Arthur Wellesley Vowell (September 17, 1841 – September 26, 1918) was an Irish-born civil servant and political figure in

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

. He represented Kootenay in the

Legislative Assembly of British Columbia The Legislative Assembly of British Columbia () is the deliberative assembly of the Legislature of British Columbia, in the province of British Columbia, Canada. The other component of the Legislature is the lieutenant governor of British Columbi ...

from 1875 to 1876. He was born in

County Tipperary County Tipperary () is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern Region. The county is named after the town of Tipperary (tow ...

, the son of Richard Prendergast Vowell, was educated there and served in the Irish militia from 1858 to 1860. In 1862, he came to British Columbia, travelling to

Cariboo The Cariboo is an intermontane region of British Columbia, Canada, centered on a plateau stretching from Fraser Canyon to the Cariboo Mountains. The name is a reference to the Caribou (North America), caribou that were once abundant in the reg ...

, where he tried his hand at mining to little avail. Vowell then moved to

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Queen Victoria (1819–1901), Queen of the United Kingdom and Empress of India * Victoria (state), a state of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, a provincial capital * Victoria, Seychelles, the capi ...

, staying there until 1866 and subsequently moving to Big Bend. He was named chief constable there, serving in that post until 1872, when he was named gold commissioner and

stipendiary magistrate Stipendiary magistrates were magistrates that were paid for their work (they received a stipend). They existed in the judiciaries of the United Kingdom and those of several former British territories, where they sat in the lowest-level criminal ...

for the Kootenay district. In 1873, he was transferred to Omineca in the same position; then, in 1874, he was sent to Cassiar. He resigned his post in autumn of that year. Vowell resigned his seat in the assembly after he was named gold commissioner and stipendiary magistrate for Cassiar. In 1884, he was transferred to Kootenay. Vowell resigned these posts in 1889 after being named superintendent of Indian Affairs for British Columbia, a federal position. In 1898, he was also assigned the duties of Indian Reserve Commissioner after the retirement of Peter O'Reilly. During Vowell's tenure, in 1907, British Columbia rejected the allocation of any additional land to native reserves. Vowell resigned his federal positions in March 1910. He died in Victoria at the age of 77.

References

1841 births 1918 deaths Independent MLAs in British Columbia Irish emigrants to pre-Confederation British Columbia Politicians from County Tipperary Canadian magistrates 19th-century members of the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia {{Independent-BritishColumbia-MLA-stub