Andrew Greene Carnell, (April 10, 1877 – January 26, 1951) was a Canadian politician who served as mayor of St. John's,

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 ...

. Born in St. John's, Carnell received his early education at

Bishop Feild College Bishop Feild College (originally Church of England Academy; formerly Church of England College and Bishop Feild School; currently Bishop Feild Elementary), founded in 1844, is a school in St. John's, Newfoundland. Founded as the Church of Engl ...

and the Methodist College before going into his father's business as an undertaker. He married Mabel Payne in 1904. They had two sons and four daughters. His son

Geoffrey Geoffrey, Geoffroy, Geoff, etc., may refer to: People * Geoffrey (given name), including a list of people with the name Geoffrey or Geoffroy * Geoffroy (surname), including a list of people with the name * Geoffroy (musician) (born 1987), Canadian ...

later served in the Newfoundland assembly. After several failed attempts in colonial politics, he decided to enter municipal politics. In the municipal elections of 1929 for St. John's, he was elected deputy mayor. After the sitting mayor, Charles Howlett, died in 1932, Carnell became acting mayor until he was elected to the post officially by acclamation the following year. He was reelected to the position continuously until 1949. Carnell's term spanned the time under which Newfoundland was administered by the

Commission of Government The Commission of Government was a non-elected body that governed the Dominion of Newfoundland from 1934 to 1949. Established following the collapse of Newfoundland's economy during the Great Depression, it was dissolved when the dominion became ...

, after the

Dominion A dominion was any of several largely self-governance, self-governing countries of the British Empire, once known collectively as the ''British Commonwealth of Nations''. Progressing from colonies, their degrees of self-governing colony, colon ...

government had gone bankrupt and was forced to dissolve. To many Newfoundlanders, the mayor was the voice of the people as the highest-ranking official on the island that had been elected. To the dominion government, however, the city council was an inefficient nuisance. Nevertheless, Carnell was made a

Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

in 1939. Throughout his term, Carnell's administration continued to provide relatively stable and solvent government to St. John's, leading the way in debt relief, improving the standard and affordability of housing in the city and beginning construction on Memorial Stadium, which was finished in 1955. The '

LaGuardia LaGuardia Airport ( ) – colloquially known as LaGuardia or simply LGA – is a civil airport in East Elmhurst, Queens, New York City, situated on the northwestern shore of Long Island, bordering Flushing Bay. Covering , the facility wa ...

of St. John's' was defeated by his deputy mayor, Harry Mews, in the 1949 election.

References

1877 births 1951 deaths Mayors of St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador Bishop Feild School alumni Canadian Commanders of the Order of the British Empire 20th-century mayors of places in Newfoundland and Labrador {{Newfoundland-mayor-stub