Fred Payton
Prince Albert Historical Society
Thomas Clayton Davis was born in Prince Albert, Northwest Territories on Sept. 6th, 1889, son of the late Senator Thomas O. and Mrs. Davis. The Davis family had come to Canada from Ireland. They initially settled just south of Sherbrooke, Quebec, where Davis’s grandfather farmed. He later became an organiser for Sir John A. MacDonald. Thomas Osbourne Davis moved from Quebec to Prince Albert, where he joined his brother, retired from the Northwest Mounted Police, in operating a general store and establishing a freight business.
Thomas Clayton Davis was educated locally in the public elementary school (Central) and high school (Prince Albert Collegiate) before attending St. John’s College in Winnipeg, and Osgoode Hall in Toronto, where he earned his law degree in 1909. Upon completing his degree, he returned to Prince Albert and was articled to Frank W. Halliday. He was admitted to the bar in 1914, and entered into partnership with Mr. Halliday.
As a seven-year-old child, Thomas Clayton was banished from the dining room as Sir Wilfred Laurier came to dinner and, in revenge, lowered an old suit of underwear on a string though the ceiling into the great man’s soup plate. He ended the evening on the knee of the prime minister.
His fighting spirit was also in evidence during his youth. Davis had the temper of an Irishman, and was known to be able to use his fists quite capably in schoolboy disputes.
While a student at St. John’s College, he accompanied a government treaty party on a 2,000 mile trip to visit northern Saskatchewan First Nation communities. On the way, he picked up some of the Cree language but, more importantly, he developed an enthusiasm for the development of northern resources.
After returning to Prince Albert and joining the law firm of Frank Halliday, Davis was appointed the solicitor for both the Royal Bank and the Imperial Bank of Canada. He also handled the legal work for Cameron and Heap, Ltd., the Codville Company Ltd., North Star Lumber Company, Ltd., West Lumber and Supply Company, Ltd., and North Canadian Lumber Company, Ltd.
Davis soon became involved in the political life of the city. According to what he would later relate, it happened this way. One day in 1916, as he walked down a Prince Albert street, the president of the Board of Trade approached him and took him by the arm. He introduced him to a group of citizens and announced that “here’s a good man for alderman”. The group marched him to city hall where nomination papers were drawn up and signed. Davis was elected and thereafter served two terms as alderman after which he was elected as mayor, serving in that position from 1921 to 1924.
The time during which Davis served as an alderman and mayor can only be considered to be a time of considerable difficulty for the city of Prince Albert. It was immediately following the La Colle Falls debacle. The city was facing considerable debt, and many of the residents chose to move elsewhere rather than face the severe tax increases that were imposed.
In 1925, the marriage of Miss Grace Edith Elwood and Thomas Clayton Davis occurred. Miss Elwood was the daughter of Mr. Justice Elwood of the Saskatchewan Court of Appeal.
Also in 1925, Davis was elected to the provincial Legislative Assembly for the Prince Albert constituency. His time as a back-bencher did not last long. His fluency in a minor criminal trial in Hoey several years earlier led to his move up the political ladder. During the trial, Jimmy Gardiner, then a minister in the provincial government but now the premier, had visited the court room as a spectator. Mr. Gardiner was impressed. He felt that Davis could serve in a wider capacity. Davis was appointed to cabinet in less than a year, serving initially as Minister of Municipal Affairs, but as Attorney-General in 1927. In effect, Davis was Gardiner’s Minister of Northern Saskatchewan. It was also in this role that he played a major part in convincing MacKenzie King to establish the Prince Albert National Park.
Although the Liberal party failed to win the provincial election in 1929, Davis was successful in the Prince Albert constituency, defeating the Conservative candidate, John Diefenbaker, by a small number of votes (415). When the Liberal party returned to power in 1934, Gardiner once again appointed Davis as Attorney-General. Again, given the economic situation in the province, Davis was serving as an elected official faced with a very difficult situation. Agricultural prices were tanking, and farms, when they could be sold, were selling for next to nothing. The stress and pressures, although not utilised publicly as the reason for Davis’s decision to leave politics, was mentioned quietly amongst those in the know. In many ways, this was a loss as Davis, who had an incredible memory for names, paid close attention to the personal details of his constituents.
During his time as Saskatchewan’s Attorney-General, Davis was responsible for writing the agreement under which the Royal Canadian Mounted Police took over the work formerly done by the Saskatchewan Provincial Police. This agreement formed the basis for other provinces who followed Saskatchewan’s lead in replacing their provincial police with the RCMP.
He also represented Saskatchewan at the coronation of George VI in 1937. He kept a diary of his
experiences during this trip which amounted to 60,000 words and was published by most western
Canadian newspapers.
In June 1939, Davis was appointed to the provincial Court of Appeal. However, his time there was short as, in 1940, MacKenzie King appointed him as a Deputy Secretary of State for War. Again, Davis was serving in a position that was extremely difficult and stressful. His first task was to oversee the national registration, assembling information on the age, occupation, and willingness to serve of all Canadians over the age of sixteen.
It is apparent that Davis handled this position in a satisfactory manner, as in 1942 he was appointed as Canada’s High Commissioner to Australia. He later was appointed as ambassador to National China, this being the period of time when the Chinese people were undergoing the internal strife which led to the establishment of the Communist government. A further appointment as ambassador to Germany followed, with his final appointment to the same position in Japan. Davis retired from public service in 1957, at which time he and his wife settled in Victoria, British Columbia.
Even after retirement, Davis continued to work on behalf of his home province. Tommy Douglas noted that Davis would provide information to the provincial government regarding individuals who showed an interest in investing in Saskatchewan. Just two weeks before his death, he had forwarded an introduction to the representatives of a firm desirous of locating in Saskatchewan. Other efforts showed how he continued to work on behalf of the country which he had represented and obviously loved. On his last flight, from Victoria to Vancouver, just the day prior to his death, he entered a reminder in his notebook to contact the ambassador in a European country to encourage him to entertain two women from Canada who would be visiting that country. And his visit to Vancouver was to make an attempt to obtain financial contributions from some of his wealthy friends for the University of Victoria.
Thomas Clayton Davis died in Vancouver on January 21st, 1960 at the age of seventy. As a life-long Anglican he was buried from St. Alban’s Cathedral on January 25th. More than 400 people were in attendance. The active pallbearers were members of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, under the command of Sergeant F.N. Brien. In attendance were numerous politicians and members of the legal community, Inspector J.J. Atherton representing the commanding officer of “F” Division and S/Sergeant H.M. Dixon on behalf of the Prince Albert sub-division, as well as friends from all walks of life. Canon R.L. Taylor officiated, assisted by Archdeacon W.F. Payton and Mr. J.V. Hicks. The choir of the Cathedral led the congregation in the hymns which were sung. Interment occurred in the family plot at St. Mary’s Cemetery.
Tributes were received from Prime Minister J.G. Diefenbaker, Premier T.C. Douglas, Mayor Allan Barsky, noted author and editor Bruce Hutchinson, and local friends including E.T. Bagshaw, and P.W. Mahon. Interestingly, Davis was referred to in these tributes as either “T.C.” or “Tommy”, suggesting just how warm the friendship was between those providing the tribute and the deceased individual.
