Jean Dorothy Newman (1905 in

Née The birth name is the name of the person given upon their birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name or to the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a births registe ...

Reading – October 4, 1971) was a municipal politician in

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

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. She was the vice-chairman of the

Toronto Board of Control The Board of Control of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, was a part of its municipal government until it was abolished in 1969. It served as the executive committee of the Toronto City Council. When it was initially created in 1896 by mandate of the provi ...

and president of the

Toronto City Council Toronto City Council is the governing body of the municipal government of Toronto, Ontario. Meeting at Toronto City Hall, it comprises 25 city councillors and the mayor of Toronto. The Toronto City Council 2022–2026, current term began on Nove ...

. She was the first woman elected to Toronto’s Board of Control and the first woman to run for

Mayor of Toronto The mayor of Toronto is the head of Toronto City Council and chief executive officer of the Municipal government of Toronto, municipal government. The mayor is elected alongside city council every four years on the fourth Monday of October; t ...

Family and personal life

Early life and education

Jean Dorothy Newman was born in 1905 at

El Paso, Texas El Paso (; ; or ) is a city in and the county seat of El Paso County, Texas, United States. The 2020 United States census, 2020 population of the city from the United States Census Bureau, U.S. Census Bureau was 678,815, making it the List of ...

. Her father, W. G. Reading was a chief dispatcher for the

Southern Pacific Railway The Southern Pacific (or Espee from the railroad initials) was an American Class I railroad network that existed from 1865 to 1996 and operated largely in the Western United States. The system was operated by various companies under the names ...

. Her mother, Mrs. W. G. Reading, was a business woman who specialized in real estate. Newman's maternal grandfather, Donald Mackay Gordon, emigrated to Canada from

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

. He served as Mayor of Wingham and built the first brick house in

Listowel Listowel ( ; , ) is a heritage market town in County Kerry, Ireland. It is on the River Feale, from the county town, Tralee. The town of Listowel had a population of 4,794 according to the 2022 census of Ireland, 2022 census, the third large ...

. When Newman was three months old, the family relocated to Toronto, where they resided on Rushmore Road. She attended

Oakwood Collegiate Institute Oakwood Collegiate Institute (commonly known as OCI or Oakwood) is a public high school in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is located near the neighbourhoods of Regal Heights, Oakwood-Vaughan and Bracondale Hill. History and Alumni Oakwood was fo ...

as her secondary school, and the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public university, public research university whose main campus is located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park (Toronto), Queen's Park in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was founded by ...

for post secondary education, where she majored in arts. She had always been interested in religious and charity organizations. She had presided over multiple associations within the university, such as the Home and School Association, the University College Alumnae, St. George’s United Church WMS, and she was on the board of the United Church of Training School.

Personal life

In 1925, she married T. Campbell Newman, who was majoring in chemistry at University of Toronto. They went on to have two kids, George and Margaret. In her free time, she made oil paintings. She had multiple exhibitions, and her house is home to a collection of both her own work and that of other Canadian artists. She had always been a very proficient public speaker, winning gold and silver medals in public speaking competitions.

Political career

Newman had always been interested in public service. She was a trustee of the Board of Education from 1951 to 1954. In 1954, she moved to city council where she served in Ward 9 in 1955 and 1956. In 1956, Newman was elected to the Board of Control as the budget chief, she was the first woman to do so. In the 1 958 Toronto municipal election; she announced her intention to run for mayor of Toronto, challenging, then incumbent, Nathan Phillips. In 1960 mayoral election, Newman placed third behind Phillips and former mayor of Toronto

Allan Lamport Allan Austin Lamport, (April 4, 1903 – November 18, 1999) was mayor of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, from 1951 to 1954. Known as "Lampy", his most notable achievement was his opposition to Toronto's Blue laws which banned virtually any activ ...

. In 1962, she ran as a Liberal candidate in by-election for the riding of Eglinton. The riding leaned towards the

tory A Tory () is an individual who supports a political philosophy known as Toryism, based on a British version of traditionalist conservatism which upholds the established social order as it has evolved through the history of Great Britain. The To ...

party, and Newman lost to Progressive Conservative

Leonard Mackenzie Reilly Leonard Mackenzie Reilly (July 12, 1912 – May 21, 2008) was a Canadian politician for the Ontario PC Party and a businessman. Background Reilly was born to Protestant Irish immigrants, the 13th of 16 children of James Reilly and Mary Jane ...

Former Alderman and Controller, Ms. Jean Newman dies at 66." ''Toronto Star.'' October 6, 1971.

Later life and death

After the loss of the By election, Newman retired from politics and focused her attention on charitable work. In 1968, her husband died and in 1970, she got remarried to Ian Urquhart, taking on the name Jean Newman-Urquhart. Newman died a year later, in 1971 from a stroke. She was 66.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Newman, Jean 1905 births 1971 deaths Toronto city councillors Women municipal councillors in Ontario Metropolitan Toronto councillors American emigrants to Canada 20th-century Canadian municipal councillors 20th-century Canadian women politicians