Ptolemy Alexander Reid (May8, 1918September2, 2003) was a Guyanese

veterinarian A veterinarian (vet) or veterinary surgeon is a medical professional who practices veterinary medicine. They manage a wide range of health conditions and injuries in non-human animals. Along with this, veterinarians also play a role in animal r ...

and

politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...

who served as

Prime Minister of Guyana The prime minister of the Co-operative Republic of Guyana is an elected member of the National Assembly of Guyana who is the principal assistant and advisor to the President of Guyana, president as well as the leader of government business in ...

from 1980 to 1984.

Early life

He was born in Dartmouth, British GuianaHundreds in Georgetown bid farewell to `the Elder Statesman’
by Linda Rutherford, in the

Guyana Chronicle The ''Guyana Chronicle'' is a daily newspaper A newspaper is a Periodical literature, periodical publication containing written News, information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers ...

''; published September 7, 2003; archived at Land Of Six Peoples; retrieved November 13, 2016'' attending the village primary school where he eventually became a teacher before entering the

Cyril Potter College of Education The Cyril Potter College of Education (CPCE) is a higher education institution in Georgetown, Guyana. The school's main campus is in Turkeyen, with an additional training center in Anna Regina. History The college was established in September 1 ...

(known at the time as the Teachers' Training College). Reid studied veterinary medicine at the

Tuskegee Institute Tuskegee University (Tuskegee or TU; formerly known as the Tuskegee Institute) is a Private university, private, Historically black colleges and universities, historically black land-grant university in Tuskegee, Alabama, United States. It was f ...

in Alabama, then returned to Guyana in 1955, and married Ruth Chalmers. Unable to find employment in

British Guiana British Guiana was a British colony, part of the mainland British West Indies. It was located on the northern coast of South America. Since 1966 it has been known as the independent nation of Guyana. The first known Europeans to encounter Guia ...

,Former Prime Minister Dr Ptolemy Reid dies
at

Stabroek News The ''Stabroek News'' is a privately owned newspaper published in Guyana. It takes its name from ''Stabroek'' , the former name of Georgetown, Guyana. It was first published in November 1986, first as a weekly but it later changed to a daily pri ...

; published September 7, 2003; archived at Land Of Six Peoples; retrieved November 13, 2016 he moved to England where he became a member of the

Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons The Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS) is the regulatory body for veterinary surgeons in the United Kingdom, established in 1844 by royal charter. It is responsible for monitoring the educational, ethical and clinical standards of the ...

, and then practiced in the

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

province of

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Western Canada. It is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and to the south by the ...

.Ptolemy Reid passes on
by Ruel Johnson, at the ''

; published September 4, 2003; archived at Land Of Six Peoples; retrieved November 13, 2016'' He returned to Guyana in 1958 and took on a position at Bookers Sugar Estate as the Chief Veterinary Officer, and became involved in politics in 1960 when he joined the People's National Congress.

Political career

He ran for office in 1961, hoping to represent the constituency of

Pomeroon-Supenaam Pomeroon-Supenaam (Region 2) is a region of Guyana. It borders the Atlantic Ocean to the north, the region of Essequibo Islands-West Demerara to the east, the region of Cuyuni-Mazaruni to the south and the region of Barima-Waini to the west. Po ...

, but was unsuccessful. When

Forbes Burnham Linden Forbes Sampson Burnham (20 February 1923 – 6 August 1985) was a Guyanese politician and the leader of the Co-operative Republic of Guyana from 1964 until his death in 1985. He served as Prime Minister of Guyana, Premier of British Guia ...

took power in 1964, Reid became a member of Burnham's cabinet, where he served as Deputy Premier and minister of home affairs (1964-1966),

finance minister A ministry of finance is a ministry or other government agency in charge of government finance, fiscal policy, and financial regulation. It is headed by a finance minister, an executive or cabinet position . A ministry of finance's portfoli ...

(1967–1970);

minister of agriculture An agriculture ministry (also called an agriculture department, agriculture board, agriculture council, or agriculture agency, or ministry of rural development) is a ministry charged with agriculture. The ministry is often headed by a minister f ...

(1970-1972); and minister of agriculture and national development (1972–1974).Historical information events and dates on the Parliament of Guyana from 1718 to 2006
Parliament of Guyana
at

; published September 7, 2003; archived at Land Of Six Peoples; retrieved November 13, 2016 In 1980, when Burnham resigned as prime minister to become president, Reid took his place. He retired in 1984, taking up farming in East Bank Demerara. His wife died in 1997, and he remarried Marjorie Griffith. She died in May 2003, and Reid himself followed on 2 September 2003, aged 91.

Recognition

* Order of Excellence * Order of Gran Cruz (Colombia) * Distinguished Alumni Award from the Tuskegee University

References

External links

The Ptolemy Reid Rehabilitation Centre for Children with Disabilities
{{DEFAULTSORT:Reid, Ptolemy 1918 births 2003 deaths People from Pomeroon-Supenaam Veterinarians Prime ministers of Guyana Vice presidents of Guyana Finance ministers of Guyana Agriculture ministers of Guyana Interior ministers of Guyana Tuskegee University alumni People's National Congress Reform politicians Guyanese people of African descent 20th-century Guyanese politicians Recipients of the Order of Excellence of Guyana

Early life

Political career

Recognition

Further reading

References

External links