From 1908 until 1938, the University Board of Governors was made up of nine members: the President; three appointed by the provincial government; and five elected by the University Senate.
The man who served the longest as an appointed member (1908-1932) was also one of the first — Levi Thomson.
He was born in Hillsbury, Ont., on Feb. 17, 1855. He caught “western fever” in 1882 and followed the railroad to a farm near Wolseley in what was then the District of Assiniboia.
Though he had matriculated in law in Toronto in 1879, Thomson did not begin a western law practice until 1894. He then began a life as both a barrister and working farmer, a life a Regina Leader Post editorial described as both “honorable and useful.”
He served as a Crown prosecutor from 1897 until 1911.
For the next 10 years he served as a Liberal and then Unionist MP for the constituency of Qu’Appelle.
He was also prominent in the formation of the Progressive Party, serving as party whip. His interest in education was evident by his continuous appointment to the U of S Board of Governors.
Thomson died in Wolseley on April 14, 1938, at 82.