Dugald Cowan
Encyclopedia
Dugald McCoig Cowan was a Scottish educationalist and Liberal
Liberal Party (UK)
The Liberal Party was one of the two major political parties of the United Kingdom during the 19th and early 20th centuries. It was a third party of negligible importance throughout the latter half of the 20th Century, before merging with the Social Democratic Party in 1988 to form the present day...

 politician.

Family and education

Cowan was born in Maryhill
Maryhill
Maryhill is an area of the City of Glasgow in Scotland. Maryhill is a former burgh. The population of Maryhill is about 52,000. Maryhill stretches over along Maryhill Road...

, Glasgow
Glasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...

 the son of John and Christina Cowan. He was educated at Glasgow Free Church Training College and Glasgow University. He held MA
Master of Arts (Scotland)
A Master of Arts in Scotland can refer to an undergraduate academic degree in humanities and social sciences awarded by the ancient universities of Scotland – the University of St Andrews, the University of Glasgow, the University of Aberdeen and the University of Edinburgh, while the University of...

 and LL.B degrees. He never married.

Career

Cowan was a schoolteacher and an expert on the subject of education. He was Headmaster of North Kelvinside
North Kelvinside
North Kelvinside is a middle-class residential district of the Scottish city of Glasgow....

 Higher Grade School from 1896–1919 and he played a large part in educational activities in Scotland in particular through the Educational Institute of Scotland
Educational Institute of Scotland
The Educational Institute of Scotland is the oldest teachers' trade union in the world, having been founded in 1847 when dominies became concerned about the effect of changes to the system of education in Scotland on their professional status....

, but also through Glasgow University and the Corporation of the City of Glasgow
Politics of Glasgow
Politics in Glasgow, Scotland, is evident in the deliberations and decisions of the city council of Glasgow , in elections to the council, and in elections to the Scottish Parliament and the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom .In the European Parliament, the city area is...

 as well as other bodies. He authored a number of school text books and wrote articles on educational themes. He was credited with improving educational provision and helping to raise teachers’ salaries and promoting teachers' pension provision.

1918

Cowan was elected at the 1918 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1918
The United Kingdom general election of 1918 was the first to be held after the Representation of the People Act 1918, which meant it was the first United Kingdom general election in which nearly all adult men and some women could vote. Polling was held on 14 December 1918, although the count did...

 as Coalition Liberal Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...

 (MP) for the Universities of Scotland. This was a three member seat and Cowan was elected with two Coalition Unioinsts
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...

.

1922-1923

Cowan was returned unopposed in at the 1922 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1922
The United Kingdom general election of 1922 was held on 15 November 1922. It was the first election held after most of the Irish counties left the United Kingdom to form the Irish Free State, and was won by Andrew Bonar Law's Conservatives, who gained an overall majority over Labour, led by John...

 as a Liberal and was again unopposed in 1923
United Kingdom general election, 1923
-Seats summary:-References:*F. W. S. Craig, British Electoral Facts: 1832-1987*-External links:***...

.

1924-1929

In 1924
United Kingdom general election, 1924
- Seats summary :- References :* F. W. S. Craig, British Electoral Facts: 1832-1987* - External links :* * *...

 and United Kingdom general election, 1929
United Kingdom general election, 1929
-Seats summary:-References:*F. W. S. Craig, British Electoral Facts: 1832-1987*-External links:***...

 there was a Labour candidate but Cowan was re-elected with two Conservatives on each occasion.

The 1924 election was carried under a transferable vote system of proportional representation
Proportional representation
Proportional representation is a concept in voting systems used to elect an assembly or council. PR means that the number of seats won by a party or group of candidates is proportionate to the number of votes received. For example, under a PR voting system if 30% of voters support a particular...

. The quota required to be elected was 4,405. Craik and Cowan received more than the quota on the first count and were declared elected. The redistribution of their second votes put Berry over the quota and he too was elected.

The 1929 election was carried under the same system of proportional representation. The quota required to be elected was 6,276. John Buchan
John Buchan, 1st Baron Tweedsmuir
John Buchan, 1st Baron Tweedsmuir was a Scottish novelist, historian and Unionist politician who served as Governor General of Canada, the 15th since Canadian Confederation....

 and Cowan received more than the quota on the first count and were declared elected. The redistribution of their second votes was again enough to put Berry over the quota and he too was re-elected.

1931

At the 1931 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1931
The United Kingdom general election on Tuesday 27 October 1931 was the last in the United Kingdom not held on a Thursday. It was also the last election, and the only one under universal suffrage, where one party received an absolute majority of the votes cast.The 1931 general election was the...

he was again returned unopposed, with two Conservatives.

Death

Cowan died in office on 30 December 1933, aged 68 years in a Glasgow nursing home, having been unwell for some time and receiving treatment in the home.

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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