John William Woolf

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John William Woolf
Cardston
Personal details
BornNovember 27, 1869
Hyde Park, Utah
DiedFebruary 22, 1950 (aged 80)
Salt Lake City, Utah
Resting placeSalt Lake City Cemetery
Political partyLiberal
Spouse(s)Lucinda Marie Layne (1888–1913)
Quina Austin (ca. 1902–?)
Faith Young (?–1950)
RelationsMartin Woolf (brother)
ChildrenWilliam Layne Woolf
OccupationRancher

John William Woolf (November 27, 1869 – February 22, 1950) was an American-born Canadian politician who served in the

1902 Northwest Territories election
. When Alberta was created in 1905, he became a member of its first legislative assembly. He resigned that office in 1912 to return to the United States; his son believed that this was because he had taken a second wife and feared prosecution under Canadian polygamy laws. Back in Utah, he pursued a number of business ventures with his son. He died in 1950.

Early life

Woolf was born November 27, 1869, in

Cardston, Alberta. In June 1888, he married Lucinda Marie Layne, with whom he had one child, William Layne Woolf, in 1890. Lucinda died in 1913. In Canada, Woolf established a 900 acres (360 ha) ranch, where he remained until he left the country. From this ranch, he supplied the British with horses during the Second Boer War.[1]

Woolf's home, a rock house rated by his son as one of the two finest in Cardston that replaced a one-room log cabin in 1902, was an active social centre. Among those who spent time there was Quina Austin. Woolf's son believed that his father and Austin were polygamously married around 1902 by John W. Taylor.[1]

Political career

Woolf was elected to the

independent in the territorial legislature, federally he was a Liberal, and in the debate over whether Alberta's politics should be conducted on an independent basis or along party lines, he was a strong advocate of the latter option.[3]

His side prevailed, and when he ran for the Legislative Assembly of Alberta in the province's inaugural provincial election, it was as a provincial Liberal. He defeated Conservative John F. Parish with the largest majority of any candidate in southern Alberta to win the new provincial district of Cardston.[4][5] Historian L. G. Thomas attributes this margin to Woolf's having "the Mormon vote in [his] pocket".[6] In the 1909 election, he was re-elected by a reduced margin over Conservative Levi Harker.[7]

During 1910's Alberta and Great Waterways Railway scandal, Woolf remained loyal to Liberal Premier Alexander Cameron Rutherford. He was rumoured to be Rutherford's choice to succeed Public Works Minister William Henry Cushing, whose resignation had precipitated the scandal, but Rutherford's government collapsed before he appointed any successor.[8] When Rutherford was replaced by Arthur Sifton, Woolf supported the new government, even though its approach to the Alberta and Great Waterways question was opposed to Rutherford's, which Woolf had also supported.[9]

In 1910, Woolf bought a house in Salt Lake City in preparation for a return to Utah. His son believed that this was due to the activities of a Protestant minister in Cardston who was investigating and bringing to the attention of the authorities violations of Canada's anti-polygamy laws.[1] Beginning in late 1911, he was absent from the legislature, and in 1912 he resigned and returned permanently to the United States.[10] The ensuing by-election returned his brother, Martin Woolf, as his replacement.[11]

Later life

On his return to Utah, Woolf engaged in real estate trading. In 1922, he became, in partnership with his son, the worldwide sales agent for Baldwin Headphones, which had recently gone into receivership. When the company was returned to its original owners following the settlement of its debts, the Woolfs began to sell the radio products of the British Amplion Corporation. They were sued by the Bell Telephone Company for patent infringement; William Layne Woolf recalls that he and his father were surprised to discover that Amplion had stolen Bell's designs. They subsequently founded Recordgraph Recording Corp.[1]

Woolf divorced Quina and married for a third time, to Faith Young, with whom he retired to

Spokane, where Faith's daughters were, before returning to Salt Lake City in 1948 where they lived in an apartment in William's house. Woolf died February 22, 1950, of a heart attack.[1]

Electoral record

1902 North-West Territories general election: Cardston
Party Candidate Votes %
Liberal John William Woolf 176 61.75
Independent Heber Simeon Allen 109 38.25
Total valid votes 285 100.00
Source(s)
"Saskatchewan Executive and Legislative Directory: North-West Territories: Council and Legislative Assembly, 1876–1905" (PDF). Saskatchewan Archives Board. p. 23. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 27, 2011. Retrieved October 26, 2009.
1905 Alberta general election: Cardston
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal John William Woolf 480 69.57% –
Conservative John F. Parrish 210 30.43% –
Total 690 – –
Rejected, spoiled and declined N/A – –
Eligible electors / turnout 690 N/A –
Liberal pickup new district.
Source(s)
Source: "Cardston Official Results 1905 Alberta general election". Alberta Heritage Community Foundation. Retrieved May 21, 2020.
1909 Alberta general election: Cardston
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal John William Woolf 521 57.44% -12.12%
Conservative Levi Harker 386 42.56% 12.12%
Total 907 – –
Rejected, spoiled and declined N/A – –
Eligible electors / turnout N/A N/A –
Liberal hold Swing -12.12%
Source(s)
Source: "Cardston Official Results 1909 Alberta general election". Alberta Heritage Community Foundation. Retrieved May 21, 2020.

Notes

  1. ^ a b c d e "Oral recollections of William Layne Woolf" (PDF). Retrieved October 26, 2009.
  2. ^ "Saskatchewan Executive and Legislative Directory: North-West Territories: Council and Legislative Assembly, 1876–1905" (PDF). Saskatchewan Archives Board. p. 23. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 27, 2011. Retrieved October 26, 2009.
  3. ^ Thomas 15
  4. ^ "Election results for Cardston, 1905". Alberta Online Encyclopedia. Retrieved October 26, 2009.
  5. ^ Thomas 28
  6. ^ Thomas 32
  7. ^ "Election results for Cardston, 1909". Alberta Online Encyclopedia. Retrieved October 26, 2009.
  8. ^ Thomas 83
  9. ^ Thomas 113
  10. ^ Thomas 125–126
  11. ^ Thomas 127

References

External links

Media related to John William Woolf at Wikimedia Commons

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