Walter Davy Cowan, D.D.S., (December 31, 1865 – September 28, 1934) was a

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politician in

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 ...

and

Ku Klux Klan The Ku Klux Klan (), commonly shortened to KKK or Klan, is an American Protestant-led Christian terrorism, Christian extremist, white supremacist, Right-wing terrorism, far-right hate group. It was founded in 1865 during Reconstruction era, ...

member. Cowan served as Mayor of Regina and served as

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 ...

- Unionist Member of Parliament for Regina from 1917 to 1921 and then as the Conservative MP for Long Lake from 1930 until his death. A dentist by profession, Cowan was born in

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, to Scottish immigrants. After his early schooling in Guelph, Cowan attended the

University of Maryland The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1856, UMD is the flagship institution of the Univ ...

, graduating with a degree in dentistry in 1888. In 1889, he moved to Regina in what was then the

Northwest Territories The Northwest Territories is a federal Provinces and territories of Canada, territory of Canada. At a land area of approximately and a 2021 census population of 41,070, it is the second-largest and the most populous of Provinces and territorie ...

and was one of the first dentists in the region. He organized the first dental association in Canada, the Dental College of the Northwest Territories (later the Dental College of Saskatchewan) and served as its president until 1913. In 1890, Dr. Cowan was elected to the town council and served for one year. In 1891, he became associated editor of the ''Dominion Dental Journal''. He helped form the National Dental Association in 1904 and served as the organization's president. Cowan ran for parliament in the 1911 federal election as a

; however, he was defeated in the Regina electoral district. Cowan was elected Mayor of Regina in 1916 and held that office for two years, deciding not to run for a third term after he was elected to the

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in the 1917 federal election as a Unionist MP supporting the wartime government of Sir

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 ...

. He did not run for re-election in the 1921 federal election. He also served during

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 ...

as commanding officer of the Dental Corps, District No.12, with the rank of major. Cowan returned to the House of Commons after being elected as the Conservative MP for Long Lake in the 1930 federal election. During this time, he was also the provincial treasurer ("Klabee") for the Saskatchewan chapter of the

. He died in office in 1934. In 1918, Cowan published a book on post-war reconstruction called
After Hell, what?
'.

References

*

''Saskatchewan And Its People'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Cowan, Walter Davy 1865 births 1934 deaths Mayors of Regina, Saskatchewan Unionist Party (Canada) MPs Conservative Party of Canada (1867–1942) MPs Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Saskatchewan Canadian dentists Canadian military personnel of World War I Canadian Ku Klux Klan members Canadian people of Scottish descent University System of Maryland alumni 20th-century mayors of places in Saskatchewan 20th-century members of the House of Commons of Canada