Angus Lewis Macdonald - Assessment and Legacy

Assessment and Legacy

Murray Beck writes that Macdonald's political appeal to Nova Scotians may have been even stronger than the legendary Joseph Howe's. Like Howe, Macdonald was a passionate and eloquent leader whose elegantly crafted speeches reflected his wit, wide learning and respect for factual accuracy. Beck writes that by scrupulously fulfilling his campaign promises, Macdonald became known as a leader who always kept his word.

Macdonald's reputation as the premier who led the province out of the Great Depression rested on his commitment to ambitious government projects such as highway construction and rural electrification. He continued to support highway improvements throughout his career. Two projects that he pushed especially hard for, the Canso Causeway linking Cape Breton Island to mainland Nova Scotia and a suspension bridge spanning Halifax Harbour were completed after his death. The bridge, named in his honour, made it possible to travel between Halifax and Dartmouth without having to board a ferry or drive several kilometres around the Bedford Basin.

Macdonald consistently called for a more equitable redistribution of wealth, so that poorer provinces such as Nova Scotia, could share fully in Canada's prosperity. Biographer Stephen Henderson writes that Macdonald deserves credit for the introduction, in 1957, of an equalization scheme designed to enable poorer provinces to provide comparable levels of services to their citizens. Macdonald's advocacy of provincial autonomy however, fell victim to the centralizing tendencies of a post-war welfare state in which the federal government increasingly assumed greater control over national social programs.

Throughout his life, Macdonald maintained ties to his alma mater, St. Francis Xavier University. He received an honorary doctor of laws degree from St. FX in 1946. He served as honorary chair and fundraiser for the university's centennial celebrations in 1953 and raised money to support student research into the early history of the Scots in Nova Scotia. Macdonald suggested that the reading room in a new university library be called the Hall of the Clans. St. FX adopted the idea and decided to name the library in his honour. Thus, when the Angus L. Macdonald Library officially opened on July 17, 1965, 50 coats of arms representing both Scottish and Irish clans adorned the walls of its reading room.