Ellen Fairclough | |
|---|---|
 Portrait by Arthur Roy, 1940s | |
| Postmaster General of Canada | |
| In office August 9, 1962 – April 22, 1963 | |
| Prime Minister | John Diefenbaker |
| Preceded by | William McLean Hamilton |
| Succeeded by | Azellus Denis |
| Minister of Citizenship and Immigration | |
| In office May 12, 1958 – August 8, 1962 | |
| Prime Minister | John Diefenbaker |
| Preceded by | Davie Fulton (acting) |
| Succeeded by | Dick Bell |
| Secretary of State for Canada | |
| In office June 21, 1957 – May 11, 1958 | |
| Prime Minister | John Diefenbaker |
| Preceded by | Roch Pinard |
| Succeeded by | Henri Courtemanche |
| Member of Parliament forHamilton West | |
| In office May 15, 1950 – February 6, 1963 | |
| Preceded by | Colin W. G. Gibson |
| Succeeded by | Joseph Macaluso |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Ellen Louks Cook (1905-01-28)January 28, 1905 Hamilton, Ontario, Canada |
| Died | November 13, 2004(2004-11-13) (aged 99) Dundas, Ontario, Canada |
| Political party | Progressive Conservative |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 1 |
| Profession | Accountant |
Ellen Louks FaircloughPC CC OOnt (née Cook;[1] January 28, 1905 – November 13, 2004) was a Canadian politician. AProgressive Conservative member of theHouse of Commons of Canada from 1950 to 1963, she was the first woman ever to serve in theCanadian Cabinet.[2]
Fairclough was born Ellen Louks Cook on January 28, 1905, inHamilton, Ontario, to Norman Ellsworth and Nellie Bell (née Loucks) Cook. Fairclough was achartered accountant by training, and ran an accounting firm prior to entering politics.[3] She also served as a member of the executive for theGirl Guides of Canada prior to her election as a Member of Parliament.[4]
Fairclough's political career began as a member ofHamilton City Council (Ontario) from 1945 to 1950.[2] Fairclough first ran for federal office as aProgressive Conservative in the1949 federal election,[2] in which she was defeated by incumbentLiberal MPColin Gibson in Hamilton West.[2] When Gibson was appointed to theSupreme Court of Ontario the following year, however, Fairclough ran in and won the resulting by-election.[2]
As aMember of Parliament, she advocatedwomen's rights includingequal pay for equal work.[2]
When the PC Party took power as a result of the1957 federal election, Prime MinisterJohn Diefenbaker appointed her, on June 21, to the position ofSecretary of State for Canada, and she became Canada's first female cabinet minister.[2][5] In 1958, she becameMinister of Citizenship and Immigration, and from 1962 until her defeat in 1963, she wasPostmaster General.[2] As Immigration Minister in 1962, Fairclough introduced new regulations that mostly eliminatedracial discrimination inimmigration policy.[2] She also introduced a more liberal policy on refugees, and increased the number of immigrants allowed into Canada.[2]
Fairclough was also named asActing Prime Minister of Canada from February 19 to 20, 1958;[6] she was the first woman ever given the duty.[2]
Toward the end of her term in office, Fairclough sought an appointment to theSenate of Canada, but was not appointed.[2]
She was defeated in the1963 election by LiberalJoseph Macaluso.[2]
Fairclough was defeated in her bid for re-election in the 1963 election.[2] She subsequently worked for the Hamilton Trust and Savings Corporation as a senior executive, as well as being chairperson of Hamilton Hydro.[2]
In 1979, she was named an Officer of theOrder of Canada, and was promoted to Companion in 1994.[7] In 1989, she was the recipient of theGovernor General's Award in Commemoration of thePerson's Case.[8] In the fall of 1996, she received theOrder of Ontario, the highest honour awarded by the province.
Fairclough was active in theConsumers Association of Canada, the Girl Guides, theI.O.D.E., the Y.W.C.A., the United Empire Loyalist Association, and the Zonta Club of Hamilton and Zonta International, before, during and after her stay in office. In 1982, the Ontario government office tower on the corner of MacNab and King Streets in Hamilton was officially named theEllen Fairclough Building.
In recognition of her status as a pioneeringwoman in Canadian politics, she was granted the rare honour of having the titleRight Honourable bestowed upon her in 1992 byQueen Elizabeth II,[2] one of very few Canadians to have the title who had not been Prime Minister,Governor General orChief Justice.[2]
At theProgressive Conservative leadership election, 1993, Fairclough was a supporter ofKim Campbell, and gave the speech to formally nominate Campbell on the convention floor.[2]
In 1995, she published her memoirs,Saturday's Child: Memoirs of Canada's First Female Cabinet Minister.[2]
She died at St. Joseph's Villa, anursing home inDundas, Ontario, on November 13, 2004. She was 99.[9] Her husband Gordon and son Howard both predeceased her.
On June 21, 2005,Canada Post issued a postage stamp in honour of Fairclough.[10]
The Ellen Louks Faircloughfonds is atLibrary and Archives Canada.[11]
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