Thomas Herman Johnson(February 12, 1870 – May 20, 1927) was a politician inManitoba,Canada.He served in theLegislative Assembly of Manitobafrom 1907 to 1922, and was a prominentcabinet ministerin the government ofTobias Norris.Johnson was a member of theLiberal Party.
Thomas Herman Johnson | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Member of theLegislative Assembly of Manitoba | |
| In office 1907–1922 | |
| Constituency | Winnipeg West |
| Personal details | |
| Born | February 12, 1870 Iceland |
| Died | May 20, 1927(aged 57) Winnipeg,Manitoba |
| Political party | Liberal |
| Spouse |
Aurora Frederickson (m.1898) |
| Children | 3 |
| Occupation | Lawyer, politician |
Biography
editJohnson was born inIceland,and moved to Manitoba with his family in 1878. He was educated inWinnipegpublic schools, and received aBachelor of Artsdegree fromGustavus Adolphus College.After worked as a teacher, he entered the law office of Richards & Bradshaw in 1895 and was admitted to the Bar of the Province in 1900. He subsequently worked as a barrister-at-law, and was also appointed census commissioner for Manitoba in 1901. Johnson served on the Winnipeg School Board from 1904 to 1907. In religion, he was aLutheran.
He married Aurora Frederickson in 1898 and they had three children.[1]
He was first elected to the Manitoba legislature in the1907 provincial election,defeating candidates from theConservativeandLabourparties inWinnipeg West.He was re-elected over ConservativeA.J. Andrewsby 240 votes in the1910 election.Following redistribution for the1914 election,he defeated Andrews again by 1,050 votes inWinnipeg Centre"A". Manitoba was governed byRodmond Roblin's Conservatives during this period, and Johnson served as a member of the opposition. Known as a reformer, he was popular with Winnipeg's working-class community and won the support of many progressive electors.
In 1915, the Roblin government was forced to resign from office following a corruption scandal involving the tendering of contracts for new legislative buildings. Although they did not hold a majority of seats in the legislature, the Liberals under Tobias Norris were called upon to form a new administration. Norris becamepremieron May 15, 1915, and chose Johnson as hisMinister of Public Works.A new electionwas held, which the Liberals won in a landslide majority. Johnson was not opposed by Labour, and received more than three times of the votes of his Conservative opponent.
After a cabinet shuffle on November 10, 1917, Johnson was namedAttorney GeneralandMinister of Telephones and Telegraphs.He was not involved in the trials that resulted from theWinnipeg General Strikeof 1919. Many members of Norris's government favoured a negotiated settlement with the strikers, and the subsequent legal charges against the strike leaders were launched as a private prosecution by the Citizens' Committee of one Thousand, funded by the federal Department of Justice, and allowed to proceed by Johnson as Attorney General. Later, Johnson defended the prosecutions in the spring of 1921 when Fred Dixon brought a motion to the floor of the Manitoba legislature seeking the release of the imprisoned strike leaders.
Prior to the1920 provincial election,the province's electoral laws were changed such that the city of Winnipeg became asingle constituency,electing ten members by asingle transferable ballot.Johnson led the Liberal ticket in the city, and was declared elected with a second-place finish on the first count.[2]Across, the province, however, the Liberals were reduced to aminority governmentfollowing the rise ofFarmerand Labour parliamentary groups.
Johnson resigned from cabinet on June 6, 1922, and did not run in the1922 provincial election.
He died at his home in Winnipeg on May 20, 1927.[3]
References
edit- "Thomas Herman Johnson".Dictionary of Canadian Biography(online ed.).University of Toronto Press.1979–2016.
- ^Parker, Charles Whately; Greene, Barnet M., eds. (1922).Who's Who in Canada, Volume 16.International Press. p. 1227.RetrievedJuly 18,2020– via Google Books.
- ^Chambers, Ernest J (1921).Canadian Parliamentary Guide.
- ^"Outstanding Citizen Dead".Winnipeg Tribune.May 21, 1927. p. 14.RetrievedJuly 18,2020– via Newspapers.