Discussions

Congrats to Shari Decter Hirst on becoming the first woman mayor of Brandon ! It comes just shy of the 75th anniversary of Brandon electing their first woman alderman !  
 
There's not a lot about her on-line but searching back through newspapers and Henderson Directories I think I pieced together an accurate sketch of her life. If there are any family or fans out there, please help fill in the gaps !  
 
 
Born in 1891, Rhoda E. Power was raised in Brandon along with seven other sisters.  
 
In 1907 she wrote her entrance exam for teaching college and graduated in July 1911. Her first teaching job in Brandon was at the Assiniboine School at 60 - 13th Street North where she is listed as a staff member from at least 1917 to 1919.  
 
While teaching she rented rooms at both 332-12th St and 321 - 13th, (which could be a typo but that is what Henderson's says !). A number of her sisters lived together in a room in the Yukon block.  
 
Between 1921 and 1933 there is no listing for Rhoda Power or George A. Tennant, a CPR brakeman and the man she would marry. I assume that in this dozen years she got married and moved to Minnedosa.  
 
The couple returned to Brandon in 1935 with George now a CPR conductor. Mrs. Tennant did not go back to teaching, (could married women teach at that time ?), instead she became heavily involved in community work through the Brandon YMCA and United Church.  
 
It would have an unpleasant time to be in Brandon as the Depression was at its depth. The city cut many services to the bone, or did away with them altogether, and was living on lines of credit just to pay bills and the massive relief costs.  
 
It was into that environment that Mrs. Tennant decided to run in the 1936 civic election. She won, becoming the first woman elected to the chamber on November 26, 1936 and went straight to work on the social side of things.  
 
From the image you can see that on top of the Finance committee, which would have been no treat during the Depression, she also sat on the Relief committee and chaired the Children's Welfare committee.  
 
Things got worse, fast, for the city. Tennant warned at one meeting that the city would soon have no relief money left to spend. Borrowing more was problematic as they were debating in committee whether or not they would have to default on the interest payments on their line of credit.  
 
Mayor Cater (these would be his final two years of an 18 year reign over the city) and council raised the white flag. They basically declared themselves bankrupt to the province and requested a provincial administrator be appointed to oversee the affairs of the city. (It would take nearly two decades to come out from receivership).  
 
I cannot find any record of Tennant running again in 1938. That likely makes sense. The Depression was easing, city council had very little control over their own decisions under an administrator and after the tumultuous two years she'd been though it probably felt more like ten.  
 
I cannot find a lot on Tennant after this time. She and George continued to live at 223 - 3rd St until his death around 1952.  
 
In 1950 one of her 7 sisters, Mrs. Elizabeth McKnight of Homewood drowned to death in her farm's dugout.  
 
Rhoda Powers Tennant died on September 15, 1970 in Brandon.  
 
Related: http://www.mhs.mb.ca/docs/people/tennant_r.shtml  
 
 
 
Edited by mrchristian, 2010-10-28 02:39:22