Pearce, W. (William), 1848-1930

William Pearce (1848-1930) apprenticed as a surveyor, joining the Dept. of the Interior in that capacity in 1874. By 1884 he was acting as the departments chief advisor on the development of the North-West. Calgary became his headquarters in 1884 when he was appointed Superintendent of Mines. His position rapidly became that of troubleshooter, advisor and unofficial promoter for western expansion. He was assigned the task of settling land claims, particularly those of the Métis and squatters. Based on this knowledge, Mr. Pearce prepared the official report on the Causes of the Riel Rebellion. During the next twenty years William Pearce was actively engaged in devising a number of policies designed to control the development of resources. These included the creation of stock-watering reserves, establishment of the system of National Parks, initiation of irrigation projects and passage of the North-West Irrigation Act. In 1904 Mr. Pearce left the government service and joined the Canadian Pacific Railways, providing expertise in all fields of resource development, particularly irrigation. In 1916 he served on the Economic and Development Commission of the Canadian government. In his last years, he acted as statistician for the C.P.R.