Leslie Saunders

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Leslie Howard Saunders
Allan Lamport
Succeeded byNathan Phillips
3rd Mayor of East York
In office
1976–1976
Preceded byWillis Blair
Succeeded byAlan Redway
Personal details
Born(1899-03-30)March 30, 1899
Scarborough, Canada
Political partyProgressive Conservative
OccupationBusiness manager

Leslie Howard Saunders (September 12, 1899 – March 30, 1994)[1] was Mayor of Toronto, Canada, from 1954 to 1955 and the last member of the Orange Order to hold the position until William Dennison. He also served as Mayor of East York in 1976.

Early life

Saunders was born in London, England and immigrated with his family to

Labour candidate for North Bay's city council. He served in World War I
and then became Secretary-General of the Great War Veteran's Association in North Bay helping raise money for a war memorial.

Political career

A staunch

Separate Schools. Saunders entered politics and was elected as a school board trustee and then as an alderman in the 1942 election
.

The council that Saunders joined was dominated by the Orange Order. 16 out of 23 members were Orangemen. Saunders was considerably more radical in his Orangeism than his fellows. He at times refused to stand for "

James Charles McGuigan. Saunders argued that Catholics had no right to parade through the streets of what was a "Protestant City". He also led a letter writing campaign against the Encyclopedia Americana
, for what he argued was a biased article on the Orange Order. The campaign was a success and the volume was recalled and replaced with an article written by Saunders.

Saunders was chairman of the city committee which established Regent Park as Canada's first public housing project.[1]

In 1945, Saunders attempted to win the Progressive Conservative nomination for Riverdale, but he lost narrowly to his fellow Ward 1 alderman Gordon Millen. Saunders then tried to win election to the Board of Control. He received no major newspaper endorsements, and in the 1945 and 1946 elections failed to win a seat. In 1947 he won back his old seat on city council he served there for two years before trying again for the Board of Control. In the 1949 election he was endorsed by all three daily papers and won a seat on the Board.

Mayor

Saunders topped the Board of Control vote in the

Twelfth of July letter on official stationery extolling William of Orange's victory in the Battle of the Boyne. Controller Roy E. Belyea
, a fellow Orangeman, criticized Saunders for his action accusing him of being intolerant of religious minorities.

The Mayor's letter was reprinted in the press prompting him to be vilified in editorials. The controversy, along with Saunders's decision to bar the press from attending meetings of the Board of Control, was a contributing factor in his subsequent electoral defeat at the hands of

Jew
to be mayor of Toronto. During the election, Saunders had proclaimed himself to be running as "Leslie Saunders, Protestant". In pointed contrast to Saunders, Phillips was hailed as "Mayor of all the people".

Forty members of the Orange Order had become Mayor in Toronto's history, including all of Toronto's mayors in the twentieth century up to and including Saunders. After his defeat, Saunders became Grand Master of the Orange in Canada and Imperial Grand President but was unable to stem the decline of the Order, particularly amongst youth, in what was becoming an increasingly multicultural, non-sectarian city.

East York

Saunders became politically active in the Toronto suburb of East York. He ran for

Maple Leaf Flag replacing the Canadian Red Ensign as Canada's flag.[1]

He served as the borough's chief magistrate in 1976 when he became interim mayor, appointed to complete the term of Willis Blair upon his appointment to the Ontario Municipal Board. He was re-elected to council as an alderman for a final term before retiring in 1978.[1]

Orange Order

Saunders was a devoted Orangemen and served as Imperial Grand President of the Grand Orange Council of the World, the Order's highest office, for six years.[1]

References

  • Leslie Howard Saunders. An Orangeman in public life: the memoirs of Leslie Howard Saunders. Britannia Printers, 1980
  1. ^ a b c d e f g h Downey, Donn (March 31, 1994). "OBITUARY / Leslie Howard Saunders Orangeman was mayor of Toronto, East York". Globe and Mail.