Showing 2266 results

James (Jim) Hermiston Aitchison was born on January 22, 1908 to James C. and Elizabeth Aitchison in Innerleithen, Scotland. He came to Canada at age four and was raised and educated in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. Aitchison received a B.A. (1928) and B.Ed. (1929) from the University of Saskatchewan as well as a B.Sc. from the London School of Economics (1935). While in London, Aitchison married Oriole, with whom he had one daughter, Elizabeth. In 1953, he received a Ph.D. from the University of Toronto.

Aitchison’s career as an educator began in 1929. He taught high school from 1929 until 1933 and lectured at Brandon College (1935-1938), University of Toronto (1938-1939), and McMaster (1939-1941). Aitchison then became an associate professor at Victoria College (1946-1948). He also served with the Canadian Army from 1942 to 1946, reaching the rank of Major.

Aitchison came to Dalhousie in 1949 and served as head or chairman of the Department of Political Science until 1973. His research centred on Canadian politics and government and he wrote profusely on the topic. He also edited The Political Process in Canada: Essays in Honour of R. MacGregor Dawson in 1963. Aitchison was active in the Dalhousie community and served as the first president of the Dalhousie Faculty Association in 1951. Even after his retirement, Aitchison maintained a close connection with Dalhousie’s Department of Political Science, continuing to work in his office as late as 1993 at age eighty-five. He was also active in a number of professional organizations, including the Canadian Association of University Teachers and the Social Science Research Council of Canada, where he served as president and chairman, respectively.

In the 1960s, Aitchison was also involved with the Nova Scotia New Democratic Party, serving as chairman of the committee for the party (1961-1962), party president (1962-1964), president and acting leader (1964-1966), and leader (1966-1968). He also ran unsuccessfully for election in the 1962 and 1965 federal elections, as well as in the 1967 provincial election.

In 1993, Aitchison’s contributions to his field were honoured by the Atlantic Provinces Political Science Association. He died in Halifax on July 12, 1994.

John Geoffrey Adshead was born in 1904 in Manchester, England. He was educated at Stockport Grammar School before entering Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge University, graduating with first class honours with distinction in mathematics. He was also a half-blue in lacrosse, later touring the United States as a member of the Oxford-Cambridge lacrosse team. In 1927 he was appointed at the University of King's College, transferring to Dalhousie University in 1947 as acting head of the Department of Mathematics, a position made permanent in 1953.

In addition to his popularity with students, he was considered by his colleagues to be an excellent cook. In P.B. Waite's reminiscences of faculty life in the 1950s, he writes that "one remembers Adshead's baked halibut with oyster stuffing, served with a Poilly Fuissé" (http://hdl.handle.net/10222/63115). Adshead retired in 1964 and died in 1979.

Frank Dawson Adams was born 17 September 1859 in Montreal, Quebec. After graduating from Montreal High School, he completed his BSc (1878) and MA (1884) at McGill University, and later earned a PhD at Heidelberg University. In 1892 he married Mary Stuart Finlay.

Adams was a well-known geologist, educator and author with a long association with McGill University. He began lecturing at McGill in 1889 and held a number of prominent positions there, including Logan Professor of Geology, Dean of Applied Science, Director of the Redpath Museum, Acting Principal, Vice-Principal and Dean of Graduate Studies. He was also employed as a chemist and petrographer for the Geological Survey of Canada from 1913-1914, was Deputy Director of Khaki University in Britain, and actively participated in a number of national and international geological organizations, including the Geological Society of Canada.

Adams retired from McGill in 1924 and traveled widely while continuing his geological research and study. A recognized leader in his field, he was awarded the Flavelle Medal in 1937 and held honourary degrees from the University of Toronto, Queen’s, Mount Allison, Bishop’s, and Tufts. His articles were printed in American and Canadian journals, and he was the author of the well-regarded The Birth and Development of the Geological Sciences in 1938. Adams died in Montreal on 26 December 1942.