Archibald Peter McNab

Who was Archibald Peter McNab?

Archibald Peter "Archie" McNab was the sixth Lieutenant Governor of Saskatchewan from 1936 until 1945. He was the last lieutenant governor of the province to live in Government House.

He was born in Glengarry County, Ontario, the son of Malcolm McNab and Margaret McCrimmon, and moved to Winnipeg in 1882 with his twin brother before establishing a homestead in Virden, Manitoba.

Years of drought forced him to give up farming and in 1887 he became a grain buyer for Ogilvie Flour Mills. In 1892, McNab married Edith Wilson Todd.

In 1902, the company transferred him to Rosthern, Saskatchewan where he invested in two grain elevators. After selling them, he moved to Saskatoon with his wife and children and established the Dominion Elevator Company. He also helped found the Saskatchewan Central Railway Company and the Saskatchewan Power Company.

He entered politics and was elected to the Saskatchewan legislature in the 1908 general election as a Liberal MLA representing Saskatoon City. In government, he was appointed commissioner of municipal affairs and became Minister of Public Works in 1912. One of his accomplishments was helping acquire the University of Saskatchewan for Saskatoon. In 1922, he was also named Minister of Telephones.