The Politics of Elementary Schools in a German-American Roman Catholic Settlement In Canada’s Province of Saskatchewan, 1903-1925

Authors

Clinton O. White, University of Regina, Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada

Date of this Version

October 1997

Comments

Published in Great Plains Research 7:2 (Fall 1997). Copyright © 1997 The Center for Great Plains Studies, University of Nebraska–Lincoln. Used by permission. http://www.unl.edu/plains/publications/GPR/gpr.shtml

Abstract

Scholars who have studied the political behavior of residents of Canada's province of Saskatchewan conclude that members of minority groups such as Roman Catholics and people of Central and Eastern European background voted Liberal much more frequently than Conservative, at least prior to the 1930s. There is no reason to question this conclusion when voting throughout the province by a specific minority is considered. However, the same is not always found to be true when the voting behavior of a particular minority group in a single constituency is examined. This paper discusses the German Catholics of the Humboldt Constituency of Saskatchewan and shows that, while they initially strongly favored the Liberal party, they soon became disillusioned with its position on elementary schools and gave clear evidence of their discontent at election time.