John Babbitt McNair: Scholar, Lawyer, Politician, Premier, Judge, Lieutenant-Governor, FSSA President

As the Fredericton Society of Saint Andrew is approaching its bicentennial in 2025, we are offering biographical articles featuring some of the more prominent persons who have been members of the FSSA. The previous article highlighted John Simpson, the first Mayor of Fredericton. This article features John B. McNair who served as Premier of New Brunswick from 1940 to 1952. 

John Babbitt McNair (1889 – 1968)
Scholar, Lawyer, Politician, Premier, Judge, Lieutenant-Governor
by Ian Andrews 

On Waterloo Row in Fredericton, across from the Saint John River, stands a well-appointed structure, built in the 19th century, and identified by a plaque on the front as the Quartermain House Bed & Breakfast. Since becoming a B&B over a decade ago, the Quartermain House has more than once received the designation as the #1 Bed & Breakfast in North America. This place previously served as the home of John Babbitt McNair, a convenient short walk from the Provincial Legislature where this man of Scottish descent served as the premier of the province from 1940 to 1952. It was here, and at their “lodge” in rural Gordon Vale, that he and his wife Marion raised their four children. 

It was here that John B. McNair joined the Fredericton Society of Saint Andrew and where he served through the ranks as 2nd Vice President (1952-53), 1st Vice President (1953-54), President (1954-55) and Honorary President for five terms until his death in 1968. 

As a scholar, he is considered as one of the University of New Brunswick’s most distinguished alumni; as a lawyer and politician, his skills as an orator and debater were superior to those of any of his opponents; as a public servant, he was one of the first Canadians to be appointed a Companion of the Order of Canada during centennial year. When Canada Post issued commemorative stamps in 1998 featuring one premier from each province, John McNair was the premier chosen to represent New Brunswick. 

McNair was born in the small rural northwestern New Brunswick community of Andover on 20 November 1889. He always distinguished himself as a student and scholar. Following his schooling in the local area, he proceeded to UNB in Fredericton, graduating with a B.A. in 1911 while winning the Lieutenant-Governor’s Award - as well as being chosen as the fourth Rhodes Scholar from that institution. He distinguished himself at Oxford where he received another B.A. in 1913 and a Bachelor of Civil Laws in 1914 - with double first-class honours. He later received an honorary LLD from UNB in 1938 and an honorary DCL from Mount Allison in 1951. 

After graduating from Oxford in 1914 McNair enlisted for service in the First World War with the Canadian Expeditionary Force. He served in both France and Germany, finishing the war with the rank of Lieutenant. Although he was Premier of New Brunswick during most of the Second World War, McNair again volunteered for service as a Captain in the Royal Canadian Artillery Reserves. 

Following his First World War service, McNair returned home and was admitted to the New Brunswick Bar in 1919. He practiced law in Fredericton with the firm of J.J.F. Winslow, gaining the designation of King’s Counsel in 1935. He continued to use his legal expertise when he was appointed Attorney-General in the Alison Dysart cabinet in 1935, and he maintained the role of Attorney-General during the twelve years that he served as premier. Following his political career, in 1955 McNair was appointed a Judge within the Appeals Division of the New Brunswick Supreme Court, later becoming Chief Justice until his retirement in 1964. His status in the legal profession can be seen by his appointment in 1957 to head a Royal Commission examining the fiscal status of Newfoundland. 

Image courtesy of the University of New Brunswick

However, it was as a politician that John McNair is best known. A life-long Liberal, he was chosen to be president of the provincial Liberal Party in 1932, remaining in that position until 1940. He first ran for and won election as an MLA for York County in 1935. His skill as a gifted speaker and debater were instrumental in his appointment as Attorney-General in the Dysart government. But he was defeated in 1939 when he ran for re-election in York County. That led to his running, and winning, in a subsequent by-election for Victoria County. 

