Bert Leavens
Canadian politician
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Bertram Elijah Leavens (March 2, 1886 – December 22, 1953) was a politician in Ontario, Canada. He served as a CCF member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1943 to 1945 and 1948 to 1951. He represented the downtown Toronto riding of Woodbine.
Bert Leavens | |
|---|---|
| Ontario MPP | |
| In office 1943–1945 | |
| Preceded by | Goldwin Corlett Elgie |
| Succeeded by | Goldwin Corlett Elgie |
| In office 1948–1951 | |
| Preceded by | Goldwin Corlett Elgie |
| Succeeded by | Harold Fishleigh |
| Constituency | Woodbine |
| Personal details | |
| Born | March 2, 1886 |
| Died | December 22, 1953 (aged 67) Toronto, Ontario |
| Party | Co-operative Commonwealth Federation |
| Occupation | Union leader, cabinetmaker |
Background
The son of John Wesley Leavens and Elizabeth Haycroft, he was born in Owen Sound, Ontario.[1][2]
Bertram married Myrtle May Leavens (née Webb) on September 11, 1911, in Owen Sound, Ontario. They had 3 sons (William John (1912–1982), Bertram Elijah (1918-1918) and Charles Wesley (1920–1976)) and a daughter (Eva Lorraine (1914–1974)).
Leavens worked as a cabinetmaker. He was at one point a Sunday school superintendent, but he later became the most active leader and organizer of the Rationalist Society of Canada in the late 1920s and early 1930s, regularly delivering anti-religious lectures.[3]
Politics
Leavens ran unsuccessfully for the Greenwood seat in the Canadian House of Commons in 1935 and 1940 as a CCF candidate, losing both times to Denton Massey.[4]
In the 1943 provincial election, he ran as a CCF candidate in the downtown Toronto riding of Woodbine.[5]