George Harry Webster (September 2, 1868 – November 10, 1933) was a politician and transportation expert in

Alberta Alberta is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Canada. It is a part of Western Canada and is one of the three Canadian Prairies, prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to its west, Saskatchewan to its east, t ...

, Canada. He served as the 22nd Mayor of the city of

Calgary Calgary () is a major city in the Canadian province of Alberta. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806 making it the third-largest city and fifth-largest metropolitan area in C ...

from 1923 to 1926 then served as a member of the

Legislative Assembly of Alberta The Legislative Assembly of Alberta is the deliberative assembly of the province of Alberta, Canada. It sits in the Alberta Legislature Building in Edmonton. Since 2012 the Legislative Assembly has had 87 members, elected first past the post f ...

from 1926 to his death in 1933. Webster was popularly known as the "Cowboy Mayor".

Early life

Webster was born in

Leicester Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area, and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest city in the East Midlands with a popula ...

, England and immigrated to Canada with his parents in 1873, settling first in Orangeville, Ontario. He received his early education in Orangeville. In 1880, the family moved on to

Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Manitoba. It is centred on the confluence of the Red River of the North, Red and Assiniboine River, Assiniboine rivers. , Winnipeg h ...

and he was employed by the

Canadian Pacific Railway The Canadian Pacific Railway () , also known simply as CPR or Canadian Pacific and formerly as CP Rail (1968–1996), is a Canadian Class I railway incorporated in 1881. The railway is owned by Canadian Pacific Kansas City, Canadian Pacific Ka ...

working on a construction gang building the westward moving line. Webster arrived in

with the railway in 1883.

Transportation career

In 1900, after working in

Washington state Washington, officially the State of Washington, is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is often referred to as Washington State to distinguish it from the national capital, both named after George Washington ...

for several years, he returned to Calgary to assume the management of P. Burns and Company, a post Webster held through to 1906. He subsequently returned to railway construction and was involved in several large projects, including completion of the Grand Trunk line between Calgary and Tofield. Webster became interested in road transportation, and became involved with the ''Southern Alberta Good Roads' Association'' and the ''Calgary Auto Club''. He studied western Canadian roads, and their impact on tourism, construction and maintenance and the effect on agriculture.

Municipal career

Webster was elected to

Calgary City Council The Calgary City Council is the legislative governing body that represents the citizens of Calgary. The council consists of 15 members: the chief elected official, titled the mayor, and 14 councillors. Jyoti Gondek was elected mayor in October 202 ...

as an Alderman in 1919 and served for three years. He became Mayor in 1923 defeating former mayor Michael Copps Costello and Labor candidate J. E. Worsley in the December 13, 1922, municipal election on the first ballot. Webster would be elected for a second term in the December 12, 1924, general election, and was acclaimed for a third term on December 9, 1925. He resigned as city mayor to run in the 1926 Alberta general election: it was approved by city council and came into effect on December 31, 1926.

Provincial career and death

Prince of Wales and George Webster Alberta

Webster was an unsuccessful Liberal candidate for the

constituency in the

1921 Alberta general election The 1921 Alberta general election was held on July 18, 1921, to elect members to the 5th Alberta Legislative Assembly. The Liberal government is replaced by the United Farmers of Alberta. It was one of only five times that Alberta has changed gov ...

."Results by Polls in Calgary." '' Morning Albertan'' 19 Jul. 1921: 3. He ran for a seat to the Alberta Legislature as a Liberal candidate in the

electoral district in the 1926 Alberta general election. He won the second place seat. Webster nominated John McDonald to stand for the leadership of the Alberta Liberal Party at the convention held on March 28, 1930. McDonald won that race over two other candidates. Webster ran for a second term in the 1930 Alberta general election. He held his seat in the Calgary district but McDonald did not. The Liberal caucus chose Webster to serve as Leader of the Liberal caucus in the Assembly in January 1931 while McDonald continued to serve as leader of the party. This arrangement continued for over a year before McDonald who was unable to obtain a seat resigned on March 1, 1932. This resignation made Webster the interim leader, a position which he held until William Howson was acclaimed at a convention on October 21, 1932. Webster died on November 10, 1933, while still holding office.

References

External links

Legislative Assembly of Alberta Members Listing
{{DEFAULTSORT:Webster, George 1869 births 1933 deaths Alberta Liberal Party MLAs Leaders of the Alberta Liberal Party British emigrants to Canada 20th-century members of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta 20th-century mayors of places in Alberta