When Premier Dysart retired on 13 March 1940, McNair was chosen as his successor. In addition to serving as Premier, he retained his position as Attorney-General. His government won the elections in 1944 and again in 1948 before losing to High John Flemming and the Progressive Conservatives in 1952. During these times the provincial cabinet remained relatively small. This meant McNair held the additional portfolios of Labour, Health and Labour, and Lands and Mines at various times during his tenure as Premier. One of the most notable pieces of legislation passed during McNair’s tenure was the Civil Service Act that provided a degree of job security for public servants at a time when political patronage usually prevailed. 

There can be no doubt that the John B. McNair’s accomplishments were legion, but what do we know about his personality and character? Other than his immediate family, the person who probably knew McNair best was Robert A. Tweedie. Tweedie served as McNair’s secretary (today called an executive assistant) during his years as premier, but he had known McNair through his association with the provincial Liberal Party for many years before, and he was to remain in contact with McNair as a friend for the rest of his life. 

In his 1986 book On With the Dance: A New Brunswick Memoir 1935-1960 Tweedie stated that McNair had “one of the finest minds in the country”. Tweedie described McNair as a perfectionist, one who was precise and scholarly. He was efficient, meticulous and thorough with an astonishing capacity for work but he also possessed a stubborn side and often failed to generate what Tweedie referred to as “personal warmth”. As a public figure he was seen as dignified, but aloof. 

McNair was a perfectionist in personal appearance as well. He was bald “on top”, but every remaining hair was always in place. He appeared in public to be larger than his 5’7” height, and his penchant for cleanliness and constant handwashing probably indicated that he had OCD – an obsessive-compulsive disorder. Tweedie thought that, in spite of his political involvement, McNair was essentially a shy man – one who valued friendships and loyalty, but one who did not always choose friends who would remain loyal to him. 

McNair married Marion MacGregor Crocket in 1921, a union that produced four children, three daughters and one son. Unfortunately, shortly after he became premier, Marion took ill and spent most of the rest of her life in a sanitorium. This meant that McNair bore most of the responsibility for raising the children. Marion died in 1961. Tweedie frequently told McNair that his greatest claim to fame was the quality of his children that he had brought up during trying times. 

The son, John C. McNair, followed his father in both scholarship and profession. As a Beaverbrook Scholar he graduated from the London School of Economics and received an LLB from Dalhousie Law School. After practicing law in Fredericton, he was appointed to the Federal Court of Canada, Trial Division. He also was a member of the Fredericton Society of Saint Andrew, serving as Secretary for four terms (1951-1955), 1st Vice-President (1956-57), and President (1957-58). When John C. died in 2010, only his youngest sister Janet (Scarfe) survived him. Nancy (Moodie) and Marion (McCain) had predeceased him. Marion, who was known as Billie, had been married to Harrison McCain, one of the McCain brothers from Florenceville who established the McCains frozen food empire. 

On the hustings or in the legislature, McNair had no peers. He composed and edited his own speeches, handwriting on pages of foolscap, before delivering them with authority. Tweedie maintained that “His speeches were better than ever, models, really, of what a speech should be. Were I to offer advice to young, aspiring politicians, I would tell them to read, study and absorb every word uttered by John McNair in and out of the House. In content, style and literary worth they stand alone.” Tweedie’s only criticism was that McNair could indulge in the overkill of his political opponents: “…he sometimes continued to fire bullets into a carcass already comatose, if not dead”. With his oratorical skills, McNair was one of the first to use the relatively new medium of radio to his benefit in the dissemination of political propaganda. 

In addition to his involvement with the Fredericton Society of Saint Andrew, McNair served in other community organizations. He was a member of the UNB Senate and served as Chairman of the selection committee for Beaverbrook Scholarships. He was also a member of the Beaverbrook Art Gallery Board. Indeed, he had been instrumental in the selection of Lord Beaverbrook as the first Chancellor of the University of New Brunswick. 

Following his retirement from the bench, John McNair was appointed Lieutenant-Governor of New Brunswick in 1965, a position he held until his death on 14 June, 1968. He is buried in the Fredericton Rural Cemetery.