John Hewgill Brockelbank

Who was John Hewgill Brockelbank?

John Hewgill Brockelbank was a politician in Saskatchewan, Canada, who served as leader of the opposition in the Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan.

Born in Grey County, Ontario, Brockebank moved to Saskatchewan with his parents in 1911 to a homestead near North Battleford. After returning from service in World War I he established his own farm near Bjorkdale in northeastern Saskatchewan.

He was an activist in the farmers movement and was elected to the Saskatchewan legislature representing the Tisdale district for the Saskatchewan Co-operative Commonwealth Federation in the 1938 provincial election. He served in the legislature until his retirement in 1967 and became an expert in parliamentary procedure.

In 1941, he became Leader of the Opposition when party leader George Hara Williams resigned his seat to enlist in the Canadian Army during World War II. He was defeated in his attempt to win the party leadership by Tommy Douglas in 1942 and again in 1943 but remained Leader of the Opposition until 1944 as Douglas did not have a seat in the provincial legislature.