John Duncan MacLean

Life & Legacy

John Duncan MacLean (December 8, 1873 – March 28, 1948) was a teacher, physician, politician and the 20th premier of British Columbia, Canada.
MacLean was a practicing physician in Greenwood when he was elected to the provincial legislature for the Liberal in the 1916 election. He served as minister of education and provincial secretary in the cabinets of Harlan Carey Brewster and John Oliver before becoming minister of finance in 1924. In the election that year, he was elected in the riding of Yale riding. He also served as Minister of Industries between 1924 and 1928.
MacLean became premier following Oliver's death in 1927, at a time when the Liberal government was in decline. He was unable to reverse his party's decline and was defeated in the 1928 election by the Conservatives. Later that year, he contested a by-election for a seat in the House of Commons of Canada as a Liberal candidate but was defeated by fewer than one hundred votes. He spent the rest of his life as chairman of the Canadian Farm Loan Board.