Leslie Blackwell

Leslie Egerton Blackwell (9 November 1897 – 20 October 1959) was a Canadian politician, soldier, lawyer, and land developer.

Leslie Egerton Blackwell
Ontario MPP
In office 1943–1951
Preceded by	Harold James Kirby
Succeeded by	William James Dunlop
Constituency	Eglinton
Personal details
Born	(1897-11-09)November 9, 1897 Lindsay, Ontario, Canada
Died	October 20, 1959(1959-10-20) (aged 61) Toronto, Ontario
Political party	Progressive Conservative
Spouse(s)	Jacqueline Sinclair
Children	2
Occupation	Lawyer
Military service
Rank	Private
Unit	204th Battalion, CEF
Battles/wars	Battle of Cambrai

Background

He was born in Lindsay, Ontario in 1897,[1][2] but moved to Toronto when he was young. He grew up and was educated in the Parkdale area of Toronto.[3] He joined the Canada Army as a private in 1916, during the First World War. His unit, the 204th Battalion of the Canadian Infantry, was commanded by future Ontario Attorney General, Lieutenant-Colonel William Price.[3] He was severely injured in the war, losing a leg during the Battle of Cambrai in 1918.[4] He came back to Canada and eventually graduated from the University of Toronto and Osgoode Hall law school.[4]

Politics

During the 1937 Ontario general election Blackwell was a candidate in Toronto's Eglinton electoral district; where he came in second on election night.[4] He ran again in Eglinton, and was elected to the Legislative Assembly of Ontario in the 1943 election that brought George Drew's Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario to power with a minority government. Blackwell was immediately put into Drew's cabinet as Attorney General.[3]

After Drew's departure from provincial politics, Blackwell was a candidate to replace him in the 1949 Conservative leadership election, placing second to Leslie Frost.[3] He did not join Frost's cabinet and served his remaining time as a backbencher in the legislature, and did not run in the 1951 election.[3]

Cabinet positions

Ontario Provincial Government of George A. Drew
Cabinet post (1)
Predecessor	Office	Successor
Eric Cross	Attorney General 1943-1949	Dana Porter

Later life

He went back to his private law practice and became involved in land development. He was working on the Thorncliffe Park housing development, in Toronto, when he was hospitalized in early October 1959.[4] He finally succumbed to complications due to pneumonia on 20 October 1959.[3]

References

1. Tipton, Jim (2011). "Leslie Egerton Blackwell". Salt Lake City, Utah: Find A Grave. Archived from the original on 2011-07-06. Retrieved 2011-12-05.
3. Staff (1959-11-21). "Attorney General Under Drew, Leslie Blackwell dies at 61". The Globe and Mail. Toronto. p. 4.
4. Staff (1959-11-21). "Leslie Blackwell Dies at 61". Toronto Daily Star. Toronto. p. 22.

External links

• Ontario Legislative Assembly parliamentary history (archived)