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, J. , Celebrate Memorial! ~ Q ~ ~
"% Jl-~ a pictorial history of Memorial University of Newfoundland
Celebrate Memorial is a project of Memorial University's Anniversaries Committee
to commemorate the Festival of Anniversaries, which over two years marks
several important dates in our history.
• 75th anniversary of the founding of Memorial University College in 1925
• 50th anniversary of Memorial University as a degree-granting school in 1949
• 35th anniversary of the Marine Institute's beginnings in 1964
• 25th anniversary of Grenfell College's start in 1975
Since its founding, the university has played a significant role in all aspects of the
development of our province. Our 50,000 alumni are leaders in business,
industry, education, government and many endeavours at home, in the rest of
Canada, and around the world. This book is a pictorial overview of Memorial's
history, its accomplishments and its contributions to tl1e provincial community.
The first chapter covers the period from 1925 to 1949; in the other five, the story
of Memorial's 50 years as a university is told decade by decade, highlighting the
development in the life of our academic community. We hope you will enjoy this
look back at the people and the events that have shaped our anniversary as
Memorial celebrates the past and, with great optimism, looks forward to being
part of the continuing development of Newfoundland and Labrador.
Kevin Keough Chair, Anniversaries Commillee
Table of Contents
Chapter 1 1925 to 1949 ........ 1
Chapter 2 1950 to 1959 ...... 17
Chapter 3 1960 to 1969 ...... 33
Chapter 4 1970 to 1979 ...... 49
Chapter 5 1980 to 1989 ...... 65
Chapter 6 1990 to 1999 ...... 81
by Dr. Melvin Baker and Jean Graham
Research: Dr. Melvin Baker Design: Helen Houston
All photos are courtesy of Memorial University except where noted
Memorial
university is the consciousness of a community reaching out to
a realization of the higher powers of the mind .... Universities
enrich the world .... The mandate given the college was not only
high, but wide, and not until shared and made serviceable for
the wants of all, will it be fulfilled. ''
- President John Lewis Paton at the official opening of Memorial University College on Sept. 15, 1925 CHAPTER 1
•
• 1921 Normal School opens • 1924 Parade Street campus for Normal School opens • 1925 Memorial University College opens • Appointment of John Lewis Paton as president • 1931 Old Memorials Association formed • First issue of the Cap and Gown yearbook published • 1932 Opening of the new wing
• 1933 Appointment of Albert G. Hatcher as president • 1934 Teaching Training Department
established • 1935 Memorial University College (Governors) Act
I ,I
• 1936 First issue of the Memorial Times published • 1949 University status for the college The founding trustees of Memorial University College: Arthur Barnes, Wil liam Blackall, Vincent Burke, Levi Curtis
and Ronald Kennedy.
Memorial's foundations When Memorial University College opened in 1925, it repre ented
several years of effort by educators to provide a non-denominational system of post-secondaty education. The superintendents of the
major denominations had been trying to raise teacher training standard since at least 1913.
William Blackall (Church of England), Levi CUttis (Methodist) and Vincent Burke (Roman Catholic), with funding from local
businesses, established a joint summer school for teachers in 1917; the experiment continued the following summer. In Januaty 1919
Curtis and Burke sponsored a resolution of the Patriotic Association, calling on the government to construct a training school as a
memorial to ewfoundlanders who had died in the First World War.
In 1920 the government of Richard quire created a Department of
Education and established a ormal School to train teachers. Arthur Barnes became the minister of education and Vincent Burke was
2 Celebrate Memorial
appointed deputy minister. Ronald Kennedy replaced Burke a the
Roman Catholic superintendent. The Normal School rented premises from September 1921 until September 1924, when a new two-acre campus opened at Merrymeeting Road and Parade Street in St.
John's.
With no government funding to operate any academic program aside from education, Burke, Curtis and Blackall turned to the
Carnegie Corporation of New York. In 1924 the corporation agreed to an annual grant of $15,000 for five years, provided that the government would provide $5,000 a year. Prime Minister Walter Monroe accepted this offer in 1925 and appointed a board of
trustees to administer rl1e Carnegie grant.
On Sept. 15, 1925, the college under President John Lewis Paton
was officially opened by Governor Sir William Allardyce.
l925 The college staff In 1925 • John Lewis Paton, classics and German • Albert G. Hatcher, mathematics • Alfred Hunter, English and French
• George O'Sullivan, chemistry and physics • Solomon Whiteway, history; principal of the Normal School • El izabeth McGrath, registrar
The first students and staff of Memorial University College, 1925-26 Insert: Helena McGrath, the first graduate in 1926.
The college has been erected as a
Memorial to those who fought and fell
in the hope that by their sacrifice their
country might be made a better and
happier place for their fellow men.
Can we doubt that those who strove
to establish the college and
succeeded in spite of all difficulties
were inspired with that spirit of
service, and is it not possible that the
building itself ... is not already
endowed with the same spirit?
-St. John's Evening Telegram, Sept. 16, 1925
Celebrate Memorial
Community Outreach
To make the college of service to the
general public implies more than the
indirect benefits desirable through the
students, and these are many. It is
direct service which will popularize the
institution. This the college proposes to
introduce not in the sweet bye and bye,
but in the living present .... The college
is opening its doors to all. All may
become students, if they will. Lost
opportunities may be regained, whilst
new ones are knocking at the doors of
all who desire to avail of them.
