Hanson Dowell


Hanson Taylor Dowell was a Canadian ice hockey administrator and politician. He served as president of the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association from 1945 to 1947, and was the first person from the Maritimes to serve on the national executive. He sought to have the Canadian definition of amateur recognized at the World Championships and the Olympic Games for the benefit of Canada's national team, and negotiated the merger of the International Ice Hockey Association into the Ligue Internationale de Hockey sur Glace. He served as president of the Maritime Amateur Hockey Association from 1936 to 1940, and later as treasurer of the Maritimes and the Nova Scotia Hockey Associations for a combined 30 years.
Dowell was a graduate of Dalhousie Law School and practiced law for 31 years in Middleton, Nova Scotia. He was elected to the Nova Scotia House of Assembly as a Conservative Party member for Annapolis East, then resigned his seat when appointed a stipendiary magistrate. He was later elevated to judge on the trial division of the Nova Scotia Supreme Court, and was one of the founding members of the Western Counties Bar Association. He was among the first recipients of the Order of Merit established by the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association in 1962, was named a Queen's Counsel in recognition of his legal career, and was inducted into the builder category of Nova Scotia Sport Hall of Fame in 1980.

Early life and education

Hanson Taylor Dowell was born on September 14, 1906, in Stewiacke, Nova Scotia, to parents George and Elizabeth Dowell. He completed elementary school in Elmsdale, and secondary school at the Halifax Christian Academy, then graduated from the Nova Scotia Teachers College in 1924. He was a schoolteacher in Nova Scotia during the late 1920s and spent a summer as a lay preacher in Alberta.
Dowell graduated from Dalhousie Law School with a Bachelor of Laws degree in 1930. He was called to the bar on June 13, 1930, then relocated to Middleton where he practiced law from 1931 to 1962.

Early hockey career

Dowell soon became involved in senior ice hockey in the Annapolis Valley and was an officer with the Central Valley Hockey League during the 1935–36 season. He expanded his hockey involvement beyond Nova Scotia and served as president of Maritime Amateur Hockey Association from 1936 to 1940.
The Canadian Amateur Hockey Association which oversaw amateur hockey in Canada was in the process of modernizing its definition of an amateur and semi-professionalizing the game, compared to the older definition of pure amateurism supported by the Amateur Athletic Union of Canada. CAHA president Cecil Duncan announced that the CAHA would break away from the AAU of C effective January 15, 1937, in response to the rejection of the CAHA's "four points" in updating the definition of an amateur.
The four points were:
  1. Hockey players may capitalize on their ability as hockey players for the purpose of obtaining legitimate employment.
  2. Hockey players may accept from their clubs or employers payment for time lost, from work while competing on behalf of their clubs. They will not however, be allowed to hold "shadow" jobs under the clause.
  3. Amateur hockey teams may play exhibition games against professional teams under such conditions as may be laid down by the individual branches of the CAHA.
  4. Professionals in another sport will be allowed to play under the CAHA jurisdiction as amateurs.
Dowell initially made no indication to support the new definition of an amateur and discussed the issue with fellow MAHA organizers, who subsequently voted in favour of remaining with the CAHA and breaking away from the AAU of C. The Halifax Senior Hockey League chose to remain with the AAU of C, and play outside of the MAHA's jurisdiction.
Dowell was named to the CAHA's resolutions committee in 1937. He recommended changing the Allan Cup playoffs between the MAHA and the Quebec Amateur Hockey Association in 1939 and onwards, from a best-of-three format into a best-of-five format. The change would allow spectators in the Maritimes to see at least two games of the series, with the remaining games played in Montreal to increase ticket sales. Dowell also sought for Allan Cup finals games to be hosted locally if a team from the Maritimes were the Eastern Canada champion.
In 1939, Dowell argued for an extension to the deadline to establish residency, and stated that many teams in the Maritimes depended on natural ice surfaces and few leagues began play before January. The CAHA extended the deadline to November 1 for seniors and until January 6 for students attending school. The CAHA also approved in principle to have contracts which tied amateurs to teams, and had the potential to demand a release payment for a players to be signed by a professional team. Dowell felt that amateurs players would be unwilling to sign a contract, and sought for more details to be sent to CAHA branches for discussion.

