George Gomme

George Gomme
Ontario MPP
In office 1958–1971
Preceded by	John Arthur McCue
Succeeded by	Douglas Jack Wiseman
Constituency	Lanark
Personal details
Born	(1912-01-16)January 16, 1912 London, England
Died	March 3, 1996(1996-03-03) (aged 84) Almonte, Ontario, Canada
Political party	Progressive Conservative
Occupation	Businessman
Portfolio	Minister without portfolio, 1965–1966

George Ellis Gomme (January 16, 1912 – March 3, 1996) was a Canadian politician, who represented Lanark in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1958 to 1971 as a Progressive Conservative member.

Background

Gomme was born in London, England in 1912.^[1] He was the owner and operator of a local business, Almonte Lumber Store. Gomme was married to Rose Edith Watchorn (died 1991) and had two children, William George (Bill) and Jennifer.^[2]

Politics

Gomme served as the mayor of Almonte, Ontario.

Gomme was elected in a by-election to replace John Arthur McCue who died after having served for only one year. He was re-elected in the general election of 1959 and 1963.^[3][4] He was appointed as a Minister without Portfolio on January 12, 1966, and then as Minister of Highways on November 24, 1966.^[5] A time of tremendous growth in Ontario, particularly in Toronto and surrounding suburbs, Gomme was actively involved in the development of new highways, such as Highway 410 in the Brampton area, as well as the expansion of other 400-series highways. He continued to serve as Minister of Highways until March 1, 1971. at which time he left Cabinet, having already announced that he would not be running in the 1971 general election. He died on March 3, 1996.^[6]

Cabinet posts

Ontario provincial government of John Robarts

References

1. Pierre G. Normandin; A. Léopold Normandin (1965). Canadian Parliamentary Guide. p. 646.
2. "Gomme family". Retrieved June 29, 2014.
3. Canadian Press (June 12, 1959). "Complete Results of Ontario Voting by Constituencies". The Ottawa Citizen. Ottawa. p. 26. Retrieved March 22, 2014.
4. Canadian Press (September 26, 1963). "78 in Tory Blue Wave – 23 Is All Grits Saved". The Windsor Star. Windsor, Ontario. p. 25. Retrieved May 24, 2014.
5. "Five added to Cabinet by Robarts". The Globe and Mail. November 25, 1966. p. 1.
6. Obituary – George Gomme: Lanark MPP, cabinet minister also had three retail careers: [FINAL Edition] The Ottawa Citizen [Ottawa, Ont] March 5, 1996: B.6.

External links

• Ontario Legislative Assembly parliamentary history