Identity area
Type of entity
Person
Authorized form of name
Spence, George 1880-1975
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Standardized form(s) of name according to other rules
Other form(s) of name
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Description area
Dates of existence
History
George Spence was born on March 6, 1875 in the town of Birsay, in the Orkney Islands, Scotland. He studied electrical engineering in Edinburgh and emigrated to Canada in 1900 to pan for gold in the Yukon. In 1903 he moved to Austin, Manitoba where he farmed until 1911. Subsequently Spence worked for the Canadian Pacific Railway for three years. In 1912 he moved to the Orkney district of Saskatchewan where he remained for forty years.
George Spence began his political career in 1917 when he won the Liberal seat for the Notukeu district. In 1920 he served with the Better Farming Commission. During 1925-1927 Spence also represented the Maple Creek riding in the House of Commons. During this period, Spence was Minister of Highways, Labour and Industry (1926-1929) and Minister of Public Works (1929-1934). He resigned in 1938.
Spence became the first director of the Prairie Farm Rehabilitation Administration (P.F.R.A.) from 1938-1947 whose mandate it was to conserve water on the prairies. In 1946 he was made Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) and earned an Honourary Doctor of Law degree from the University of Saskatchewan. In 1947 he became a member of the International Joint Commission. The Agricultural Hall of Fame inducted Spence in 1974. George Spence was married to Ivy Irene May in 1919 who predeceased him in 1962. They had two daughters, Mrs. N. Irwin (Swift Current) and Mrs. R. Hayward (Toronto). Spence died on March 6, 1975.