David Howard Harrison (June 1, 1843 – September 8, 1905) was a politician, farmer and physician. He was born in the township of London, Canada West, and moved to Manitoba in 1882. He and his family soon established themselves as substantial landowners.
Harrison's political fortunes went through a remarkable rise and fall between 1882 and 1888. He forged an alliance with Premier John Norquay soon after moving to Manitoba, and in the election of 1883 was elected for the riding of Minnedosa as a Liberal-Conservative, easily defeating his Liberal opponent David Glass. On August 27, 1886, Harrison was appointed Minister of Agriculture, Statistics and Health, and was touted as a possible successor to Norquay. He was re-elected for the new riding of Minnedosa West later in the year, this time defeating Liberal J.W. Shanks.
Norquay was forced to resign in early December 1887, after a financial crisis involving railway transfers cost him the support of his ministers. Harrison became Premier on December 26, 1887, and attempted to form an administration from the remnants of Norquay's alliance.
Harrison's ministry never got off the ground. He was unable to win the support of a clear majority of MLAs, and lost a vital by-election on January 12, 1888. He resigned one week later, at which time the Lt. Governor called on Liberal Thomas Greenway to form a new administration.
Harrison was technically a "non-partisan" Premier, but his ministry was closely aligned with the national Conservative Party of John A. Macdonald and was dominated by local Conservatives. An official Conservative Party was formed in the province soon after his resignation.
After resigning as Premier, Harrison seems to have abandoned active political life. He allowed Norquay to retake the leadership of the "Conservative Party", and did not seek re-election in 1888. Achieving success in Neepawa as a banker, he moved to British Columbia in 1900. He died of a lingering illness five years later.
Famous quotes containing the words david, howard and/or harrison:
“They commonly celebrate those beaches only which have a hotel on them, not those which have a humane house alone. But I wished to see that seashore where mans works are wrecks; to put up at the true Atlantic House, where the ocean is land-lord as well as sea-lord, and comes ashore without a wharf for the landing; where the crumbling land is the only invalid, or at best is but dry land, and that is all you can say of it.”
—Henry David Thoreau (18171862)
“I know this, and I know it from actual experience in the Orient, that the progress of modern Christian civilization has largely depended on the earnest hard work of the Christian missions of every denomination.”
—William Howard Taft (18571930)
“Here may I not ask you to carry those inscriptions that now hang on the walls into your homes, into the schools of your city, into all of your great institutions where children are gathered, and teach them that the eye of the young and the old should look upon that flag as one of the familiar glories of every American?”
—Benjamin Harrison (18331901)