J. Alfred F. Bleau (1856-1923)
Born in L’Assomption, Quebec, 30 March 1856, Joseph Alfred Féréol Bleau commenced his career as a lumberman and a railway worker before choosing the life of a merchant. He worked on the railway in Pembina North Dakota, where he married Marie Agnes Clément in 1886. Together they would have six children, four boys and two girls.
The Bleau family moved to Manitoba in 1878 and in 1883, founded Quincaillerie Allaire & Bleau, a hardware store on Taché Avenue in St. Boniface. Joseph Bleau took an active interest in municipal politics, serving several years as councilor then as mayor of Saint Boniface, briefly in 1902, and again in 1908, the year of its incorporation as a City.
He remained mayor until 1911 when he ran for federal politics. His attempt was in vain. Joseph Bleau, a candidate for the Conservative party lost to John Patrick Molloy, a Liberal by a margin of 3,049 votes to 2,668.
Joseph Alfred Féréol Bleau died March 29, 1923 in St-Boniface.
Sources:
- Lucien Bleau
- Who’s Who in Western Canada: A Biographical Dictionary of Notable Living Men and Women of Western Canada, Volume 1, 1911. C. W. Parker, editor. Canadian Press Association, Vancouver.
- www.parl.gc.ca
