Ernest Crawford Carson (June 9, 1894 – October 21, 1952) was a rancher 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

Lillooet Lillooet () is a district municipality in the Squamish-Lillooet region of southwestern British Columbia. The town is on the west shore of the Fraser River immediately north of the Seton River mouth. On BC Highway 99, the locality is by road abo ...

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 1928 to 1933 as a

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

and from 1941 to 1952 as a member of the Liberal-Conservative coalition government. He was reelected in 1952 as a Progressive Conservative. He was born on the family ranch in the

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 ...

country and was educated there and in

Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

. After high school, Carson worked on a railway survey crew. He served overseas during

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

and on his return took over the operation of the family ranch. In 1921, Carson married Halcyon Emma Hills. He served as postmaster at

Pavilion In architecture, ''pavilion'' has several meanings; * It may be a subsidiary building that is either positioned separately or as an attachment to a main building. Often it is associated with pleasure. In palaces and traditional mansions of Asia ...

from 1936 to 1941. Carson was defeated in the 1920 provincial election and also when he ran for reelection in 1933 and 1937. He later served in the provincial cabinet as Minister of Mines (1942 to 1946), Minister of Trade and Industry (1942 to 1946), and as Minister of Public Works (1946 to 1952). In 1952, Carson died in office of a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when Ischemia, blood flow decreases or stops in one of the coronary arteries of the heart, causing infarction (tissue death) to the heart muscle. The most common symptom ...

in Oak Bay at the age of 58. His brother

Robert The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of ''Hrōþ, Hruod'' () "fame, glory, honour, prais ...

also served in the assembly.

References

1894 births 1952 deaths Canadian military personnel of World War I British Columbia Conservative Party MLAs People from Lillooet Canadian ranchers 20th-century members of the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia {{Conservative-BritishColumbia-MLA-stub