George Clift King was the second mayor of the town of Calgary, Alberta.

King was born in Chelmsford, England on April 23, 1848. At the age of 26, he left England for Canada; arriving in Toronto, Ontario in 1874. He joined the North West Mounted Police and was part of the first contingent sent west to establish Fort Calgary in 1875. Constable King is often called Calgary's First Citizen, since he was the first NWMP officer to cross the Bow River and set foot on the future site of Calgary. This title is also sometimes given to Sam Livingston, another Calgary pioneer from the 1870s.

King left the NWMP in 1877 to manage the first store in Calgary, the I.G. Baker Store. In November of 1879, he married Louise Munro, the daughter of a fur trader. They were the first couple married in Calgary. Together they had four children.

In 1882, King started his own store which also housed the local post office. King was appointed postmaster in 1885 and held this postition for 36 years.

King was the mayor of the town of Calgary from November 4, 1886 to January 16, 1888. He also spent four years as town councillor. After his retirement as postmaster in 1921, he opened a tobacco and confectionary counter in MacLean's Drug Store on Eighth Avenue. King ran this business until his death on July 18, 1935. King was inducted into the Order of the British Empire on January 1, 1934 by King George V.

King was laid to rest in Calgary's Union Cemetary. On June 22, 2000, a monument was placed at King's grave and the grave of James Colvin, as they had been unmarked for several years. This was done as part of the 125 anniversary celebrations of Calgary.

External links

• Mounted Police of Calgaries Cemetaries: George Clift King (http://www.acs.ucalgary.ca/~dsucha/mountie/king.html)
• Calgary RCMP Vets: George Clift King (http://members.shaw.ca/rcmpvets.calgary/king.htm)