CAHA vice-president

Second vice-president

Dowell was elected second vice-president of the CAHA in April 1940, and became the first person from the Maritimes to serve on the CAHA executive. The CAHA and the Amateur Hockey Association of the United States agreed to form a new governing body known as the International Ice Hockey Association, and invited the British Ice Hockey Association to join. CAHA president W. G. Hardy stated the new body was to promote and to govern international hockey since the Ligue Internationale de Hockey sur Glace had become inactive during World War II. A constitution for the new association was delegated to a committee including Dowell and future CAHA president W. B. George.
The CAHA executive agreed to contribute C$10,000 to the Government of Canada and the war effort in June 1940. The CAHA expected to operate as usual for the upcoming season and was willing to assist military teams to be part of the schedule.
Dowell applied for CAHA approval of players to be imported by the Cape Breton Senior Hockey League for the 1940–41 season, which included war time exemptions for students and employment transfers. Dowell suspended several ineligible players when the league failed to complete the proper transfer requirements. The Glace Bay Miners lost their goaltender, and local coal miners threatened to strike in protest. Despite the local uproar, Dowell changed the playoffs format into a best-of-three series which was subsequently defaulted in favour of the Sydney Millionaires.
During the 1941 Memorial Cup playoffs in Eastern Canada, Dowell discontinued the series between the Ottawa Canadiens and the Charlottetown Royals after playing only game. Ottawa won by a 12–3 score and Dowell stated, it was "quite evident" which team would win the series.
Dowell was re-elected in April 1941. The CAHA approved a rule change to allow for the replacement of an injured or ill goaltender in the playoffs, and approved in principle to sanction any player who signed with more than one club. The CAHA continued plans to operate hockey during the war with assurance that it was supported by the government to maintain the morale of the Canada people.

First vice-president

Dowell was elected first vice-president of the CAHA in April 1942. The CAHA approved grants to increase participation in minor ice hockey, and to compensate senior and junior ice hockey teams in Western Canada for their higher travel costs compared to teams in Ontario and Quebec. The CAHA and the National Hockey League agreed in principle that junior-aged players would be permitted to turn professional at any time during the 1942–43 NHL season due to the need to make a living and the shortage of players during the war.
Dowell was re-elected in April 1943. The CAHA increased grants to promote minor ice hockey, donated an additional $5,000 to the war effort, purchased $10,000 in Victory bonds, and supported plans by the International Ice Hockey Association to take control of post-war international ice hockey events on behalf of Canada. Dowell was named to CAHA committees which planned to implement ice hockey rules more similar to the NHL, and to discuss development payments from the NHL for amateur players signed by professional clubs. He was also named a trustee of the Colonel J. Burke Trophy, awarded for the Eastern Canada intermediate ice hockey championship.
Dowell was re-elected in April 1944. The CAHA set the minimum age limit to become professional at 16, and amended rules for Allan Cup and Memorial Cup playoffs to set a fixed deadline for submission of a roster which was to include two goaltenders and a limited number of replacements due to military service.

CAHA president

First term

Dowell was elected president of the CAHA on April 17, 1945, to succeed Frank Sargent, and became the first person from the Maritimes or Atlantic Canada to be elected president. The CAHA expanded its practice of covering travel expenses for junior teams in the Memorial Cup playoffs to include the inter-provincial stages in addition to the national finals. The CAHA also enlarged its rules committee to give representation to all branches in Canada.
Dowell declared that any player discharged from a military team was now free agent and could play where he resided without a transfer being required. The CAHA resumed Allan Cup competition after a hiatus in 1945, and scheduled the 1946 Allan Cup finals in Vancouver to coincide with the next general meeting. Dowell and the International Ice Hockey Association went ahead with plans for international competitions between leagues and how to classify each team. Pacific Coast Hockey League secretary Al Leader subsequently declared intent to have playoffs between the amateur senior hockey champions of Canada and the United States.
Dowell expected increased demand for Canadian-born players by leagues based in England, Scotland and the United States. He anticipated that the focus of the upcoming general meeting in 1946 would discuss methods for the CAHA to regulate the international transfer of players and prevent rosters in Canada from being depleted.