William Alexander Macdonald (1860 – October 1, 1946) was a

Manitoba Manitoba ( ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population o ...

lawyer and politician and

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judge. He briefly served as leader of the Manitoba Conservatives during the 1890s. He was born in

St. Catharines St. Catharines is the largest city in Canada's Niagara Region and the sixth largest urban area in the province of Ontario. As of 2016, it has an area of , 136,803 residents, and a metropolitan population of 406,074. It lies in Southern Ontari ...

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, the son of Frederick William Macdonald, and was educated there and at

Osgoode Hall Osgoode Hall is a landmark building in downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The original -storey building was started in 1829 and finished in 1832 from a design by John Ewart and William Warren Baldwin. The structure is named for William Osgood ...

. Macdonald was called to the bars of both Ontario and Manitoba in 1882. He practised in

Brandon, Manitoba Brandon () is the second-largest city in the province of Manitoba, Canada. It is located in the southwestern corner of the province on the banks of the Assiniboine River, approximately west of the provincial capital, Winnipeg, and east of the ...

from 1882 to 1897. Macdonald first ran for public office in the provincial election of 1888, losing in the riding of North Brandon to Liberal

Clifford Sifton Sir Clifford Sifton, (March 10, 1861 – April 17, 1929), was a Canadian lawyer and a long-time Liberal politician, best known for being Minister of the Interior under Sir Wilfrid Laurier. He was responsible for encouraging the massive amount ...

(later an important provincial and federal cabinet minister). He was elected for Brandon City in 1892, defeating incumbent Liberal James Smart by 12 votes. Before the 1892 election,

Rodmond Roblin Sir Rodmond Palen Roblin (February 15, 1853 – February 16, 1937) was a businessman and politician in Manitoba, Canada. Early life and career Roblin was born in Sophiasburgh, in Prince Edward County, Canada West (later Ontario). The Robli ...

had been the ''de facto'' leader of the opposition Conservative caucus. With Roblin having lost his seat, Macdonald was chosen as his replacement and was recognized as the official

leader of the opposition The Leader of the Opposition is a title traditionally held by the leader of the largest political party not in government, typical in countries utilizing the parliamentary system form of government. The leader of the opposition is typically se ...

. He did not serve in this capacity long. Macdonald's election was declared void in mid-1893, and he lost a by-election to Liberal Charles Adams on September 8 of the same year. In 1896, Macdonald ran federally as the official

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...

candidate in Brandon. He was defeated by

D'Alton McCarthy Dalton McCarthy (October 10, 1836 – May 11, 1898), or D'Alton McCarthy, was a Canadian lawyer and parliamentarian. He was the leader of the "Orange" or Protestant Irish, and fiercely fought against Irish Catholics as well as the French C ...

, a maverick Conservative who opposed the extension of French-language rights and was supported by local Liberals. From 1897 to 1909, Macdonald practised law in

Nelson, British Columbia Nelson is a city located in the Selkirk Mountains on the West Arm of Kootenay Lake in the Southern Interior of British Columbia, Canada. Known as "The Queen City", and acknowledged for its impressive collection of restored heritage buildings f ...

. In 1909, he moved to

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the city, up from 631,486 in 2016. ...

, where he was counsel for the board of trade. In 1913, Macdonald was named judge in the

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. He died in Vancouver at the age of 86.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Macdonald, William 1860 births 1946 deaths Judges in British Columbia Lawyers in British Columbia Politicians from St. Catharines Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba MLAs