Laurier House National Historic Site of Canada

The King Years

In 1919, William Lyon Mackenzie King succeeded Laurier as the head of the Liberal party and leader of the opposition. Two years later he led the Liberals to victory in the general election and became prime minister. He also in 1921 became the owner of the Sandy Hill house where the Lauriers had lived for so long.

The house came to him as a bequest under the terms of Lady Laurier's will . King had, for many years, been a friend and staunch supporter of Laurier and the gift of their house to King may have been her expression of thanks to her husband's successor. King demonstrated his gratitude by giving the house the name by which it continues to be known: Laurier House. Like Laurier he was not a wealthy man and was worried about being able to afford to live there. As with Laurier, friends of the Liberal party came to the rescue, raising funds not only to operate the house but to extensively renovate it.

The renovations to Laurier House delayed for many months King's move to his new home. At last, in his diary entry for 12 January 1923, he was able to record "I am writing for the first time in my new library at Laurier House and spending the first night beneath my own roof." He lived there for the remainder of his life.

King became Canada's longest serving prime minister, holding the office for over twenty-one years. He fought and won his last general election in 1945. Poor health forced him to retire three years later. He died in 1950. By the terms of King's will, Laurier House and most of its contents were bequeathed to the people of Canada. Since 1951, it has been open to the public.

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