George Henry Murray

Who was George Henry Murray?

George Henry Murray was a Nova Scotia politician who served as the province's eighth Premier for twenty-seven years, the longest unbroken tenure for a head of government in Canadian history. He was born in Grand Narrows, Nova Scotia.

Despite his later political longevity, Murray's early political career was marked by inability to get elected. He lost five consecutive elections at the federal and provincial level before finally winning a seat. Despite his electoral failures he was highly regarded within the Liberal Party and was nominated by Premier William Stevens Fielding to succeed him when Fielding left provincial politics in 1896 to join the federal cabinet of Sir Wilfrid Laurier. Murray was sworn in as premier and took a seat in the Nova Scotia House of Assembly when he was acclaimed as a candidate in Victoria County.

As premier, Murray was a practitioner of brokerage politics. His government continued the public works projects of his predecessor, particularly in the area of railways, as well as road and bridge construction.