Reginald Ford Sparkes was an educator, author and political figure in Newfoundland

Newfoundland and Labrador

Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada. Situated in the country's Atlantic region, it incorporates the island of Newfoundland and mainland Labrador with a combined area of . As of April 2011, the province's estimated population is 508,400...

. He represented St. Barbe

St. Barbe (electoral district)

St. Barbe is a provincial electoral district for the House of Assembly of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. As of 2011, there were 7,064 eligible voters living within the district....

 in the Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly

Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly

The Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly is one of two components of the General Assembly of Newfoundland and Labrador, the other being the Lieutenant-Governor of Newfoundland and Labrador. The Newfoundland and Labrador General Assembly meets in the Confederation Building at St...

 from 1949 to 1956. Sparkes was the first speaker for the House of Assembly

Speaker of the House of Assembly of Newfoundland and Labrador

The Speaker of the House of Assembly of Newfoundland and Labrador is the presiding officer of the Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly.The current Speaker of the Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly is Ross Wiseman, who was uncontested for the role following the 2011 General...

 after Newfoundland became part of Canada.

Biography

He was born in Jackson's Arm

Jackson's Arm, Newfoundland and Labrador

Jackson's Arm is a town in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador, located on White Bay. It was settled by John Wicks of Christchurch, England, around 1870. The Post Office was established in 1892 and the first Postmistress was Belinda Peddle. The town had a population of 435 in 1956...

, the son of Isaac Sparkes and Roseanna Ford, and was educated there, at Bishop Feild College

Bishop Feild College

Bishop Feild College , founded in 1844, is a school in St. John's, Newfoundland...

 and Columbia University

Columbia University

Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...

. He taught in Trinity Bay

Trinity Bay, Newfoundland and Labrador

Trinity Bay is a large bay on the northeastern coast of Newfoundland in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador.Major fishing communities include Trinity and Heart's Content.-Industry:...

 and Change Islands. In 1936, he became a supervisor inspector for west coast schools in Newfoundland. Sparkes married Hannah Bugden. He retired from politics in 1956 and became manager of the Newfoundland Savings Bank, later taken over by the Bank of Montreal

Bank of Montreal

The Bank of Montreal , , or BMO Financial Group, is the fourth largest bank in Canada by deposits. The Bank of Montreal was founded on June 23, 1817 by John Richardson and eight merchants in a rented house in Montreal, Quebec. On May 19, 1817 the Articles of Association were adopted, making it...

. In 1967, he retired to Hallstown, North River

North River, Newfoundland and Labrador

North River is a town in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. The town had a population of 557 in the Canada 2006 Census.-See also:* List of cities and towns in Newfoundland and Labrador...

. He died in 1990.

Publications

• The Winds Softly Sigh published in 1981 ISBN 0-919948-77-4
• Sense and Nonsense published in 1989 ISBN 0-920911-78-1, selections from his weekly column written under the name Jonathan Miles, A Countryman's Notebook