Tobias Crawford Norris (September 5, 1861 – October 29, 1936) was a Canadian politician who served as the tenth

premier of Manitoba The premier of Manitoba () is the first minister (i.e., head of government or chief executive) for the Canadian province of Manitoba—as well as the ''de facto'' President of the province's Executive Council. In formal terms, the premier rec ...

from 1915 to 1922. Norris was 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 ...

.J. M. Bumsted
"Tobias Crawford Norris"
''

The Canadian Encyclopedia ''The Canadian Encyclopedia'' (TCE; ) is the national encyclopedia of Canada, published online by the Toronto-based historical organization Historica Canada, with financial support by the federal Department of Canadian Heritage and Society of Com ...

'', February 14, 2008.

Early life

Norris was born in

Brampton Brampton is a city in the Canadian Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Ontario, and the regional seat of the Regional Municipality of Peel. It is part of the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) and is a List of municipalities in Ontario#L ...

Canada West The Province of Canada (or the United Province of Canada or the United Canadas) was a British colony in British North America from 1841 to 1867. Its formation reflected recommendations made by John Lambton, 1st Earl of Durham, in the Report ...

(now

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 ...

), and moved to Manitoba at a young age.

Career

Manitoba Legislature

He was first elected to the

Legislative Assembly of Manitoba The Legislative Assembly of 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 to this assembly at List of Manitoba genera ...

in the 1896 provincial election in the constituency of Lansdowne. The Liberals won a landslide majority in this election, though Norris was not called to serve in the cabinet of premier

Thomas Greenway Thomas Greenway (25 March 1838 – 30 October 1908) was a Canadian politician, merchant and farmer. He served as the seventh premier of Manitoba from 1888 to 1900. A Liberal, his ministry formally ended Manitoba's non-partisan government, al ...

. Norris was narrowly re-elected in the 1899 election, and moved with his party to the opposition benches. He was one of many Liberals defeated in the party's electoral debacle of

1903 Events January * January 1 – Edward VII is proclaimed Emperor of India. * January 10 – The Aceh Sultanate was fully annexed by the Dutch forces, deposing the last sultan, marking the end of the Aceh War that have lasted for al ...

, losing to

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

Harvey Hicks by sixteen votes. He defeated Hicks by ninety-six votes in the 1907 election, and emerged as one of the leading figures in the legislative opposition. In 1910, he was chosen to replace Charles Mickle as provincial Liberal leader. Conservative Premier

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 Robl ...

called an election soon after Norris's selection as leader, and the Conservatives won 28 of 41 seats in the resulting campaign. Norris was re-elected in Lansdowne, and continued as opposition leader. He ran a stronger campaign in the 1914 election, though Roblin's Conservatives still won 28 of 48 seats in an expanded legislature.

Manitoba Premier

Roblin's government was forced to resign amid a corruption scandal in early-1915, and Norris was called to serve as premier in his place. He was sworn in as premier on May 15, 1915, and also gave himself the powerful position of Railway Commissioner. Norris called another election for August 6, 1915, and was rewarded with a landslide majority. The Liberals and their independent allies won 41 of 48 seats, a record which has never been surpassed in Manitoba history. Norris's government was considered a leading force for reform in Canada. After receiving a petition from

Winona Flett Winona Margaret Flett (June 10, 1884 – May 16, 1922) was a prominent suffragist and social reformer in Manitoba. Life Flett was born in South Dumfries Township, Ontario, the daughter of Isabella Bowie and James Flett. She left Woodstock, On ...

of over 35,000 signatures for women's suffrage, Norris's administration extended the vote to women, It also conducted a prohbition referndum and then imposed

prohibition Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption of alcoholic b ...

legislation. It brought in

workman's compensation Workers' compensation or workers' comp is a form of insurance providing wage replacement and medical benefits to employees injured in the course of employment in exchange for mandatory relinquishment of the employee's right to sue his or her emp ...

as well as a

minimum wage A minimum wage is the lowest remuneration that employers can legally pay their employees—the price floor below which employees may not sell their labor. List of countries by minimum wage, Most countries had introduced minimum wage legislation b ...

. His government also introduced a rural farm credit system. It issued a mother's allowance for widows (an important measure considering his government was in power during and after

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

), a public nursing system and workplace health and safety regulations. Road construction and public works were also expanded. It also brought in

Single Transferable Voting The single transferable vote (STV) or proportional-ranked choice voting (P-RCV) is a multi-winner electoral system in which each voter casts a single vote in the form of a ranked ballot. Voters have the option to rank candidates, and their vo ...

, a form of

proportional representation Proportional representation (PR) refers to any electoral system under which subgroups of an electorate are reflected proportionately in the elected body. The concept applies mainly to political divisions (Political party, political parties) amon ...

