Patrick Power (March 17, 1815 – February 23, 1881) was a Canadian politician and a Member of Parliament for the riding of Halifax in

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada, located on its east coast. It is one of the three Maritime Canada, Maritime provinces and Population of Canada by province and territory, most populous province in Atlan ...

. He was born on March 17, 1815, at

Kilmacthomas Kilmacthomas or Kilmactomas (), often referred to locally as "Kilmac", is a town on the River Mahon in County Waterford, Ireland. It lies on the R677 road (Ireland), R677, a road north of the N25 road, N25 national primary road from Cork (city) ...

County Waterford County Waterford () is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and is part of the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern Region. It is named after the city of Waterford. ...

, Ireland. He immigrated to Nova Scotia in 1823 with his parents and later worked as a merchant in Canada. He was first elected as a member of the

Anti-Confederation Party ''Anti-Confederation'' was the name used in what is now the Maritimes by several parties opposed to Canadian Confederation. The Anti-Confederation parties were accordingly opposed by the Confederation Party, that is, the Conservative and Libera ...

on September 20, 1867. On January 30, 1869, he became a member of the

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. For example, while the political systems ...

, but in 1870 he became an

Independent Liberal Independent Liberal is a description which candidates and politicians have used to describe themselves, designating them as liberals, yet independent of the official Liberal Party of their country. To avoid confusion with the Liberal Party of ...

. He ran for re-election and lost on October 12, 1872. He was re-elected to the

3rd Canadian Parliament The 3rd Canadian Parliament was in session from March 26, 1874, until August 17, 1878 (4 years and 144 days). The membership was set by the 1874 federal election on January 22, 1874. It was dissolved prior to the 1878 election. It was controll ...

on January 22, 1874, but he was defeated in the next election on September 17, 1878. In 1876, he was offered a position in Alexander Mackenzie's Cabinet to replace Thomas Coffin, but he declined. Ill since 1877, he retired from politics following his electoral defeat in 1878 and died on February 23, 1881. During life, he worked on various boards and commissions themed with the education and welfare of the poor. For his charity work, he was awarded the

Order of St. Gregory the Great The Pontifical Equestrian Order of St. Gregory the Great (; ) was established on 1 September 1831, by Pope Gregory XVI, seven months after his election as Pope. The order is one of the five Papal order of knighthood, orders of knighthood of th ...

Pope Pius IX Pope Pius IX (; born Giovanni Maria Battista Pietro Pellegrino Isidoro Mastai-Ferretti; 13 May 1792 – 7 February 1878) was head of the Catholic Church from 1846 to 1878. His reign of nearly 32 years is the longest verified of any pope in hist ...

in 1870. His son, Lawrence Geoffrey Power, was a member of the

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

. The Patrick Power Library at St. Mary's University in Halifax bears his namesake.

Electoral history

External links

* * Anti-Confederation Party MPs Irish emigrants to pre-Confederation Nova Scotia Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Nova Scotia 1815 births 1881 deaths Liberal Party of Canada MPs Independent Liberal MPs in Canada Politicians from County Waterford People from Kilmacthomas 19th-century members of the House of Commons of Canada {{NovaScotia-MP-stub