View source for John Howatt Bell

{{Short description|Canadian politician (1846–1929)}}
{{no footnotes|date=February 2024}}
{{Use Canadian English|date=September 2021}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2021}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| honorific-prefix = 
| name             = John Howatt Bell
| honorific-suffix = 
| image            = John Howard Bell.jpg
| imagesize        = 
| order            = 14th
| office           = Premier of Prince Edward Island
| predecessor      = [[Aubin-Edmond Arsenault]]
| successor        = [[James D. Stewart]]
| monarch          = [[George V]]
| lieutenant_governor = [[Murdoch McKinnon]]
| term_start       = 9 September 1919
| term_end         = 5 September 1923
| office1          = Leader of the [[Prince Edward Island Liberal Party]]
| predecessor1     = [[John Richards (Canadian politician)|John Richards]]
| successor1       = [[Albert Charles Saunders]]
| term_start1      = 13 July 1915
| term_end1        = 26 July 1923
| office2          = Member of the [[General Assembly of Prince Edward Island]] for [[4th Prince]]
| predecessor2     = [[Augustus Holland]]
| successor2       = district abolished 
| term_start2      = 30 June 1886
| term_end2        = 13 December 1893
| alongside2       = [[George Bentley (politician)|George W. Bentley]]
| office3          = [[Legislative Assembly of Prince Edward Island|MLA]] (Assemblyman) for [[4th Prince]]
| predecessor3     = himself
| successor3       = [[Samuel E. Reid]]
| term_start3      = 13 December 1893
| term_end3        = 14 May 1898
| predecessor4     = [[James Kennedy (Canadian politician)|James Kennedy]]
| successor4       = [[Whitefield Bentley]]
| term_start4      = 16 September 1915
| term_end4        = 26 July 1923
| riding5          = [[East Prince]]
| parliament5      = Canadian
| term_start5      = 14 December 1898
| term_end5        = 7 November 1900
| predecessor5     = [[John Yeo]]
| successor5       = [[Alfred Lefurgey]]
| birth_date       = {{birth date|df=yes|1846|12|13}}
| birth_place      = [[Cape Traverse, Prince Edward Island|Cape Traverse]], [[Prince Edward Island|Prince Edward Island Colony]]
| death_date       = {{death date and age|df=yes|1929|01|29|1846|12|13}}
| death_place      = [[Los Angeles]], [[California]]
| nationality      = Canadian
| spouse           = {{marriage|Helen Howatt|1882}}
| party            = [[Prince Edward Island Liberal Party]]
| otherparty       = [[Liberal Party of Canada|Liberal]]
| relations        = 
| children         = 
| residence        = [[Summerside, Prince Edward Island]]
| alma_mater       = [[Prince of Wales College]]<br>[[Albert College (Belleville, Ontario)|Albert College]]
| occupation       = Teacher and lawyer
| profession       = Politician
| cabinet          = 
}}
'''John Howatt Bell''' (13 December 1846 &ndash; 29 January 1929) was a lawyer and [[politician]] who served as the 14th [[premier of Prince Edward Island]].

Bell was born in [[Cape Traverse, Prince Edward Island|Cape Traverse]], the son of Walter Bell and Elizabeth Howatt. He was educated at [[Prince of Wales College]] and at [[Albert College (Belleville, Ontario)|Albert College]] in [[Belleville, Ontario|Belleville]]. After studying law, he was called to the Ontario bar in 1874 and set up practice in [[Ottawa, Ontario]]. He moved to [[Manitoba]], was [[call to the bar|called to the bar]] there and set up practice in [[Emerson, Manitoba|Emerson]]. In 1882, he married his first cousin, Helen, the daughter of [[Cornelius Howatt]]. He returned to Prince Edward Island, was called to the bar, and set up practice in [[Summerside, Prince Edward Island|Summerside]].

Bell entered politics in 1886 when he was elected to the province's [[legislative assembly]] as a [[PEI Liberal Party|Liberal]]. In 1898 he won a [[Legislative seat|seat]] in the [[House of Commons of Canada]] as a supporter of the [[Liberal Party of Canada|federal Liberals]] under Sir [[Wilfrid Laurier]]. He lost his seat in 1900 but returned to the provincial assembly in 1915 when he was chosen to lead the Liberal Party and became [[Leader of the Opposition (PEI)|leader of the opposition]]. After Bell led the Liberals to power in 1919, he became [[Premier]]. His government extended the province's road system and adopted a highway improvement policy funded by a tax that contributed to the government's unpopularity. His administration also extended the voting [[Suffrage|franchise]] to women in 1922.{{citation needed|date=February 2024}}

Bell's government was ridden with disputes within his [[Cabinet (government)|cabinet]], which harmed the party's unity and popularity and led to his government's electoral defeat in 1923 after a single term in office. Bell retired from politics and died six years later in a car accident in [[Los Angeles, California]].{{citation needed|date=February 2024}}

== External links ==
* {{Canadian Parliament links|ID=10388}}
* {{cite DCB |first=Harry Tinson |last=Holman |title=Bell, John Howatt |volume=15 |url=https://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/bell_john_howatt_15E.html}}
* [http://www.gov.pe.ca/premiersgallery/bell.php3 Premiers Gallery, Prince Edward Island]

{{PEIPremiers}}
{{Prince Edward Island Liberal leaders}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bell, John Howatt}}
[[Category:1846 births]]
[[Category:1929 deaths]]
[[Category:Politicians from Prince County, Prince Edward Island]]
[[Category:Canadian Presbyterians]]
[[Category:Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Prince Edward Island]]
[[Category:Liberal Party of Canada MPs]]
[[Category:Premiers of Prince Edward Island]]
[[Category:Prince Edward Island Liberal Party MLAs]]
[[Category:Road incident deaths in California]]
[[Category:Prince Edward Island Liberal Party leaders]]
[[Category:Prince of Wales College alumni]]
[[Category:19th-century members of the Legislative Assembly of Prince Edward Island]]
[[Category:20th-century members of the Legislative Assembly of Prince Edward Island]]
[[Category:19th-century members of the House of Commons of Canada]]