Alexander Taylor

(1875.08.06 - 1949.06.13)
SPS, DLS, BCLS, MLS, SLS
Commission #024
(1910.07.02)

Alexander was born to Thomas and Margaret Taylor in Toronto, Ontario on August 6, 1875. His father, Hon. Sir Thomas

Wardlaw Taylor was a Chief Justice in Manitoba;

"In 1885 Taylor chaired the royal commission on the subject of municipal laws in Manitoba, a departure from regular courtroom duties. National attention focused on the Court of Queen’s Bench in the fall of that year when Métis leader Louis Riel appealed the death sentence of a Regina court. Forced to wade through difficult constitutional points involving legal jurisdiction in the North-West Territories and the conduct of the trial, the full court, relying mainly on Taylor’s judgement, dismissed the leave to appeal and its decision was upheld by the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council.”

Alexander was a School of Practical Science (S.P.S.) graduate in 1900. He received his MLS and BCLS commissions in 1902; his DLS commission in 1904 and his SLS commission in 1910.

After graduating, it appears that Alexander surveyed for CPR in Winnipeg until around 1908 and then moved to Portage la Prairie. Research suggests that he stayed in Portage until around 1920 and then moved to the South Saanich area on Vancouver Island. According to the 1921 census, he and family are living with his wife’s parents on a farm and Alexander states that he owns the farm and that he is a farmer.

From 1922 to 1926 we can find no information on his whereabouts. Maybe he was farming those years.

In 1926 he resurfaces in Victoria as an instrument man for CNR; 1928 a CNR transit man. In 1929 he is now in Vancouver as a bridge engineer with CNR and continues until 1932.

From 1933 to 1937, Alexander is shown as a CNR Engineer living in Prince George, B.C. It appears as if he moves back to Vancouver, 1938, and finishes his career with CNR in 1940.

Alexander retired in 1940 and spent the rest of his life in Vancouver.

Alexander was married to Margaret Helen Temple Scroggie and they had two children (Margaret & Thomas).

Alexander passed away in Vancouver on June 13, 1949.

Prepared by M. L. J. Waschuk, SLS, P. Surv., 2018

Sources: Library and Archives Canada; NRCan; Al Jensen-Controller of Surveys; Archive.org; Ancestry.com; NewspaperArchives.com; Jim Watling, MLS; University of Toronto Publications; Winnipeg Tribune; Press; SLSA; Peel’s Prairie Provinces-University of Alberta; Vital Stats-Manitoba; Vancouver Public Library; Dictionary of Canadian Biography;