, in advance of the 1920 election for the election of Winnipeg MLAs. The Norris administration's relationship with the federal

was generally poor. In 1916, the province eliminated the limited provisions for bilingual education that were agreed to in the

Wilfrid Laurier Sir Henri Charles Wilfrid Laurier (November 20, 1841 – February 17, 1919) was a Canadian lawyer, statesman, and Liberal politician who served as the seventh prime minister of Canada from 1896 to 1911. The first French Canadians, French ...

-Thomas Greenway compromise of 1897 to solve the

Manitoba Schools Question The Manitoba Schools Question () was a political crisis in the Canadian province of Manitoba that occurred late in the 19th century, attacking publicly-funded separate schools for Roman Catholics and Protestants. The crisis was precipitated by a ...

. The federal Liberals, still led by Laurier, were trying to rebuild a support base among Quebec nationalists. In the federal election of 1917, Norris's government supported the Union government of

Robert Borden Sir Robert Laird Borden (June 26, 1854 – June 10, 1937) was a Canadian lawyer and Conservative Party of Canada (1867–1942), Conservative politician who served as the eighth prime minister of Canada from 1911 to 1920. He is best known ...

against the Opposition Liberals led by

. The "Unionist" and "Laurier" Liberals in Manitoba were not reunited until 1922, but Norris's hold on power was never threatened by the split. Norris was in power during a period of rising labour and farmer radicalism in Manitoba, with the most significant event being the

Winnipeg General Strike The Winnipeg General Strike of 1919 was one of the most famous and influential strikes in Canadian history. For six weeks, May 15 to June 26, more than 30,000 strikers brought economic activity to a standstill in Winnipeg, Manitoba, which at the ...

of 1919. The Norris government was little involved in the strike itself. His administration favoured a negotiated compromise with the strikers and played little role in the strike's suppression by the federal government. When asked about the arrest of several leading strikers, Norris responded, "Just leave us out of this." Norman Penner, ''Winnipeg 1919'', p. 165 Despite his government's progressivism, it did not withstand the growing

socialist movement The history of socialism has its origins in the Age of Enlightenment and the 1789 French Revolution, along with the changes that brought, although it has precedents in earlier movements and ideas. ''The Communist Manifesto'' was written by Karl ...

or the wave of farmers' radicalism that swept the country in the form of the United Farmers movement. The election of 1920 resulted in a

hung parliament A hung parliament is a term used in legislatures primarily under the Westminster system (typically employing Majoritarian representation, majoritarian electoral systems) to describe a situation in which no single political party or pre-existing ...

, with 21 Liberals, 11 Labourites, 9 Farmer representatives, 8 Conservatives and 6 independents. The Liberals remained in government, and usually depended on support from Farmer MLAs to pass legislation. It lost a vote of confidence in 1922 and then was resoundingly defeated by the

United Farmers of Manitoba The Progressive Party of Manitoba, Canada, was a political party in Manitoba between 1920 and 1932, which was the year of its dissolution. It developed from the United Farmers of Manitoba (UFM), an agrarian movement that became politically activ ...

(UFM) in the election that followed. The UFM governed as the

Progressive Party of Manitoba The Progressive Party of Manitoba, Canada, was a political party in Manitoba between 1920 and 1932, which was the year of its dissolution. It developed from the United Farmers of Manitoba (UFM), an agrarian movement that became politically activ ...

. Norris was re-elected MLA in Lansdowne and served as leader of the opposition until 1927. By then, reconciled with the national

, he contested the riding of

Winnipeg South Winnipeg South () is a electoral district (Canada), Canadian federal electoral district in Manitoba, Canada, that has been represented in the House of Commons of Canada from 1917 to 1979, and since 1988. It covers the southernmost part of the ...

in the federal election of 1925, where he lost to Conservative

Robert Rogers Robert Rogers may refer to: Politics * Robert Rogers (Irish politician) (died 1719), Irish politician, MP for Cork City 1692–1699 *Robert Rogers (Manitoba politician) (1864–1936), Canadian politician *Robert Rogers, Baron Lisvane (born 1950), C ...

. He had resigned his seat to campaign federally, but was returned to the legislature in a

by-election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, or a bypoll in India, is an election used to fill an office that has become vacant between general elections. A vacancy may arise as a result of an incumben ...

later in the same year. Norris stood down as Liberal leader before the 1927 election, but remained a member of the legislature and was again elected for Lansdowne. He retired from politics in 1928. Following Norris's retirement, the

Manitoba Liberal Party The Manitoba Liberal Party () is a political party in Manitoba, Canada. Its roots can be traced to the late 19th century, following the province's creation in 1870. History Origins and early development (to 1883) Originally, there were no off ...

began negotiations with Bracken's Progressives for a formal merger. (Because of his government's language policies, Norris had been unacceptable to Bracken's francophone supporters). The two parties were merged in 1932.

Death

Norris died 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 ...

in 1936.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Norris, Tobias Crawford 1861 births 1936 deaths Premiers of Manitoba Politicians from Brampton Manitoba Liberal Party MLAs 19th-century members of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba 20th-century members of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba