George Lane (politician)

George Lane (6 March 1856 – 24 September 1925) was an American-born Canadian politician and rancher and known as one of the Big Four who helped found the Calgary Stampede in 1912. In 2016, he was inducted into the Hall of Great Westerners of the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum.[1]

George Lane
Member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta for Bow Valley
In office April 17, 1913 – May 26, 1913
Preceded by	New District
Succeeded by	Charles Richmond Mitchell
Personal details
Born	March 6, 1856 Booneville, Iowa
Died	September 24, 1925 (aged 69) Bar U Ranch, Alberta
Political party	Liberal
Spouse(s)	Elizabeth Sexsmith
Children	8
Occupation	Rancher, businessman, politician

George was foreman at the Bar U Ranch and eventually returned in the early 1900s to purchase it for $250,000.[2] In 1885 he married Elizabeth Sexsmith and they raised 8 children together.[3]

In the 1913 Alberta general election George was elected as the first member for the Bow Valley riding for the Alberta Liberal Party. He was somewhat of a star candidate for the Liberal Party, and helped keep a critical southern Alberta seat from going Conservative. He defeated Conservative Incumbent Harold Riley who had changed from the Gleichen district. George would spend very little time as a member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta, he would resign a short time later so that defeated Cabinet Minister Charles R. Mitchell could re-gain a seat in the legislature.

Election results

1913 Alberta general election: Bow Valley
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	George Lane	396	61.78%	–
	Conservative	Harold William Hounsfield Riley	245	38.22%	–
Total			641	–	–
Rejected, spoiled and declined			N/A	–	–
Eligible electors / turnout			1,081	59.30%	–
	Liberal pickup new district.
Source(s) Source: "Bow Valley Official Results 1913 Alberta general election". Alberta Heritage Community Foundation. Retrieved May 21, 2020.

References

1. "Hall of Great Westerners". National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum. Retrieved November 22, 2019.
2. Morrison, Elsie (1950). Calgary, 1875-1950 : A souvenir of Calgary's seventy-fifth anniversary. Calgary: Calgary Publishing Co. p. 135.
3. Ward, Tom (1975). Cowtown : an album of early Calgary. Calgary: City of Calgary Electric System, McClelland and Stewart West. p. 160. ISBN 0-7712-1012-4.

External links

• George Lane and his home in Calgary
• Evans, Simon M. (2005). "Lane, George". In Cook, Ramsay; Bélanger, Réal (eds.). Dictionary of Canadian Biography. XV (1921–1930) (online ed.). University of Toronto Press.
• George Lane – Legislative Assembly of Alberta Member Profile