The members of the 1st Manitoba Legislature were elected in the Manitoba general election held in December 1870, the first general election for the new province. The legislature sat from March 15, 1871, to December 16, 1874.
Lieutenant Governor Adams George Archibald's "Government party" held the balance of power in the assembly with 17 seats. The Canadian Party, also known as the "Loyal party", led by John Christian Schultz, won 5 seats; they demanded swift punishment for the leaders of the Red River Rebellion. Henry Joseph Clarke served as government house leader in the assembly but Lieutenant Governor Archibald performed the functions of Premier. In December 1872, Alexander Morris replaced Archibald as Lieutenant Governor of Manitoba.
In July 1874, a government led by Henry Joseph Clarke was defeated by a motion of non-confidence. Marc-Amable Girard was asked to form a government and was allowed to select the members of his cabinet, thus introducing responsible government to the province. On December 1, 1874, all but one member of the Girard cabinet resigned due to ethnic tensions. Robert Atkinson Davis was asked to form a new government which went to the polls later that month.
Joseph Royal served as speaker for the assembly from 1871 to 1872. Curtis James Bird was speaker from 1873 to 1874.
There were four sessions of the 1st Legislature: SessionStartEnd 1st March 15, 1871 May 3, 1871 2nd January 16, 1872 February 21, 1872 3rd February 3, 1873 July 22, 1873 4th November 4, 1873 July 22, 1874
Members of the Assembly The following members were elected to the assembly in 1870: MemberElectoral districtAffiliationFirst electedNo.# of term(s)NotesJoseph DubucBaie St. PaulGovernment18701st termJohn TaylorTaylor's election was later overturned and Government supporter James Cunningham was declared electedHeadinglyOpposition18701st termJames CunninghamGovernment18711st termJohn NorquayHigh BluffGovernment18701st termJohn SutherlandKildonanOpposition18701st termAngus McKayLake ManitobaGovernment18701st termDavid SpencePoplar PointGovernment18701st termFrederick BirdPortage la PrairieOpposition18701st termAlfred BoydSt. Andrews NorthGovernment18701st termEdward HaySt. Andrews SouthOpposition18701st termMarc-Amable GirardSt. Boniface EastGovernment18701st termLouis SchmidtSt. Boniface WestGovernment18701st termHenry Joseph ClarkeSt. CharlesGovernment18701st termThomas BunnSt. ClementsIndependent18701st termPascal BrelandSt. Francois Xavier EastGovernment18701st termJoseph RoyalSt. Francois Xavier WestGovernment18701st termEdwin BourkeSt. JamesOpposition18701st termJoseph LemaySt. Norbert NorthGovernment18701st termPierre DelormeSt. Norbert SouthGovernment18701st termCurtis BirdSt. PaulsGovernment18701st termThomas HowardSt PetersGovernment18701st termAndré BeaucheminSt. VitalGovernment18701st termGeorge KlyneSte. AgatheIndependent18701st termJohn McTavishSte. AnneGovernment18701st termDonald Alexander SmithSmith was forced to resign when serving in both provincial and federal legislatures became illegal in May 1873Winnipeg and St. JohnGovernment18701st termRobert Atkinson Davis (1874)Opposition18741st term
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By-elections By-elections were held to replace members for various reasons: Electoral districtMember electedAffiliationElection dateReasonWinnipeg and St. JohnRobert Atkinson DavisOppositionApril 1874DA Smith resigned after dual representation abolished
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