letter of Lieutenant-Governor Alexander Morris to the Secretary of State in Ottawa will be of interest:

Government House
Fort Garry, 13th July 1874

Sir,

I have the honor to inform you, that the Legislative Assembly having adopted a vote of want of confidence in the Ministry of Manitoba by a vote of 15 to 7, I accepted the resignations which the ministers tendered me and having called upon the Hon'ble Mr. Gerard [sic] to form a new administration, that gentleman succeeded in the task entrusted to him ...

I would call your attention to the fact that in forming the Government I did so through the intervention of a premier thus introducing responsible Government in its modern type into the Province - the previous Ministry was selected personally by my predecessor and none of its members were recognized as first minister.

Alexander Morris L.G.

Page revised: 18 July 2009
MHS YouTube Channel

Back to top of page

For queries on the above page, please contact the MHS Webmaster.

Home  |  Terms & Conditions  |  FAQ  |  Contact Us  |  Privacy Policy  |  Donations

© 1998-2023 Manitoba Historical Society. All rights reserved.