By Dan McCaffery for the Sarnia Observer
If all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy, Sarnians can be grateful George Galloway was elected Mayor in 1926.
That’s because our 44th Chief Magistrate was a sports-minded politician who helped develop both Norm Perry and Tecumseh Parks.
Born in Bothwell in 1877, Galloway was a railroad engineer who moved to Sarnia as a Young man.
Elected to Council as an Alderman in 1927, he took over the Mayor’s chair five years later.
Shortly after taking office, Mayor Galloway moved to secure the property that would later become known as Norm Perry Park. Council purchased 5.6 hectares (14 acres) of land from CN Rail for $3,000. The price, which seems ridiculously cheap today, represented a considerable investment in the Roaring Twenties.
There was much criticism of the deal. Council was so strapped for cash that it couldn’t afford to cut the grass on the new property. Instead, it allowed farmers to graze their goats on it.
Nevertheless, the acquisition soon proved to be one of the steals of the century. The property, after all, stretched from Exmouth Street to the Sarnia Golf and Curling Club.
It was cut in half a few years later when the Ontario government ran a highway through the middle of it. Still, there was more than enough land left over to build Athletic Park (which was later renamed Norm Perry Park).
The facility soon became Sarnia’s main outdoor sports facility, serving as home to the Sarnia Imperials football club that won the Grey Cup in 1934 and 1936.
In fact, the 1933 fall classic was played in Sarnia, with a crowd of 5,000 watching the Toronto Argonauts edge the Imps 4-3.
The park still serves as Sarnia’s main football and soccer field.
After leaving office, Galloway served for nearly a quarter of a century on the local Parks Board. In 1950, The Observer reported he was “largely responsible for the development of Tecumseh Park”.
The father of two died on June 5, 1950 at age 73.