Gregory J. Power (March 22, 1909 – May 15, 1997) was a politician, office holder, farmer, poet and athlete, who was born in Dunville, Placentia Bay,

Newfoundland Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region of Labrador, having a total size of . As of 2025 the population ...

. Power represented Placentia and St. Mary's from 1951 to 1956 and Placentia East from 1956 to 1959 in the

Newfoundland House of Assembly The Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly () is the Unicameralism, unicameral deliberative assembly of the General Assembly of Newfoundland and Labrador of the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. It meets in the Confederation Bu ...

. The son of William and Gertrude Power, he was educated in St. John's and at Memorial University College. Power married Mary Ellen Crosbie. He was considered Joey Smallwood's right-hand man in the battle for

Confederation A confederation (also known as a confederacy or league) is a political union of sovereign states united for purposes of common action. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical issu ...

of Newfoundland with Canada. He served as editor of the pro-Confederation newspaper ''The Confederate'' and wrote numerous editorial letters to local newspapers under the pseudonym "Housewife". His forte was satirical poetry. Power ran unsuccessfully for a seat in the 1949 Federal election in St. John's West. Failing to win a seat he was instead appointed the first chairman of the Newfoundland Liquor Corporation. He was elected to the

House of Assembly House of Assembly is a name given to the legislature or lower house of a bicameral parliament. In some countries this may be at a subnational level. Historically, in British Crown colonies as the colony gained more internal responsible g ...

for Placentia East in the 1951 Provincial election and became Minister of Finance. He later served a Minister of Highways during the extensive expansion of Newfoundland's road system during the 1950s. Power resigned from cabinet in 1959 and became critical of Smallwood. Power was twice winner of the O'Leary Newfoundland Poetry Award and endowed the Gregory J. Power Poetry Award, an annual competition at Memorial University of Newfoundland that aims to recognize and encourage young poets. He had a regular column in the newspaper '' The Evening Telegram''. Power represented Newfoundland in the

1930 British Empire Games The 1930 British Empire Games were the inaugural edition of what is now known as the Commonwealth Games, and was held in Hamilton, Ontario, from 16 to 23 August 1930. The event was organized by '' Hamilton Spectator'' sportswriter Bobby Robinso ...

placing fifth out of six competitors in the triple jump. Several of his Newfoundland records were never broken prior to the switch to metric distances and as a result, still stand. He was inducted into the Newfoundland Sports Hall of Fame in 1983. He also owned Mary's Poultry Farms Ltd. With facilities in St. John's, Logy Bay and Dunville, Newfoundland. It was one of the largest egg producing operations in Atlantic Canada. Power was awarded an honorary doctorate (LL.D.) at the Memorial University of Newfoundland Spring 1995 Convocation. He died May 15, 1997, in St. John's at the age of 88.

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* Gregory J. Power Poetry Awar

{{DEFAULTSORT:Power, Greg 1909 births 1997 deaths Canadian sportsperson-politicians Sportspeople from Newfoundland and Labrador Memorial University of Newfoundland alumni Liberal Party of Canada candidates for the Canadian House of Commons Candidates in the 1949 Canadian federal election Newfoundland and Labrador candidates for Member of Parliament Liberal Party of Newfoundland and Labrador MHAs Writers from Newfoundland and Labrador People from Placentia, Newfoundland and Labrador Canadian male triple jumpers Athletes (track and field) at the 1930 British Empire Games Commonwealth Games competitors for Newfoundland 20th-century Canadian sportsmen 20th-century members of the Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly Farmers from Newfoundland and Labrador

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