John McGowan (politician)

John McGowan (November 5, 1845 – October 20, 1922) was an Ontario businessman, farmer and political figure. He represented Wellington North in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1874 to 1879 and Wellington Centre in the House of Commons of Canada as a Liberal-Conservative member from 1901 to 1904.

For other people with the same name, see John McGowan (disambiguation).

John McGowan
Member of Parliament for Wellington Centre
In office 1900–1904
Preceded by	Andrew Semple
Succeeded by	Riding abolished
Ontario MPP
In office 1871–1879
Preceded by	Robert McKim
Succeeded by	Riding abolished
Constituency	Wellington North
Personal details
Born	(1845-11-05)November 5, 1845 Greenock, Scotland
Died	October 20, 1922(1922-10-20) (aged 76)
Political party	Conservative
Occupation	Farmer

He was born in Greenock, Scotland in 1845 and came to Canada West with his parents in 1857. He settled in Peel Township (now part of Mapleton Township) and served as reeve there. He also managed a linseed oil mill in Elora. He was elected to the Ontario legislature in an 1874 by-election and was reelected in 1875. He was elected to the House of Commons in 1900, and served for four years.^[1]

Electoral history

v t e Ontario provincial by-election, February 1874: Wellington North Resignation of Robert McKim
Party	Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	John McGowan	1,627	50.94	+14.47
	Independent	Mr. O'Callaghan	1,567	49.06
Total valid votes			3,194	100.0	+32.53
	Conservative gain from Liberal		Swing		+14.47
Source: History of the Electoral Districts, Legislatures and Ministries of the Province of Ontario[2]: 396

v t e 1875 Ontario general election: Wellington West
Party	Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	John McGowan	1,553	51.63
	Liberal	Robert McKim	1,455	48.37
Total valid votes			3,008	73.82
Eligible voters			4,075
Election voided
Source: Elections Ontario[3]

v t e Ontario provincial by-election, October 1875: Wellington West Previous election voided
Party	Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	John McGowan	1,238	50.57
	Liberal	Robert McKim	1,210	49.43
Total valid votes			2,448
	Conservative pickup new district.
Source: History of the Electoral Districts, Legislatures and Ministries of the Province of Ontario[2]: 403

References

1. "Pioneer - McGOWAN, Duncan". Roots Web. 2003. Archived from the original on 29 July 2003.
2. Lewis, Roderick (1968). Centennial Edition of a History of the Electoral Districts, Legislatures and Ministries of the Province of Ontario, 1867–1968. OCLC 1052682.
3. "Data Explorer". Elections Ontario. 1875. Retrieved 6 April 2024.

External links

• John McGowan – Parliament of Canada biography
• Ontario Legislative Assembly parliamentary history