Thomas Langton Church

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Thomas Langton Church (1873 – February 7, 1950) was a Canadian politician.

Thomas Langton Church
Church, c. 1925
Member of the Canadian Parliament
for Toronto North
In office
1921–1925
Preceded byGeorge Eulas Foster
Succeeded byElectoral district abolished
Member of the Canadian Parliament
for Toronto Northwest
In office
1925–1930
Preceded byElectoral district created
Succeeded byJohn Ritchie MacNicol
Member of the Canadian Parliament
for Toronto East
In office
1934–1935
Preceded byEdmond Baird Ryckman
Succeeded byElectoral district abolished
Member of the Canadian Parliament
for Broadview
In office
1935–1950
Preceded byElectoral district created
Succeeded byGeorge Harris Hees
37th Mayor of Toronto
In office
1915–1921
Preceded byHoratio Clarence Hocken
Succeeded byCharles A. Maguire
Personal details
Born1873
Toronto, Ontario
DiedFebruary 7, 1950 (aged 79–80)
Political partyConservative
Mayor Thomas Langton Church (left) and Sir Adam Beck

After serving as Mayor of Toronto from 1915 to 1921, he was elected to the House of Commons of Canada in the 1921 election as a Conservative from the riding of Toronto North. He was defeated in the 1930 election in Toronto West Centre, but returned to Parliament as Member of Parliament (MP) for Toronto East in a 1934 by-election. He remained in the House of Commons until his death in 1950.

As mayor, Church was strongly backed by the Toronto Telegram and opposed by the Toronto Daily Star. He was occasionally mocked in the pages of the Star by Ernest Hemingway who was, at the time, a reporter for the paper. Late in his career as an MP, Church denounced the newly formed United Nations as "modern tower of Babel", for "which Canada and Great Britain should not allow their interests to be the play thing."

In the House of Commons in June 1936, he protested against the requirement of bilingual banknotes in the Bank of Canada Act for banknotes to be introduced as the 1937 Series, stating there was no authority for it in the British North America Act, and that it had not been an issue during the 1935 federal election.[1] He favoured printing dual-language banknotes (distinct English and French banknotes) as had been done for the 1935 Series.[1] He was also a member of the Orange Order in Canada.

Notes

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References

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  • "Tense scene as McGeer makes attack on govt". The Evening Citizen. Vol. 93, no. 299. June 3, 1936.
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