Article

Patrick Martin Draper

Published Online January 24, 2008

Last Edited December 12, 2013

Patrick Martin Draper"Paddy," printer, trade-union leader (b at Aylmer, Qué 1868; d at Ottawa 23 Nov 1943). Apprenticed as a printer, Draper began work at the Government Printing Bureau in Ottawa in 1888, and eventually served as director of printing from 1921 until retirement in 1933.

Draper, Patrick Martin

Patrick Martin Draper"Paddy," printer, trade-union leader (b at Aylmer, Qué 1868; d at Ottawa 23 Nov 1943). Apprenticed as a printer, Draper began work at the Government Printing Bureau in Ottawa in 1888, and eventually served as director of printing from 1921 until retirement in 1933. He was also an active trade unionist; he joined the Ottawa local of the International Typographical Union in 1888 and filled various posts in this union and in Ottawa's Allied Trades and Labor Association.

He moved into national prominence in 1900 when he was elected secretary of the TRADES AND LABOR CONGRESS of Canada. Thanks to his energy, administrative abilities and popularity, he held that important office until 1935, when he was chosen TLC president. In these positions, he attempted to maintain a measure of Canadian autonomy within the international labour movement. He stepped down in 1939 because of failing health. In his long career, Draper had frequently represented the Canadian labour movement on the national and international stages, including the Versailles Peace Conference in 1919.