Sveinn Thorvaldson (March 3, 1872 – July 14, 1949) was a politician in

Manitoba , image_map = Manitoba in Canada 2.svg , map_alt = Map showing Manitoba's location in the centre of Southern Canada , Label_map = yes , coordinates = , capital = Win ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tota ...

. He served in the

Legislative Assembly of Manitoba The Legislative Assembly of Manitoba (french: Assemblée législative du Manitoba) is the deliberative assembly of the Manitoba Legislature in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Manitoba. Fifty-seven members are elected ...

from 1914 to 1915, as a member of the Conservative Party.

Biography

Thorvaldson was born in

Iceland Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its ...

, and came to Canada in 1887. He was educated at public schools, and at the Collegiate Institute of

Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749 ...

. He married Margerate Solmunson on April 13, 1896, and they had twelve children. He worked as a merchant and was secretary-treasurer of Sigurdson and Thorvaldson Company Ltd. Thorvaldson served as reeve for the

Rural Municipality of Gimli The Rural Municipality of Gimli is a rural municipality located in the Interlake Region of south-central Manitoba, Canada, on the western shore of Lake Winnipeg. It is about north of the provincial capital Winnipeg. The rural municipality's popu ...

from 1903 to 1905 and for the

Rural Municipality of Bifrost The Rural Municipality of Bifrost is a former rural municipality (RM) in the Canadian province of Manitoba. It was originally incorporated as a rural municipality on December 1, 1907. It ceased on January 1, 2015 as a result of its provincially m ...

from 1908 to 1914, from 1922 to 1926 and from 1929 to 1930. In religion, he was a

Unitarian Unitarian or Unitarianism may refer to: Christian and Christian-derived theologies A Unitarian is a follower of, or a member of an organisation that follows, any of several theologies referred to as Unitarianism: * Unitarianism (1565–present ...

. He was elected to the Manitoba legislature in the 1914 provincial election, defeating Liberal candidate

Einar Jonasson Einar Sigurjon Jonasson (17 June 1887 – 8 July 1935) was a politician in Manitoba, Canada. He served in the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba from 1932 to 1935, as a member of the Manitoba Liberal Party. Jonasson was born in Mountain, ...

and Independent-Liberal Taras Ferley in the constituency of Gimli. The Conservatives won a majority government, and Thorvaldson served as a backbench supporter of

Rodmond Roblin Sir Rodmond Palen Roblin (February 15, 1853 – February 16, 1937) was a businessman and politician in Manitoba, Canada. Early life and career Roblin was born in Sophiasburgh, in Prince Edward County, Canada West (later Ontario). The Robli ...

's government. In 1915, the Roblin administration was forced to resign from office amid a serious corruption scandal. A new election was called, which the Liberal Party won in a landslide. Thorvaldson lost the Gimli constituency to Ferley by 610 votes. In 1934, he became a member of the civil list of the

Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

and, in 1939, a member of the Icelandic

Order of the Falcon The Order of the Falcon ( is, Hin íslenska fálkaorða) is the only order of chivalry in Iceland, founded by King Christian X of Denmark and Iceland on 3 July 1921. The award is awarded for merit for Iceland and humanity and has five degrees. ...

. He died in

in 1949. Thorvaldson's son, Gunnar S. Thorvaldson, also served in the assembly from 1941 to 1949.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Thorvaldson, Sveinn 1872 births 1949 deaths Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba MLAs Icelandic emigrants to Canada Canadian people of Icelandic descent Canadian Unitarians