James Douglas Prentice

Who was James Douglas Prentice?

James Douglas Prentice was a Scottish-born rancher and political figure in British Columbia. He represented Lillooet East in the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia in 1894 and from 1898 to 1903.

He was born in Lanarkshire and educated in Edinburgh. Prentice came to Canada around 1888 and was employed for a time by the Canadian Bank of Commerce. He then settled in the Lillooet area where he became a rancher. His election in 1894 was overturned after an appeal. Prentice lost the subsequent by-election to David Alexander Stoddart but he was elected again in 1898 and 1900. He served in the provincial cabinet as Provincial Secretary and Minister of Finance. Prentice married Mabel Clare Galpin. He died in Lillooet at the age of 50.

His son James D. Prentice served in the Royal Canadian Navy.