Joseph Wilfred Spooner (February 8, 1910 – February 14, 2001) was a politician in
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 ...
,
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...
. He was a
Progressive Conservative member of the
Legislative Assembly of Ontario
The Legislative Assembly of Ontario (OLA; ) is the legislative chamber of the Canadian province of Ontario. Its elected members are known as Members of Provincial Parliament (MPPs). Bills passed by the Legislative Assembly are given royal as ...
from 1955 to 1967 who represented the northern Ontario riding of
Cochrane South. He was a cabinet minister in the governments of
Leslie Frost
Leslie Miscampbell Frost (September 20, 1895 – May 4, 1973) was a politician in Ontario, Canada, who served as the province's 16th premier from May 4, 1949, to November 8, 1961. Due to his lengthy tenure, he gained the nickname "Old Man O ...
and
John Robarts
John Parmenter Robarts (January 11, 1917 – October 18, 1982) was a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 17th premier of Ontario from 1961 to 1971. He was a member of the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario.
Early life
Roba ...
. Prior to his provincial role he served as a municipal councillor for
Timmins City Council from 1939 to 1951 and then as
mayor
In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...
of Timmins from 1952 to 1955.
Background
Outside politics Spooner was an accountant and worked for an insurance agency serving clients in northeastern Ontario. Spooner was one of the charter members of the Rotary Club of Timmins.
Politics
He was considered an extremely influential voice for Northern Ontario during his time at Queen's Park. He held three different ministerial positions, including serving as
Minister of Lands and Forests,
Minister of Mines and
Minister of Municipal Affairs. As Minister of Mines, he was credited with implementing important health and safety initiatives in response to the dire working conditions in the gold mines in the Kirkland Lake district. As Minister of Lands and Forests, he expanded the provincial park system. He officially opened
Cold Creek Conservation Area in 1962.
Cabinet posts
Later life
In 1978, Premier
Bill Davis
William Grenville Davis, (July 30, 1929 – August 8, 2021) was a Canadian politician who served as the 18th premier of Ontario from 1971 to 1985. Behind Oliver Mowat, Davis was the List of premiers of Ontario by time in office, second-longes ...
appointed Spooner as the chair of the
Ontario Northland Transportation Commission
The Ontario Northland Transportation Commission (ONTC), or simply Ontario Northland, is a Crown agency (Ontario), Crown agency of the Government of Ontario responsible for providing transportation services for passengers and goods in Northern ...
. In 1987, he received an honorary doctorate from
University of Sudbury
The University of Sudbury () is a bilingual and tri-cultural university in Sudbury, Ontario, Canada. It provides undergraduate programming in both French and English in Religious Studies, Philosophy, Indigenous Studies, and in French in Journali ...
.
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Spooner, Joseph Wilfred
1910 births
2001 deaths
Mayors of Timmins
Members of the Executive Council of Ontario
Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario MPPs
20th-century mayors of places in Ontario
20th-century members of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario