John Sandfield Macdonald ministry

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Macdonald ministry
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1st ministry of Ontario
John Sandfield Macdonald.jpg
John Sandfield Macdonald, First Premier of Ontario, 1867-1871
Date formedJuly 16, 1867 (1867-07-16)
Date dissolvedDecember 20, 1871 (1871-12-20)
People and organisations
Monarch
Lieutenant Governor
Premier John Sandfield Macdonald
Member party"Patent Combination"
Status in legislature
Opposition leader
History
Elections 1867, 1871
Legislature term
Incoming formationConfederation
Outgoing formationresignation of Macdonald
PredecessorUnion of Canada
Successor Blake ministry

The Sandfield Macdonald ministry was the combined cabinet (formally the Executive Council of Ontario) that governed Ontario from July 16, 1867, to December 20, 1871. It was led by the 1st Premier of Ontario, John Sandfield Macdonald. The ministry was made up of members of the "Patent Combination," which consistently commanded the support of a varying majority of the members of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario.

Contents

Sandfield Macdonald resigned 19 December 1871 after perceiving that he had lost the confidence of the 2nd Parliament of Ontario. He was succeeded as Premier of Ontario by Edward Blake.

History

The first Cabinet for Ontario, Canada consisted of Premier John Sandfield Macdonald and four other Cabinet ministers. It was known as the "Patent Combination." [1]

It was a coalition government; John Carling and Matthew Crooks Cameron represented the Conservative Party; Edmund Burke Wood represented the coalition Grits; Sandfield Macdonald and Stephen Richards represented old school "Baldwinite" Reformers. [1]

Note that Sandfield Macdonald, Wood, and Carling also sat as MPs in federal parliament; Cameron ran for a federal seat and lost. Richards, meanwhile, didn't even run in the general provincial election, and only joined Cabinet after winning a by-election late in 1867.

Sandfield Macdonald represented a riding in Eastern Ontario, while Cameron, Carling, Richards and Wood all hailed from constituencies in Western Ontario. Cameron and Richards did have familial roots in Eastern Ontario, having been born and raised there.

This ministry would survive the first parliament by several months, finally resigning 20 December 1871, as Sandfield Macdonald could not command the confidence of a much more Liberal dominated 2nd Parliament of Ontario. Sandfield Macdonald himself did not longer survive his ministry, passing away after a long illness on June 1, 1872.

Cameron would go on to serve as Leader of the Opposition to the Blake ministry, while Carling and Woods would soon move into careers in federal politics. Richards, meanwhile, would soon retire.

Notes

There was as yet no Minister of Education; the role was filled by Chief Superintendant Egerton Ryerson, who reported to Provincial Secretary Cameron. [2]

The civil service remained very small throughout the Sandfield Macdonald ministry. The offices of Treasury and of Attorney General each had fewer than ten employees; the largest department, Crown Lands, had fewer than 100 employees, including all land and timber field agents combined. [3]

The budget increased from $1,184,000 in 1868 to $1,817,000 in 1871. [4]

Members of the Executive Council
PositionMinisterTerm StartTerm End
Premier and Attorney General of Ontario John Sandfield Macdonald [5] July 16, 1867December 20, 1871
Treasurer Edmund Burke Wood [6] July 16, 1867December 20, 1871
Commissioner of Crown Lands Stephen Richards [7] July 16, 1867December 20, 1871
Provincial Secretary and
Registrar 		Matthew Crooks Cameron [8] July 16, 1867December 20, 1871
Agriculture and Public Works John Carling [9] July 16, 1867December 20, 1871

(Note: Richards and Cameron switched portfolios July 25, 1871, with about five months remaining for the ministry.)

References

  1. 1 2 "MACDONALD, JOHN SANDFIELD". Dictionnaire biographique du Canada.
  2. ↑ Careless, J.M.S. The Pre-Confederation Premiers: Ontario Government Leaders, 1841-1867. 1980, p. 297-298.
  3. ↑ Careless, J.M.S. The Pre-Confederation Premiers: Ontario Government Leaders, 1841-1867. 1980, p. 298.
  4. ↑ Careless, J.M.S. The Pre-Confederation Premiers: Ontario Government Leaders, 1841-1867. 1980, p. 299.
  5. ↑ https://www.ola.org/en/members/all/john-sandfield-macdonald
  6. ↑ https://www.ola.org/en/members/all/edmund-burke-wood
  7. ↑ https://www.ola.org/en/members/all/stephen-richards
  8. ↑ https://www.ola.org/en/members/all/matthew-crooks-cameron
  9. ↑ https://www.ola.org/en/members/all/john-carling
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