Chubby Power
Usually when I cover a hockey player on here, their greatest success was in hockey. Then there are people like Chubby Power.
He was a star hockey player.
A war hero.
A Parliamentarian and Cabinet Minister.
And a Senator.
A lot of life lived.
So let’s dive into that amazing life.
Usually when I schedule a person in to cover on the podcast, they are most known for hockey but in reality, Power only played hockey briefly. So, this episode will be shorter, and a bit different from other episodes.
Charles Gavan “Chubby” Power was born on Jan. 18, 1888 in Sillery, Quebec. His father William Power, would later serve in Parliament from 1902 to 1908 and 1911 to 1917. It wasn’t just his father who succeeded from the family. Chubby Power’s brother James was a star hockey player, as was his brother Joe. Joe Power went on to serve in the Legislative Assembly of Quebec. Another brother, William, also served in the Legislative Assembly of Quebec and Chubby Power’s son Frank was a Parliamentarian, while his grandson Larence, was an Ambassador to France.
Quite the family.
A gifted athlete, Chubby Power started playing for the Quebec Bulldogs of the Eastern Canada Amateur Hockey Association in 1906. His time in the league was cut short as he returned to Montreal to finish his studies.
His first season with the Bulldogs, known as the Quebec Hockey Club at the time was not stellar. He appeared in one game, and had one goal.
But things picked up soon after.
In 1907-08, he recorded 22 goals in 10 games, including one four goal game. The Montreal Gazette wrote,
“Chubby Power proved a worthy successor to his brother Joe as rover.”
The next season, 1908-09, he had 21 goals in 12 games, including one five goal game.
During the First World War, Power enlisted as a private with the Westmount Battalion and eventually rose to become an acting major with the Royal Montreal Regiment.
In November 1915, Chubby Power and his brother Joe had a reunion in Northern France. Joe Power went over with the first contingent, while Chubby Power followed soon after. The two brothers, due to being stationed in different corps, had not seen each other in a year. As it turned out, they ran into each other as their regiments crossed paths. The Ottawa Citizen wrote,
“As one regiment was leaving the trenches and being relieved by another, Joe and Chubby met as one brother was about to take the other’s place in the trench. The night was dark, but not too dark for the boys to recognize each other, and the meeting, through necessarily short, it can easily be understood was most touching.”
On Dec. 10, 1915, Power was wounded on the battlefield and was sent to hospital in England. The Vancouver Daily World wrote,
“Power is known throughout Canada as one of the best hockey players of the amateur leagues.”
Power spent months recovering in the hospital in England due to the shrapnel that hit him in the right foot. It would be another two months before he returned to the front lines.
Almost a year after he was first wounded, Power was wounded in October 1916 at the Battle of the Somme. The newspaper reported that he was seriously, and possibly, mortally wounded. Thankfully, he began to recover and would survive.
On Feb. 6, 1917, Power returned back to Canada. Due to his injuries, which included a serious wound on his arm, he would never play hockey again.
For his actions during the war, he was awarded the Military Cross.
After he returned home, Power entered politics when he was elected to the House of Commons as a Laurier Liberal on Dec. 17, 1917. The Ottawa Citizen wrote,
“He will be remembered as the dashing centre forward of the famous old Quebec team on which his brothers Rocket and Joe also figured. Chubby distinguished himself in heroic style in France and many local friends will join him in congratulating him on his successful political plunge.”
That election win began a four-decade career in Parliament.
In 1935, Power was appointed as the Minister of Pensions and Health in the Liberal Cabinet of Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King.
During the Second World War, Power was appointed as the Acting Minister of National Defence in 1940.
Soon after, he was made the Minister of National Defence for Air, a portfolio he held from 1940 to 1945. One of his key responsibilities was the expansion of the Royal Canadian Air Force. He was also a driving force in the establishment and operation of the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan that trained 130,000 Allied pilots and aircrews for the war in Europe.
Still opposed to conscription, as he was in the First World War, Power resigned from cabinet during the Conscription Crisis of 1944 after the government passed an Order in Council to send conscripts overseas.
He sat as an Independent Liberal for the remainder of the war.
After the war, Power returned to the Liberal Party.
In 1948, Power ran to succeed King as Leader of the Liberal Party and as Prime Minister of Canada.
At the 1948 Leadership Convention, he finished in third place behind James Gardiner and winner Louis St. Laurent. Power was only able to muster 56 votes for 4.6 per cent of the vote.
In 1955, Power retired from the House of Commons. Soon after on July 28, 1955, he was appointed to the Canadian Senate.
In 1966, he wrote his memoir, A Party Politician, which is considered one of the best memoirs written by a Canadian politician.
Power died on May 30, 1968 in Quebec City.
In 2013, he was made a National Historic Person by the federal government.
What about his brothers, who also had success in hockey?
His brother Joe was the star of the family when it came to hockey. He joined the Quebec Hockey Club in 1901, playing for their Seconds team. He joined the senior team a year later and remained with the team until 1910-11. His best season was in 1905-06 when he had 21 goals in 10 games. In 1907-08, he had 12 goals in 10 games.
On the teams, he was known for his quick wit and he was called Joe the Joker.
He served in the Quebec Legislature from 1927 until his death in office in 1935.
James Power began playing for the Quebec Crescents in 1900, and joined the Quebec Hockey Club in 1901. He played for the Canadian Sault Hockey Club in 1903-04, but returned to Quebec the following year. He also played for the Edmonton Thistles briefly. He hopped around various leagues in western Canada, Quebec and the Maritimes before he retired in 1913. With the nickname of Rocket, he was the first person to have that nickname and play for the Montreal Canadiens.
When he joined the Canadiens, there was some blowback because he was English. Power pointed out that Newsy Lalonde was on the team and even though he had a French Canadian name, he couldn’t speak French. In contrast, Power spoke perfect French.
Powe did not return to the Montreal Canadiens in 1911-12 though.
