William James McNamara (December 27, 1879 – January 1, 1947) was a politician in Alberta, Canada, a mayor of both Edmonton and Wetaskiwin, Alberta, and the first mayor of Edmonton to be forced from office over a scandal.
McNamara was born in Renfrew, Ontario on December 27, 1879. He was educated at Saint Laurent College in Montreal and came to Edmonton in 1886. In 1900 he was hired as the first teacher at Lone Spruce School, an Edmonton boys' school. In 1905 he formed a real estate partnership with Lorne York that acquired real estate in Camrose, Wetaskiwin, and Edmonton.
He was elected mayor of Wetaskiwin in 1909. After returning to Edmonton, he ran for mayor in the 1913 election, in which he defeated incumbent William Short, receiving 50.2% of the vote in the two person race. In doing so, he became both the first person in Edmonton's history to defeat a sitting mayor and the winner of the closest mayor election in the city's history, a record that still stands.
In office, he formed an alliance with future mayor Joseph Clarke (then an alderman) against those who wanted to drive prostitution and gambling out of the city. McNamara fired both the police chief and the head of the morality squad. His alliance with Clarke ended when the two came to blows in a meeting of Edmonton City Council.
Later in his term, he was convicted by Justice William Ives of voting on a matter in which he had a pecuniary interest and was, along with alderman James East, expelled from office on October 27, 1914. He stayed out of politics thereafter. He moved to Detroit, Michigan on November 19, 1915.[1]
McNamara died on January 1, 1947, at 3:55 pm in Phoenix, Arizona, of heart failure.[2]
Referencesedit
^Detroit Border Crossings and Passenger and Crew Lists, 1905-1957
william, mcnamara, american, actor, william, mcnamara, william, james, mcnamara, december, 1879, january, 1947, politician, alberta, canada, mayor, both, edmonton, wetaskiwin, alberta, first, mayor, edmonton, forced, from, office, over, scandal, 12th, mayor, e. For the American actor see William McNamara William James McNamara December 27 1879 January 1 1947 was a politician in Alberta Canada a mayor of both Edmonton and Wetaskiwin Alberta and the first mayor of Edmonton to be forced from office over a scandal William J McNamara12th Mayor of EdmontonIn office December 8 1913 October 27 1914Preceded byWilliam ShortSucceeded byWilliam Thomas HenryPersonal detailsBornDecember 27 1879Renfrew Ontario CanadaDiedJanuary 1 1947 1947 01 01 aged 67 Phoenix Arizona USSpouseAnna G McNamaraProfessionTeacher real estate agentSignatureBiography editMcNamara was born in Renfrew Ontario on December 27 1879 He was educated at Saint Laurent College in Montreal and came to Edmonton in 1886 In 1900 he was hired as the first teacher at Lone Spruce School an Edmonton boys school In 1905 he formed a real estate partnership with Lorne York that acquired real estate in Camrose Wetaskiwin and Edmonton He was elected mayor of Wetaskiwin in 1909 After returning to Edmonton he ran for mayor in the 1913 election in which he defeated incumbent William Short receiving 50 2 of the vote in the two person race In doing so he became both the first person in Edmonton s history to defeat a sitting mayor and the winner of the closest mayor election in the city s history a record that still stands In office he formed an alliance with future mayor Joseph Clarke then an alderman against those who wanted to drive prostitution and gambling out of the city McNamara fired both the police chief and the head of the morality squad His alliance with Clarke ended when the two came to blows in a meeting of Edmonton City Council Later in his term he was convicted by Justice William Ives of voting on a matter in which he had a pecuniary interest and was along with alderman James East expelled from office on October 27 1914 He stayed out of politics thereafter He moved to Detroit Michigan on November 19 1915 1 McNamara died on January 1 1947 at 3 55 pm in Phoenix Arizona of heart failure 2 References edit Detroit Border Crossings and Passenger and Crew Lists 1905 1957 ADHS PDF External links editEdmonton Public Library Biography of William McNamara City of Edmonton biography of William McNamara Real Estate Edmonton article about the history of a house in which McNamara once lived Preceded byWilliam Short Mayor of Edmonton1913 1914 Succeeded byWilliam Thomas Henry after being left vacant for two months Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title William J McNamara amp oldid 1191733741, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
