Parker, Reginald John Marsden (1881-1948)

Reginald J. M. Parker was the eighth Lieutenant-Governor of Saskatchewan. Born on February 7, 1881, at Liskeard, Cornwall, England, he emigrated to Canada in 1898 and worked as a farmhand before homesteading at Togo, North-West Territories. He served as a councilor in the rural municipality of Cote from 1904 to 1910 and as municipal reeve from 1906 to 1932. In June 1929, Parker was elected Liberal MLA for the Pelly constituency. He sat as a member of the Liberal opposition until the party regained power in 1934. Shortly after, he was appointed Minister of Municipal Affairs, a difficult portfolio to hold during the Depression but one he maintained until his party's defeat by the CCF in 1944. Parker accepted the vice-regal position from the Prime Minister and was sworn in as Lieutenant-Governor of Saskatchewan on June 25, 1945. From their official residence at the Hotel Saskatchewan, Parker and his wife welcomed a number of dignitaries to the province. Six days after hosting the High Commissioner of New Zealand, R.J.M. Parker died in office on March 23, 1948.

Richard Lapointe

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Further Reading

Wilson, Heather. 2004. “Parker, Reginald John Marsden.” P. 188 in Saskatchewan Politicians: Lives Past and Present. Regina: Canadian Plains Research Center.