Dorothy Steeves

Dorothy Steeves
Member of the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia
In office
July 14, 1934 – August 31, 1945
Preceded byHarley Anderson
Succeeded byJohn Henry Cates
ConstituencyNorth Vancouver
Personal details
BornDorothy Gretchen Biersteker
(1891-05-26)May 26, 1891[1]
Amsterdam, Netherlands
DiedMay 9, 1978(1978-05-09) (aged 86)
Vancouver, British Columbia
PartyBritish Columbia CCF
Other political
affiliations
New Democratic Party
SpouseRufus Palmer Steeves
Alma materLeiden University
OccupationLawyer

Dorothy Gretchen Steeves (née Biersteker; May 26, 1891 – May 9, 1978) was a Dutch-born political figure in British Columbia, Canada. A founding member of the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation (CCF),[2] she represented North Vancouver in the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia from 1934 to 1945. Her interests included civil liberties, international affairs, nuclear disarmament, protection of animals, women's issues and abolition of capital punishment.[2]

Biography

Born in Amsterdam as the eldest of three children to a Dutch physician and a British teacher, she studied law and economics at Leiden University, receiving a Bachelor of Laws degree in 1916.[1] She then briefly worked at private practices in Amsterdam and The Hague before joining a Dutch government rationing bureau as legal adviser during World War I.[1] She married Rufus Palmer Steeves, an officer in the Canadian Army, and came to Vancouver, British Columbia in January 1919.[3] She worked at the Dutch consulate for a short time, and served on the Point Grey Town Planning Commission between 1926 and 1929.[1]

After an unsuccessful run as a CCF candidate in Vancouver-Point Grey in the 1933 provincial election,[4]: 179  she won a 1934 by-election triggered by the death of Harley Anderson, and became member of the provincial legislature for North Vancouver.[1][4]: 181  She was re-elected in 1937 and 1941, then lost to John Henry Cates in 1945.[1][4]: 187, 197, 207  She tried to re-enter the provincial legislature by running in a 1946 by-election in Vancouver-Point Grey,[4]: 210  the 1952 and 1953 provincial elections in her old riding of North Vancouver,[4]: 227, 249  and a 1956 by-election in Vancouver Centre,[4]: 264  but was unsuccessful in all attempts. She also ran federally as a CCF candidate in Burnaby—Richmond in 1949,[5] and for the New Democratic Party (successor to the CCF) in Vancouver Quadra in 1963,[6] but was defeated both times.

Away from the legislature, Steeves served in CCF executives at the provincial and federal levels,[3] including as vice-president for the BC CCF's provincial council in 1949, and as provincial council president in 1950.[1] She wrote The Compassionate Rebel: Ernest E. Winch and his times, published in 1960, and Builders and Rebels: A short History of the CCF from 1932 to 1961.[3] She died on May 9, 1978.[7][8]

Electoral record

1933 British Columbia general election: Vancouver-Point Grey
Party Candidate Votes%Elected
LiberalGeorge Moir Weir12,16316.97Green tickY
LiberalStanley Stewart McKeen9,88013.79Green tickY
LiberalRobert Wilkinson9,39313.11Green tickY
Co-operative CommonwealthWilliam Arthur Pritchard7,69310.74
Co-operative CommonwealthFrank Ebenezer Buck7,42310.36
Co-operative CommonwealthDorothy Steeves7,21410.07
Non-Partisan Independent GroupDugald Donaghy5,1307.16
Non-Partisan Independent GroupGeorge Alexander Walkem3,6945.15
UnionistWilliam Savage2,6403.68
UnionistFrederick DeWolfe Turner2,0782.90
Non-Partisan Independent GroupLaura Dickey MacKay1,7312.41
UnionistAlice Townley1,4342.00
IndependentWilliam McNeill9021.26
United Front (Workers and Farmers)George Drayton1740.24
Independent Co-operative CommonwealthEdwin Clarke Appleby1110.15
Total valid votes 71,660100.00
Total rejected ballots 608
1963 Canadian federal election: Vancouver Quadra
Party Candidate Votes%±%
LiberalGrant Deachman15,16041.73+10.66
Progressive ConservativeHoward Charles Green13,75637.87–7.59
New DemocraticDorothy Steeves5,32414.66–2.49
Social CreditJames P.R. Mason2,0855.74–0.59
Total valid votes 36,32599.53
Total rejected ballots 1700.47–0.32
Turnout 36,49584.29+4.81
Eligible voters 43,299
Liberal gain from Progressive Conservative Swing +9.12
Source: Library of Parliament[9][10]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Walsh, Susan (1992). "The Peacock and the Guinea Hen: Political Profiles of Dorothy Gretchen Steeves and Grace MacInnis". British Columbia Reconsidered: Essays on Women. University of British Columbia. pp. 75–82. ISBN 978-0-88974-038-9. Retrieved October 13, 2025.
  2. 1 2 "Dorothy Gretchen Steeves fonds". British Columbia Archival Information Network. Retrieved November 5, 2011.
  3. 1 2 3 "Dorothy Gretchen Steeves, 1891-1978" (PDF). University of British Columbia. April 1976. Archived from the original (PDF) on June 9, 2012. Retrieved November 5, 2011.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Electoral History of British Columbia, 1871-1986" (PDF). Elections BC. Retrieved July 27, 2011.
  5. ↑ "Burnaby--Richmond, British Columbia (1947 - 1970)". History of Federal Ridings since 1867. Parliament of Canada. Retrieved November 5, 2011.
  6. ↑ "Vancouver Quadra, British Columbia (1947 - )". History of Federal Ridings since 1867. Parliament of Canada. Retrieved November 5, 2011.
  7. ↑ Death
  8. ↑ "Official Report of Debates of the Legislative Assembly (Hansard): Wednesday, May 10, 1978: Afternoon Sitting". Legislative Assembly of British Columbia. Retrieved October 13, 2025.
  9. ↑ Canada, Library of Parliament (2026). "Elections and Ridings: Vancouver Quadra, British Columbia (1963)". lop.parl.ca.
  10. ↑ Canada, Chief Electoral Officer (1963). Twenty-Sixth General Election, 1963: Report of the Chief Electoral Officer (Report). Ottawa: Queen's Printer. hdl:2027/umn.31951d013775837.
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