Edward Gawler Prior
| Col. The Hon. Edward Gawler Prior | |
|---|---|
 | |
| 15th Premier of British Columbia | |
|
In office November 21, 1902 – June 1, 1903 | |
| Monarch | Edward VII |
| Lieutenant Governor | Henri-Gustave Joly de Lotbinière |
| Preceded by | James Dunsmuir |
| Succeeded by | Richard McBride |
| 11th Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia | |
|
In office December 9, 1919 – December 12, 1920 | |
| Monarch | George V |
| Governor General | The Duke of Devonshire |
| Premier | John Oliver |
| Preceded by | Francis Stillman Barnard |
| Succeeded by | Walter Cameron Nichol |
| Member of the Canadian Parliament for Victoria | |
|
In office January 23, 1888 – December 2, 1901 Serving with Edgar Crow Baker, Thomas Earle | |
| Preceded by | Noah Shakespeare |
| Succeeded by | George Riley |
| MLA for Victoria City | |
|
In office July 7, 1886 – January 23, 1888 Serving with Robert Beaven, Theodore Davie, John Herbert Turner | |
| Preceded by | Montague Tyrwhitt-Drake |
| Succeeded by | Simeon Duck |
|
In office March 10, 1902 – June 16, 1903 Serving with Richard Hall, Henry Dallas Helmcken, Albert Edward McPhillips | |
| Preceded by | John Herbert Turner |
| Succeeded by | James Dugald McNiven |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
May 21, 1853 Dallowgill, Yorkshire, England |
| Died |
December 12, 1920 (aged 67) Victoria, British Columbia |
| Nationality | Canadian |
| Political party | Conservative |
| Spouse(s) | Suzette Work (m. 1878) |
| Children | 1 son and 3 daughters |
| Occupation | Land surveyor, merchant, mining engineer |
| Profession | politician |
Edward Gawler Prior, PC (May 21, 1853 – December 12, 1920) was a mining engineer and politician in British Columbia. Prior was born in Dallowgill, Yorkshire, England and worked as a mining engineer in England until 1873. He then moved to British Columbia, where he settled in Nanaimo and took employment as assistant manager of the Vancouver Coal Mining & Land Co., Ltd. In 1878 he resigned and was appointed Inspector of Mines for the British Columbia government. He left that position and went into business as an iron and hardware merchant in 1880.
Prior was first elected to the provincial legislature in 1886. In 1888, Prior won a seat in the Canadian House of Commons as a Conservative. From December 1895 to July 1896 and 1897 Prior served as Controller of Inland Revenue in the cabinets of Prime Minister Sir Mackenzie Bowell and his successor Sir Charles Tupper.
He lost his seat in 1901 due to violations of election rules. He moved to provincial politics and was elected to the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia in 1901 becoming minister of mines. In 1902 he became the 15th premier leading the province's last non-partisan administration but was dismissed by the lieutenant governor in 1903 due to charges of conflict of interest that involved giving an important construction contract to his own hardware business, and lost his seat in the 1904 provincial election. He was also defeated that year in an attempt to return to the federal House of Commons.
Prior was appointed the 11th Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia in 1919 but became ill and died in office within a year of his appointment. Edward Gawler Prior is interred in the Ross Bay Cemetery in Victoria, British Columbia.
Prior was the last Canadian premier to be dismissed by a lieutenant-governor, (though William Aberhart, Premier of Alberta, was nearly so in 1937).
Sources
External links
| Ministers of Inland Revenue (1867–92) | |
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| Controllers of Inland Revenue (1892–97) | |
| Ministers of Inland Revenue (1897–1918) | |
†The offices of Minister of Customs and Minister of Inland Revenue were amalgamated by Order in Council dated May 18, 1918. | |
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