Thomas Bain

For other people named Thomas Bain, see Thomas Bain (disambiguation).

Thomas Bain
8th Speaker of the House of Commons of Canada
In office 1 August 1899 – 5 February 1901
Monarchs	Victoria Edward VII
Governor General	The Earl of Minto
Prime Minister	Sir Wilfrid Laurier
Preceded by	James David Edgar
Succeeded by	Louis Philippe Brodeur
Member of the Canadian Parliament for Wentworth South
In office 1896–1900
Preceded by	Franklin Metcalfe Carpenter
Succeeded by	E. D. Smith
Member of the Canadian Parliament for Wentworth North
In office 1872–1896
Preceded by	James McMonies
Succeeded by	Electoral district was abolished
Personal details
Born	(1834-12-14)14 December 1834 Denny, Stirlingshire, Scotland
Died	18 January 1915(1915-01-18) (aged 80) Dundas, Ontario
Political party	Liberal
Spouse	Helen Weir
Portfolio	Speaker of the House of Commons (1898-1901)

Thomas Bain (14 December 1834 – 18 January 1915) was a Scottish born Canadian parliamentarian.

Bain was born in Scotland, the son of Walter Bain,^[1] and migrated to Canada with his family when he was three years old. They settled on a bush farm in Wentworth County near Hamilton, Ontario.^[2]

He was elected to the County Council in the 1860s and became Warden. He was first elected to the House of Commons of Canada in the 1872 federal election as a Liberal. He was re-elected on six subsequent occasions, serving as an MP for 28 years before retiring in 1900. In the House, he usually spoke on agricultural issues, and became Chairman of the Committee on Agriculture and Colonization in 1896.

In 1874, he married Helen Weir.^[1]

When the Speaker of the House of Commons of Canada, James David Edgar, died unexpectedly in July 1899, Wilfrid Laurier asked Bain to become the new Speaker for the remainder of Egar's term.^{[citation needed]}

Bain served as Speaker until the House was dissolved for the 1900 election in which he did not run.

After retiring from politics, Bain became President of the Landed Banking and Loan Company and the Malcolm and Souter Furniture Company. He died in Dundas, Ontario at age 80.

Electoral record

v t e 1896 Canadian federal election: Wentworth South
Party	Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Thomas Bain	2,673
	Conservative	Andrew H. Pettit	2,486

v t e 1872 Canadian federal election: Wentworth North
Party	Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Thomas Bain	1,145
	Unknown	R. McKechnie	1,040

v t e 1874 Canadian federal election: Wentworth North
Party	Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Thomas Bain	acclaimed
Source: lop.parl.ca

v t e 1878 Canadian federal election: Wentworth North
Party	Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Thomas Bain	1,343
	Unknown	Thos. Stock	1,237

v t e 1882 Canadian federal election: Wentworth North
Party	Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Thomas Bain	1,295
	Unknown	Robt. McKechnie Jr.	1,292

v t e 1887 Canadian federal election: Wentworth North
Party	Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Thomas Bain	1,639
	Conservative	T.B. Townsend	1,513

v t e 1891 Canadian federal election: Wentworth North
Party	Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Thomas Bain	1,517
	Conservative	Alex R. Wardell	1,317

Archives

There is a Thomas Bain fonds at Library and Archives Canada. Archival reference number is R11196.^[3]

References

1. Johnson, J.K. (1968). The Canadian Directory of Parliament 1867-1967. Public Archives of Canada.
2. Bailey, Thomas Melville (1991). Dictionary of Hamilton Biography (Vol II, 1876-1924). W.L. Griffin Ltd. p. 143.
3. "Thomas Bain fonds finding aid" (PDF).

External links

• Thomas Bain – Parliament of Canada biography