Duff Pattullo

Thomas Dufferin "Duff" Pattullo (January 19, 1873 – March 30, 1956) was the 22nd premier of British Columbia from 1933 to 1941.

Early life and early political career
Born in Woodstock, Ontario, into a family of Scottish ancestry, Pattullo's early career was as a journalist with two newspapers in Ontario: the Woodstock Sentinel in the 1890s, and as editor of the Galt Reformer in 1896. He got a job as secretary to James Morrow Walsh, the commissioner of the Yukon, where he stayed until 1902. In 1908, he moved to Prince Rupert, British Columbia and soon became mayor. He was elected to the provincial legislature in the 1916 election, and was appointed minister of lands in the Liberal government. Following the defeat of the Liberals in the 1928 election, Pattullo became Liberal Party leader, and leader of the opposition. In the 1933 election, with the Conservatives in disarray and not running any official candidates, Pattullo led the party back into government.

Premier of British Columbia
The Pattullo government, elected in the midst of the Great Depression, attempted to extend government services and relief to the unemployed. In the 1937 general election, his government was re-elected running on the slogan of "socialized capitalism". His government was unable to secure a majority in the 1941 election due, in part, to the rise of the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation. He was unwilling to form a coalition government with the Conservatives, so his Liberal Party removed him as leader and formed such a coalition despite his objections.

Aside from his serving as Minister of Lands (1916 to 1928), Leader of the Opposition (1929 to 1933), and as Premier (1933 to 1941), during his time in the Legislature, Pattullo also served as Provincial Secretary (1927 to 1928), Attorney-General (1937 and again in 1941), Minister of Education (1941), Minister of Finance (1941), Minister of Public Works (1939), and Minister of Railways (1933 to 1937).

Pattullo was vocal in his opposition to extending franchise to minority groups in the Province, both during and after his tenure as premier. The concern raised was that if Chinese Canadians or Japanese Canadians fight on behalf of Canada in WWII, these Canadians would return home and demand equal rights of citizenship.

In a trite and greatly exaggerated fashion he (Attorney General Gordon Wismer) suggested to Defence Minister J.L. Ralston, "the oriental vote would be the deciding factor in a great many constituencies and you would face the possibility of having Orientals in Parliament." In urging the prime minister to countermand any orders to call up Chinese or Japanese for compulsory military training, Premier T.D. Pattullo declared that British Columbia could "never tolerate" a demand for the franchise.

— Patricia Roy, 1977

Later life
In the 1945 election, Pattullo ran as an independent and lost his seat in the legislature and retired from politics.

He died in Victoria, British Columbia in 1956. He is interred and rested in the Royal Oak Burial Park in Victoria, British Columbia.

Honours
The Pattullo Bridge is named in his honour, as well as Prince Rupert's Pattullo Park, Mount Pattullo, the Pattullo Range in North Tweedsmuir Provincial Park, and the Pattullo Glaciers in that range. Calls have been made to rename the replacement Pattullo bridge in consideration of Pattullo's anti-Asian political decisions while Premier. The replacement bridge is due to be completed in 2024.

External sources

 * The Canadian Encyclopedia