Charles Martin Bowman (May 7, 1863 – October 24, 1932) was a politician in

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

, Canada. He was a Liberal member of the

Legislative Assembly of Ontario The Legislative Assembly of Ontario (OLA; ) is the legislative chamber of the Canadian province of Ontario. Its elected members are known as Members of Provincial Parliament (MPPs). Bills passed by the Legislative Assembly are given royal as ...

who represented the ridings of Bruce North from 1898 to 1914 and Bruce West from 1914 to 1919.

Background

Bowman was born in St. Jacobs,

Canada West The Province of Canada (or the United Province of Canada or the United Canadas) was a British colony in British North America from 1841 to 1867. Its formation reflected recommendations made by John Lambton, 1st Earl of Durham, in the Report ...

, the son of Isaac Erb Bowman and Lydia Bowers, and educated there and in Berlin (later

Kitchener, Ontario Kitchener is a city in the Canadian province of Ontario, about west of Toronto. It is one of three cities that make up the Regional Municipality of Waterloo and is the regional Administrative centre, seat. Kitchener was known as Berlin until a ...

). He entered his father's tanning business and set up a tannery in

Southampton Southampton is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. It is located approximately southwest of London, west of Portsmouth, and southeast of Salisbury. Southampton had a population of 253, ...

in 1880. After a fire destroyed that business, he purchased a tannery at Port Elgin. He went on to operate a furniture business in Southampton. With

James Conmee James Conmee (October 13, 1848 – July 23, 1913) was an Ontario businessman and political figure. He represented Algoma West from 1885 to 1902 and Port Arthur and Rainy River from 1902 to 1904 in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario and T ...

, Bowman was awarded a contract for construction on the

Algoma Central Railway The Algoma Central Railway is a railway in Northern Ontario, Canada, that operates between Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Sault Ste. Marie and Hearst, Ontario, Hearst. It used to have a branch line to Wawa, Ontario, Wawa. The area served by th ...

. In 1902 he and James Whalen, son-in-law of Liberal M.P. James Conmee, formed the Great Lakes Dredging Company, obtaining large contracts to dredge the Fort William and Port Arthur harbours. In 1886, he married Louisa Hesse. He resided in

, Saugeen Township, Bruce County in 1920, continuing his involvement in the leather business. He died in

in 1932.

Politics

Bowman served on the town council for Southampton and also served as reeve for the town. In the 1898 provincial election, he ran as the Liberal candidate in the riding of Bruce North. He defeated Conservative candidate D.M. Jormyn by 419 votes.

References

External links

*
''A History of Ontario : its resources and development. Part II'', A Fraser (1907)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bowman, Charles M 1863 births 1932 deaths 19th-century mayors of places in Ontario Ontario Liberal Party MPPs People from Woolwich, Ontario Politicians from the Regional Municipality of Waterloo 19th-century members of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario 20th-century members of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario