John Wesley Fry (December 5, 1876 – December 23, 1946) was a politician 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 and a mayor of

Edmonton Edmonton is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Alberta. It is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Central Alberta ...

Biography

Early life

John Fry was born in

Woodstock, Ontario Woodstock is a city in Southwestern Ontario, Canada. The city has a population of 46,705 according to the Canada 2021 Census, 2021 Canadian census. Woodstock is the seat of Oxford County, Ontario, Oxford County, at the head of the Thames River, On ...

on December 5, 1876. He grew up in Woodstock and

Owen Sound Owen Sound (2021 Canadian Census, 2021 Census population 21,612) is a city in Southwestern Ontario, Canada. The county seat, seat of government of Grey County, it is located at the mouths of the Pottawatomi River, Pottawatomi and Sydenham River ...

and moved to

Regina, Saskatchewan Regina ( ) is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Saskatchewan. The city is the second-largest in the province, and is a commercial centre for southern Saskatchewan. As of the 2021 Canadian census, ...

in 1897 to attend Normal School. He received his teaching certificate and taught for three years in

Gainsborough, Saskatchewan Gainsborough ( 2016 population: ) is a village in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan within the Rural Municipality of Argyle No. 1 and Census Division No. 1. A farming community, the village is located on Highway 18 in the southeastern co ...

. He married and moved to a homestead near

Lloydminster Lloydminster is a city in Canada which has the unusual geographic distinction of straddling the provincial border between Alberta and Saskatchewan. The city is incorporated by both provinces as a single city with a single municipal administra ...

. In 1911, he moved to Edmonton and entered the contracting and real estate business.

Political career

John Wesley Fry sought office eleven times in his political career, and was never defeated. His first attempt took place in the 1932 election, when he ran for the position of alderman on

Edmonton City Council The Edmonton City Council is the governing body of the City of Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Edmonton currently has one mayor and twelve city councillors. Elections are held every four years. The most recent was held in 2021, and the next is in 20 ...

. He was elected, finishing second of fifteen candidates. He was re-elected in the

1934 Events January–February * January 1 – The International Telecommunication Union, a specialist agency of the League of Nations, is established. * January 15 – The 8.0 1934 Nepal–Bihar earthquake, Nepal–Bihar earthquake strik ...

and

1936 Events January–February * January 20 – The Prince of Wales succeeds to the throne of the United Kingdom as King Edward VIII, following the death of his father, George V, at Sandringham House. * January 28 – Death and state funer ...

elections, finishing second each time (of eighteen and sixteen candidates, respectively). Fry resigned midway through his third two-year term to run for mayor in the 1937 election, challenging incumbent Joseph Clarke. He defeated Clarke by three thousand votes, and would go on to be re-elected in

1938 Events January * January 1 – state-owned enterprise, State-owned railway networks are created by merger, in France (SNCF) and the Netherlands (Nederlandse Spoorwegen – NS). * January 20 – King Farouk of Egypt marries Saf ...

(defeating three challengers, including Clarke),

1939 This year also marks the start of the World War II, Second World War, the largest and deadliest conflict in human history. Events Events related to World War II have a "WWII" prefix. January * January 1 ** Coming into effect in Nazi Ger ...

(defeating local 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 ...

Samuel Barnes),

1940 A calendar from 1940 according to the Gregorian calendar, factoring in the dates of Easter and related holidays, cannot be used again until the year 5280. Events Below, events related to World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January *Janu ...

(defeating two challengers),

1941 The Correlates of War project estimates this to be the deadliest year in human history in terms of conflict deaths, placing the death toll at 3.49 million. However, the Uppsala Conflict Data Program estimates that the subsequent year, 1942, wa ...

(defeating alderman

George Campbell George Campbell may refer to: Sportsmen *George Campbell (rugby union) (1872–1924), Scotland international rugby union player * George Campbell (footballer, born 1957), Scottish footballer * George Campbell (footballer, born 1864) (1864–1898) ...

1942 The Uppsala Conflict Data Program project estimates this to be the deadliest year in human history in terms of conflict deaths, placing the death toll at 4.62 million. However, the Correlates of War estimates that the prior year, 1941, was th ...

(by acclamation),

1943 Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January * January 1 – WWII: The Soviet Union announces that 22 German divisions have been encircled at Stalingrad, with 175,000 killed and 137,650 captured. * January 4 � ...

(defeating Thomas Cairns), and

1944 Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January * January 2 – WWII: ** Free France, Free French General Jean de Lattre de Tassigny is appointed to command First Army (France), French Army B, part of the Sixt ...

(defeating

Rice Sheppard Rice Sheppard (April 2, 1861 – August 26, 1947) was a politician and farmers' activist in Alberta, Canada. He served on Edmonton City Council for many years, ran for mayoral, provincial, and federal office, and was an executive member of the Uni ...

). He did not seek re-election in the 1945 election, and did not seek political office again thereafter.

Personal life, death, and legacy

In addition to his political activities, John Wesley Fry was a member of the

Kiwanis Club Kiwanis International ( ) is an international service club founded in 1915 in Detroit, Michigan. It is headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana, United States, and is found in more than 80 nations and geographic areas. In 1987, the organization ...

, the

Masonic Lodge A Masonic lodge (also called Freemasons' lodge, or private lodge or constituent lodge) is the basic organisational unit of Freemasonry. It is also a commonly used term for a building where Freemasons meet and hold their meetings. Every new l ...

, the Union of Alberta Municipalities, and the Canadian Federation of Mayors and Municipalities (serving as President of the latter two). He died December 23, 1946, survived by his wife, four daughters, and one son. His eight years as mayor were the longest in Edmonton's history at that point. William Hawrelak surpassed the record in 1963 (Hawrelak, who served three non-consecutive stints as mayor, would serve a total of more than nine years). Fry's record of eight consecutive years as mayor stood until 2003, when Bill Smith surpassed it. John Fry Park, a

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

park in Edmonton, is named in Fry's honour.

References

Edmonton Public Library Biography of John FryCity of Edmonton biography of John Fry
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fry, John Wesley 1876 births 1946 deaths Mayors of Edmonton Canadian schoolteachers People from Woodstock, Ontario 20th-century mayors of places in Alberta