Commissioner of Yukon


The commissioner of Yukon is the representative of the Government of Canada in the Canadian federal territory of Yukon. The commissioner is appointed by the federal government and, in contrast to the governor general of Canada or the lieutenant governors of the Canadian provinces, is not a viceroy and therefore not a direct representative of the Canadian monarch in the territory eo ipso.

List of commissioners

Commissioners (1894–1918)

Before the Yukon became a Territory on June 13, 1898, the Dominion agent/gold commissioner and the chief executive officer of the Yukon was the Yukon representative.
No.ImageCommissionerTerm startTerm end
1Inspector Charles ConstantineMay 26, 1894May 27, 1897
2Thomas FawcettMay 27, 1897August 17, 1897
3James Morrow WalshAugust 17, 1897July 4, 1898
4William OgilvieJuly 4, 1898March 11, 1901
5James Hamilton RossMarch 11, 1901October 16, 1902
6Henry William Newlands February 8, 1902August 15, 1902
7Zachary Taylor Wood August 15, 1902March 4, 1903
8Frederick Tennyson CongdonMarch 4, 1903October 27, 1904
9Zachary Taylor Wood October 29, 1904May 27, 1905
10William Wallace Burns McInnesMay 27, 1905December 31, 1906
11John T. Lithgow December 31, 1906June 17, 1907
12Alexander HendersonJune 17, 1907June 1, 1911
13Arthur Wilson June 1, 1911February 1, 1912
14George BlackFebruary 1, 1912April 1, 1918
15George Norris Williams October 13, 1916April 1, 1918

Gold commissioners

The offices of Commissioner and Administrator were abolished in 1918. Office replaced by the Gold Commissioner who was responsible to the federal Minister of the Interior.
No.Gold CommissionerTerm startTerm end
16George P. MacKenzieApril 1, 1918November 16, 1924
17Percy ReidNovember 17, 1924November 14, 1927
18George A. Jeckell November 14, 1927September 10, 1928
19George I. MacLeanSeptember 10, 1928June 30, 1932

Comptrollers

The positions of Gold Commissioner and Comptroller were combined in 1932 with the Comptroller being the title for the chief executive. The title was changed to "Controller" in 1936.
No.ControllerTerm startTerm end
20George A. Jeckell Comptroller Controller June 30, 1932September 20, 1947
21John Edward GibbenSeptember 20, 1947July 12, 1948

Commissioners (1948–present)

In 1948, the title of chief executive once again became Commissioner. By the 1960s, the Commissioner had formed an executive committee that included some members of the elected Territorial Council, in essence a cabinet. Beginning in 1978, Yukon had party government with a Government Leader.
In October 1979, federal minister Jake Epp issued a letter, often known as the Epp letter, instructing the Commissioner to assume a role similar to that of a provincial Lieutenant-Governor, and devolving leadership of the day-to-day government to the majority leader of the legislative assembly, to whom the Epp letter granted the authority to use the title Premier. At that time, the government leader added a fifth elected member to the committee, which became an executive council.
Subsequent federal ministers did not revoke this authority and instruction, which was eventually codified in amendments to the Yukon Act, along with redesignation of the legislative assembly from territorial council. The process, particularly since 1979, has devolved powers from the federal government to the territorial government, bringing authority which is normally reserved by the Articles of Confederation for provinces to the territory.
No.CommissionerTerm startTerm end
21John Edward GibbenJuly 13, 1948August 15, 1950
22Andrew Harold GibsonAugust 15, 1950October 15, 1951
23Frederick FraserOctober 15, 1951November 15, 1952
24Wilfred George BrownNovember 15, 1952June 8, 1955
25Frederick Howard CollinsJune 8, 1955May 1, 1962
26Gordon Robertson CameronMay 1, 1962November 7, 1966
27James SmithNovember 7, 1966July 1, 1976
28Arthur MacDonald PearsonJuly 1, 1976October 31, 1978
29Frank FinglandOctober 31, 1978January 19, 1979
30Ione ChristensenJanuary 20, 1979October 9, 1979
31Douglas BellOctober 9, 1979March 27, 1986
32Ken McKinnonMarch 27, 1986June 11, 1995
33Judy GingellJune 12, 1995September 30, 2000
34Jack CableOctober 1, 2000November 30, 2005
35Geraldine Van BibberDecember 1, 2005December 16, 2010
36Doug PhillipsDecember 17, 2010January 31, 2018
37Angélique BernardMarch 12, 2018May 31, 2023
38Adeline WebberMay 31, 2023Incumbent