Albert Edward Smith (October 20, 1871 – April 12, 1947), known as A. E. Smith, was a Canadian religious leader and politician. A social gospeller, Smith was for many years a minister in the Canadian Methodist Church before starting his own "People's Church". He served in the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba from 1920 to 1922 as a Labour representative. He joined the Communist Party of Canada in 1925 and ran as a Communist candidate in several elections.
Early life
Smith was born on October 20, 1871, in Guelph, Ontario, the son of William George Smith and Elizabeth Bildson, working-class immigrants from England. He worked as a machinist's apprentice and later a bookbinder to contribute to the family's income. His family later moved to Hamilton, where he developed an interest in religion after joining the Gore Street Methodist Church. After passing an oral examination, he became a lay preacher in 1888. In 1890 Smith was transferred to MacGregor, Manitoba, to begin field work. His appointment came from James Woodsworth, and father of J. S. Woodsworth.
Smith was a vocal supporter of Thomas Greenway's Liberal government in Manitoba during the 1890s. During the Manitoba Schools Question, he defended the Greenway government's decision to remove funding from French-language denominational schools.
Ordination
After three years' work as a probationer, Smith enrolled as a student for the ministry at Wesley College in Winnipeg in 1893. He was formally ordained to the ministry in 1897. He married Maude Mercy Rogers in 1898, with whom he would have seven children. However, he was unsuccessful in his run against Premier Henry and CCF candidate Arthur Henry Williams, president of the East York Workers' Association. Smith came in fourth with just 645 votes.
Also in 1934, Smith ran for Mayor of Toronto. In that larger district he polled a surprising but still insufficient 8,500 votes.
Returning again to northern Ontario, Smith ran for the House of Commons as a CPC candidate in the 1935 federal election. He received 1,161 votes for a fourth-place finish in Port Arthur.
Later years
Smith largely curtailed his political activities after this time, though he remained an active figure within the Communist Party.
He returned to Manitoba for the 1945 federal election and ran as a candidate for the Labor-Progressive Party (as the Communist Party had renamed itself) in his old riding of Brandon. He received 497 votes, finishing fourth.
Smith died on April 12, 1947 in Toronto. His autobiography, All My Life, was published posthumously in 1949. The work chronicles his religious and political evolution, and gives extensive consideration to the Communist Party's struggles of the 1930s.
To the end of his life, Smith argued that his beliefs were a reflection of the message promoted by Jesus.
A. E. Smith's son, Stewart Smith, was a leading member of the Communist Party in his own right.
See also
- Salem Bland
- William Irvine (Canadian politician)
- William Ivens