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Philip J. Lewis

Canadian politician (1900–1985)

Correspondence, annotated notebooks and portrait silhouettes prepared for research
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Record originEnglish Wikipedia
Text licenseCC BY-SA 4.0
Source revisionAug 30, 2026
Entity authorityQ7183825 ↗
Source-derived summary

Philip J. Lewis (November 28, 1900 – August 16, 1985) was a lawyer and politician in the Dominion of Newfoundland and later the Province of Newfoundland. He represented Harbour Main from 1928 to 1932 as a Liberal, Placentia and St. Mary's from 1932 to 1934 as a member of the United Newfoundland Party and Harbour Main-Bell Island from 1951 to 1971 as a Liberal in the Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly.

He was born in Holyrood, the son of John Lewis and Elizabeth Veitch, and was educated at Saint Bonaventure's College and Dalhousie University. Lewis was called to the Newfoundland bar in 1926 and set up practice in St. John's. He served in the Executive Council of Richard Squires as a minister without portfolio. Lewis married Ella Roche. In 1940, he was named King's Counsel. Lewis served in Joey Smallwood's cabinet as a minister without portfolio from 1951 to 1971.

Editorial summary

The public source identifies “Philip J. Lewis” as canadian politician (1900–1985). This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Philip, Lewis and Canadian.

Editorial reviewA productive starting point for separating a subject’s documented career from later reputation and commemoration. The current lead gives the account dated anchors—1900, 1985, 1928, 1932—that can be checked directly. The linked authority record independently contributes the date 1900-11-28. Its value is orientation rather than verdict, with Philip, Lewis and Canadian providing the first useful test.
Editorial analysis

Why this record matters

A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “Philip J. Lewis”, the useful work is to connect “canadian politician (1900–1985)” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.

Evidence profile

Biographical claims are most persuasive when dates, appointments and relationships can be traced to records created close to the events described. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 30, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q7183825. VIAF identifies the subject as 4047151112574737180007. The Library of Congress control number is no2017149902. 2 of 3 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1900, 1985, 1928 and 1932.

Critical limits

Public reputation and documentary evidence do not always develop together; absence from a summary is not evidence of historical absence. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.

How to read it

Read biographical claims against dates, named institutions and the cited references. Distinguish a subject’s later reputation from evidence produced during their lifetime.

Best used for
  • Establishing names and roles
  • Building a first chronology
  • Locating cited institutions
Verify next

Personal papers, civil or court records, institutional files and the scholarship cited by the source.

Three-step research path

  1. Establish the record: confirm the title “Philip J. Lewis”, its source revision and the description used here.
  2. Expand the search: follow Philip J. Lewis primary sources, Philip J. Lewis archive and Philip research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
  3. Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.

Questions for further research

  1. Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Philip J. Lewis”?
  2. Which claims depend on a single source or contested interpretation?
  3. How has the subject’s reputation changed across later accounts?
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Source & attribution

This entry incorporates text from “Philip J. Lewis” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.