Thomas Gifford was a politician in British Columbia

British Columbia

British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...

, Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

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Born in Lockerbie

Lockerbie

Lockerbie is a town in the Dumfries and Galloway region of south-western Scotland. It lies approximately from Glasgow, and from the English border. It had a population of 4,009 at the 2001 census...

, Scotland

Scotland

Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...

, the son of William Gifford and Margaret Stewart, he was educated there and apprenticed as a jeweller. He opened his own store in Lockerbie around 1876. In 1877, he married Annie Stoddart. Thomas and his wife, along with sons William (b. 3 Jul 1878) and Thomas Stuart (b. 3 Jun 1880), emigrated to St. Paul, Minnesota

Minnesota

Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...

 in 1881. Here, they had a daughter Margaret (b. 6 Apr 1882) and another son, James Stoddart (b. 26 Sep 1888), before moving again to New Westminster, British Columbia

British Columbia

British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...

, Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

, where Gifford opened a jewelry store. They had three more children - Julia Stuart (b. 8 Aug 1888), Hugh Wilson (b. 29 May 1892), and John Jardine (b. 25 Nov 1893) - and lived the rest of their lives in New Westminster. Gifford served as an alderman for New Westminster, as well as a member of the school board, hospital board and Board of Trade.

Thomas was elected to the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia

Legislative Assembly of British Columbia

The Legislative Assembly of British Columbia is one of two components of the Parliament of British Columbia, the provincial parliament ....

 in a 1901 by-election held after John Cunningham Brown

John Cunningham Brown

John Cunningham Brown was an Irish-born newspaper owner and political figure in British Columbia. He represented New Westminster City in the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia from 1890 to 1894 and from 1900 to 1901....

 was named to cabinet, and was re-elected in 1903

British Columbia general election, 1903

The British Columbia general election of 1903 was the tenth general election for the Province of British Columbia, Canada. It was held to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia. The election was called on September 5, 1903, and held on October 3, 1903...

, 1907

British Columbia general election, 1907

The British Columbia general election of 1907 was the eleventh general election for the Province of British Columbia, Canada. It was held to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia. The election called on December 24, 1906, and held on February 2, 1907...

, 1909

British Columbia general election, 1909

The British Columbia general election of 1909 was the twelfth general election for the Province of British Columbia, Canada. It was held to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia. The election was called on October 20, 1909, and held on November 25, 1909'...

 and 1912

British Columbia general election, 1912

The British Columbia general election of 1912 was the thirteenth general election for the Province of British Columbia, Canada. It was held to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia. The election was called on February 27, 1912, and held on March 28, 1912...

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He died in New Westminster at the age of 81.