From Arm's Length to Hands-On: The Formative Years of Ontario's Public Service, 1867-1940

Confederation was a relief to legislators who had to ensure the uneasy union between Upper and Lower Canada; the dualism had demanded double-barrelled ministries and the rotation of the capital, after 1849, between Toronto and Quebec City every four years.

The year 1867 was therefore a watershed. The creation of the province of Ontario demanded that a civil service be put in place to support the new offices of the lieutenant-governor, Executive Council, and Legislative Assembly. However, th...