# 1st Parliament of British Columbia

The 1st Legislative Assembly of British Columbia sat from 1871 to 1875. The members were elected in the British Columbia general election held in October 1871. John Foster McCreight was called upon to form a cabinet. In December 1872, the government was defeated on a confidence motion and Amor De Cosmos subsequently formed a new cabinet. After De Cosmos was elected to the House of Commons in February 1874, George A. Walken became premier.
There were four sessions of the 1st Legislature:
| Session | Start | End |
| 1st | February 15, 1872 | April 11, 1872 |
| 2nd | December 17, 1872 | February 21, 1873 |
| 3rd | December 18, 1873 | March 2, 1874 |
| 4th | March 1, 1875 | April 22, 1875 |
James Trimble served as speaker.

## Members of the 1st General Assembly

The following members were elected to the assembly in 1871:
| Member | Electoral district | First elected |
| George A. Walkem | Cariboo | 1871 |
| Joseph Hunter | Cariboo | 1871 |
| Cornelius Booth | Cariboo | 1871 |
| John George Barnston (1872) | Cariboo | 1872 |
| John Ash | Comox | 1871 |
| William Smithe | Cowichan | 1871 |
| John Paton Booth | Cowichan | 1871 |
| A. Rocke Robertson | Esquimalt | 1871 |
| Henry Cogan | Esquimalt | 1871 |
| John Andrew Mara | Kootenay | 1871 |
| Charles Todd | Kootenay | 1871 |
| Andrew T. Jamieson | Lillooet | 1871 |
| T. B. Humphreys | Lillooet | 1871 |
| William Saul (1872) | Lillooet | 1872 |
| William M. Brown (1874) | Lillooet | 1874 |
| John Robson | Nanaimo | 1871 |
| Henry Holbrook | New Westminster City | 1871 |
| Josiah Charles Hughes | New Westminster District | 1871 |
| William Armstrong | New Westminster District | 1871 |
| Robert Beaven | Victoria City | 1871 |
| John Foster McCreight | Victoria City | 1871 |
| Simeon Duck | Victoria City | 1871 |
| James Trimble | Victoria City | 1871 |
| Amor De Cosmos | Victoria District | 1871 |
| Arthur Bunster | Victoria District | 1871 |
| William Archibald Robertson (1874) | Victoria District | 1874 |
| William Fraser Tolmie (1874) | Victoria District | 1874 |
| Robert Smith | Yale | 1871 |
| James Robinson | Yale | 1871 |
| Charles A. Semlin | Yale | 1871 |

## By-elections

By-elections were held for the following members appointed to the provincial cabinet, as was required at the time. All cabinet members were re-elected by acclamation:
* A. Rocke Robertson, Provincial Secretary, acclaimed November 28, 1871
* Henry Holbrook, Chief Commissioner of Lands and Works, acclaimed November 28, 1871
* George A. Walkem, Minister of Finance, acclaimed February 23, 1872
* John Ash, Provincial Secretary, acclaimed January 11, 1873
* Robert Beaven, Chief Commissioner of Lands and Works, acclaimed January 6, 1873
* William Armstrong, Minister of Finance and Agriculture, acclaimed March 21, 1873
By-elections were held to replace members for various other reasons:
| Electoral district | Member elected | Election date | Reason |
| Cariboo | John George Barnston | June 22, 1872 | C. Booth appointed judge |
| Lillooet | William Saul | December 21, 1872 | Death of A.T. Jamieson in October 1872 |
| Victoria District | William Archibald Robertson | February 26, 1874 | A. Bunster and A. de Cosmos elected to federal seats |
| Victoria District | William Fraser Tolmie | February 26, 1874 | A. Bunster and A. de Cosmos elected to federal seats |
| Lillooet | Thomas Basil Humphreys | November 17, 1874 | both members resigned in a "dispute between the two gentlemen as to which represents the popular feeling of the district" |
| Lillooet | William M. Brown | November 17, 1874 | both members resigned in a "dispute between the two gentlemen as to which represents the popular feeling of the district" |