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print small medium large    Walter Maxfield Lea Premier from
1930 to 1931, 1935 to 1936  Click to enlarge  WALTER M. LEA, the
first farmer to become Premier of Prince Edward Island was born
in Tryon, on February 10, 1874. After completing his education,
he became a successful farmer and breeder of horses and cattle.
His skills in breeding and the constant desire to improve his
stock through experimentation led to many programs now accepted
as good farm practices. From an early age Walter Lea was
interested in the political life of his province and was first
elected to the House of Assembly as a Liberal in 1915, following
in his father's footsteps as an MLA. He was re-elected in 1919
and was named Commissioner of Agriculture. Mr. Lea suffered
defeat in the 1923 election but was returned to the House in
1927 and was again given the Agricultural post. During his
tenure as Commissioner of Agriculture, Mr. Lea introduced a
number of programs such as tuberculin testing of cat