1st Parliament of British Columbia

The 1st Legislative Assembly of British Columbia sat from 1871 to 1875. The members were elected in the British Columbia general election held in October 1871. John Foster McCreight was called upon to form a cabinet. In December 1872, the government was defeated on a confidence motion and Amor De Cosmos subsequently formed a new cabinet. After De Cosmos was elected to the House of Commons in February 1874, George A. Walken became premier.

There were four sessions of the 1st Legislature:

Session Start End
1st February 15, 1872 April 11, 1872
2nd December 17, 1872 February 21, 1873
3rd December 18, 1873 March 2, 1874
4th March 1, 1875 April 22, 1875

James Trimble served as speaker.

Members of the 1st Parliament

The following members were elected to the assembly in 1871:

Member Electoral district First elected No.# of term(s)
George A. Walkem Cariboo 1871 1st term
Joseph Hunter 1871 1st term
Cornelius Booth 1871 1st term
John George Barnston (1872) 1872 1st term
John Ash Comox 1871 1st term
William Smithe Cowichan 1871 1st term
John Paton Booth 1871 1st term
A. Rocke Robertson Esquimalt 1871 1st term
Henry Cogan 1871 1st term
John Andrew Mara Kootenay 1871 1st term
Charles Todd 1871 1st term
Andrew T. Jamieson Lillooet 1871 1st term
T. B. Humphreys 1871 1st term
William Saul (1872) 1872 1st term
William M. Brown (1874) 1874 1st term
John Robson Nanaimo 1871 1st term
Henry Holbrook New Westminster City 1871 1st term
Josiah Charles Hughes New Westminster District 1871 1st term
William Armstrong 1871 1st term
Robert Beaven Victoria City 1871 1st term
John Foster McCreight 1871 1st term
Simeon Duck 1871 1st term
James Trimble 1871 1st term
Amor De Cosmos Victoria District 1871 1st term
Arthur Bunster 1871 1st term
William Archibald Robertson (1874) 1874 1st term
William Fraser Tolmie (1874) 1874 1st term
Robert Smith Yale 1871 1st term
James Robinson 1871 1st term
Charles A. Semlin 1871 1st term

By-elections

By-elections were held for the following members appointed to the provincial cabinet, as was required at the time. All cabinet members were re-elected by acclamation:

  • A. Rocke Robertson, Provincial Secretary, acclaimed November 28, 1871
  • Henry Holbrook, Chief Commissioner of Lands and Works, acclaimed November 28, 1871
  • George A. Walkem, Minister of Finance, acclaimed February 23, 1872
  • John Ash, Provincial Secretary, acclaimed January 11, 1873
  • Robert Beaven, Chief Commissioner of Lands and Works, acclaimed January 6, 1873
  • William Armstrong, Minister of Finance and Agriculture, acclaimed March 21, 1873

By-elections were held to replace members for various other reasons:

Electoral district Member elected Election date Reason
Cariboo John George Barnston June 22, 1872 C. Booth appointed judge
Lillooet William Saul December 21, 1872 Death of A.T. Jamieson in October 1872
Victoria District William Archibald Robertson February 26, 1874 A. Bunster and A. de Cosmos elected to federal seats
William Fraser Tolmie
Lillooet Thomas Basil Humphreys November 17, 1874 both members resigned in a "dispute between the two gentlemen as to which represents the popular feeling of the district"
William M. Brown

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