John Chalker Crosbie

The Right Honourable
Sir John Chalker Crosbie
KBE
Crosbie in 1924
3rd Prime Minister of Newfoundland
In office
December 31, 1917 (1917-12-31) – January 5, 1918 (1918-01-05)
MonarchGeorge V
GovernorCharles Alexander Harris
Preceded byEdward Morris
Succeeded byWilliam Lloyd
Legislative offices
Member of the Newfoundland House of Assembly
for St. John's West
In office
June 2, 1924 (1924-06-02) – October 29, 1928 (1928-10-29)
Preceded byMichael Cashin
Charles Hunt
Richard Squires
Succeeded byAlexander Campbell
Joseph Fitzgibbon (as MHAs for St. John's City West)
Member of the Newfoundland House of Assembly
for Port de Grave
In office
November 3, 1919 (1919-11-03) – May 3, 1923 (1923-05-03)
Preceded byGeorge Grimes
Succeeded byHarry A. Winter
Member of the Newfoundland House of Assembly
for Bay de Verde
In office
November 2, 1908 (1908-11-02) – November 3, 1919 (1919-11-03)
Serving with
Jesse Whiteway (1908–1913)
Albert Hickman (1913–1919)
Preceded byCharles H. Hutchings
William C. Winsor
Succeeded byWilliam H. Cave
Frederick LeGrow
Personal details
Born(1876-09-11)September 11, 1876
Brigus, Newfoundland Colony
DiedOctober 5, 1932(1932-10-05) (aged 56)
St. John’s, Newfoundland
PartyPeople’s (1908–1919)
Liberal-Progressive (1919–1923)
Liberal-Labour-Progressive (1923–1924)
Liberal-Conservative Progressive (1924–1928)
Spouse
Mitchie Ann Manuel
​
(m. 1899)​
Children13 (including Chesley and Vera)
RelativesJohn Crosbie (grandson)
Ches Crosbie (great-grandson)

Sir John Chalker Crosbie KBE (September 11, 1876 – October 5, 1932) was a Newfoundland merchant and politician. Elected to the House of Assembly in 1908, he would go on to serve as Prime Minister of Newfoundland for six days and later as a minister in two administrations.

Early life and business career

Crosbie was born on September 11, 1876 in Brigus as the son of George Graham Crosbie and Martha Ellen (née Chalker). An aggressive and energetic entrepreneur, he created a fortune (which he lost) and started the Crosbie dynasty. His son, Chesley Crosbie, and grandson, John Crosbie were both affluent politicians. In 1900 Crosbie founded Crosbie and Co. and by 1920 was one of the leading fish exporters in Newfoundland.

Politics

He entered politics as MHA for Bay de Verde in 1908. After Edward Morris resigned at the end of 1917, Crosbie served as Prime Minister in a caretaker capacity until 5 January 1918, when William Lloyd took office. He was Minister of Shipping in 1919 and Minister of Finance and Customs under Prime Minister Walter Monroe from 1924 to 1928.

Crosbie was knighted KBE in 1919.

References

  1. ↑ Baker, Melvin (2016). "Crosbie, Sir John Chalker". Dictionary of Canadian Biography, volume 16. Toronto: University of Toronto. Retrieved 24 March 2026.
  2. ↑ The Newfoundland National Convention, 1946-1948: Reports and papers. McGill-Queen's Press. 1995.
  3. ↑ Crosbie, John (1997). No Holds Barred: My Life in Politics. McCellend and Stewart Inc. pp. 200–205. ISBN 0-7710-2427-4.
  4. ↑ "'We all expected to die': Author Anne Budgell recounts her research on the 1918 Spanish Flu in Labrador". 3 December 2018.
  5. ↑ Kennedy, John C. (May 2015). Encounters: An Anthropological History of Southeastern Labrador. McGill-Queen's Press - MQUP. ISBN 9780773583443.