-St. John's Daily News, Sept. 17, 1925
4 Celebrate Memorial
. President John Lewis Paton
In 1967 President (pro tern) M.O. Morgan wrote of Paton that "his memorial
is the achievement of his students. In a real sense Memorial University is
itself a memorial to him, for he laid the foundation of sound scholarship and quality, of attention to our social and physical environment, of
concern for students and of outreach to the community."
As a motto for the college, Paton adopted Provehito in altum -"launch forth into the deep." And launch forth he did- with a vision
of a college that would erve evety citizen of Britain's oldest colony.
Paton was concerned that many otherwise qualified young people would
not be able to attend the college for financial reasons. In 1926 he set up a
scholarship and loan fund. A. C. Hunter later recalled, "No one knows how
many students had their college fees, and later their univer ity fees, paid by [Paton]." Paton also collected donations from business people and encouraged
students to raise funds from concerts and other functions. Within two years the scholarship and loan fund stood at over ~6,000. The interest from this fund made it possible for students, after
graduating from the college, to finance at least part of their univer ity education abroad. When he died in 1946 Paton left the college a bequest of $3,000 for student assistance.
Paton wa determined to see the college reach out to the public through popular subjects such as art and navigation. Extension courses became a regular feature of college activities. The college
quickly became a social and intellectual centre for St. John's, while graduates carried its influence across the country.
Enrolment increased annually, resulting in ~1emorial 's first overcrowding problem. In 1930 the
college was forced to restrict the enrolment of first-year students. Converting the Assembly Hall into a lecture room provided a temporary solution, while the government added a three-storey wing
that opened in 1932. Much larger than the original building, the new wing contained a large lecture theatre and a gymnasium, the largest in Newfoundland at that time, which was also used for city sports activities.
1925 • Facilities: assembly hall, library, three laboratories, lecture rooms and offices. • Number of full·time students: 57 • Tuition fee (per academic year): $40 • Number of faculty members: 5
Postage stamp showing Memorial ~n.iversity . 1933 with the 1932 addition on the
College m left.
Students in chemistry lab, 1933.
Students writing exams in 1933.
Men's soccer team, 1928.
Celebrate Memorial 5
1935 • Facilities: Gymnasium, four labs, lecture hall, library, lecture rooms, offices • Number of students: 220 • Tuition fee (per academic year) : $50 • Number of faculty members: 12 • Books in library: 8,000
I
By the end of the college's first
decade its graduates were eagerly
sought by the government for
positions in a reorgamzed civil
service. In the late 1930s, the
thriving college set up two-year
pre-agriculture, -medical, -dertal,
and -engineering programs, with
agreements allowing students to
continue their studies at other
colleges and universities.
6 Celebrate Memorial
President Albert George Hatcher Albert Hatcher was born in 1886 in Moreton's Harbour and attended Methodist
College, St. John's; McGill University, Montreal; University of Chicago; and
Columbia University, New York. During the First World War, Hatcher served as
a professor in the Royal Canadian Navy at Royal Roads in British Columbia
and at the Naval College, Halifax. He was later a professor of natural
science at Bishop's College, Lennoxville, Quebec, and in 1925 he joined the
staff of the newly created Memorial University College to teach mathematics.
He retired as president in 1952 for health reasons and accepted the title of
president emeritus. He died at St. John's on Oct. 30, 1954.
In 1933 Paton retired and Albert Hatcher was
appointed president. Hatcher was one of Memorial
University College's original faculty members. In a
tribute in the 1955 edition of the Cap and Gown yearbook, Dean A. C. Hunter wrote that Hatcher
was a "man of wide and varied intellectual
interest , philosophical, literary and linguistic, as
well as mathematical and scientific. But it was not
that that specially distinguished him. It was rather
his intense interest in every single student as a
person. He trained and exercised his natural gift
for remembering the names, native places, and
circumstances of all his students. Students could
not fail to be aware of the personal quality in his
dealings with them. He had a pretty turn of wit,
too, when in humour, and some of the most
amusing after-dinner speeches I have heard were
made by President Hatcher at college functions. He
had little patience for the familiar academic
controversies. What is uncultural, he would say,
about training for a vocation? He saw these
dichotomies as petty and artificial, realizing as he
did the truth that the spirit of learning and teaching
alone counts. Truth is one, not many. The bu iness
of the university is to seek and disseminate truth.
Let teacher and student together pursue the search
and all will be well." Hatcher's legacy was to
provide strong and stable leadership during diffcult
financial and political years in Newfoundland in
the 1930s and 1940s.
Women's field hockey team, 1925.
Domestic science class, 1933.
Original Parade Street building: Insert: Parade Street campus in 1933 with the addition to the left constructed in 1932.
Celebrate Memorial 7
Monnle Mansfield, registrar 1929·1959,
and dean of women
Born in Boston in 1895,
Monnie Mansfield moved
to St. John's with her
Newfoundland-born
parents and was
educated at St.
Bride's College. In
1929 she joined the
staff of the college as
secretary to President
Paton and also as
registrar. Because of her strong
interest in the welfare of students and her
"passionate insistence on the individuality
of students," as university orator George
Story recalled in 1964, She was
appointed dean of women in 1944. She
retired in 1959 and was awarded an
honorary master of arts degree at the
1960 spring convocation, the last official
function on the Parade Street campus.
She died on Aug. 28, 1963.
8 Celebrate Memorial
1936 Students' Representative Council. Bottom (1-r) - Walter Macabe, Fabian O'Dea, Frederick Gover, Margaret Conroy, Charles Roberts. Top (1-r) - Frederick Smallwood, Ruth Summers, Margaret Robertson, Gertrude Butler, Dorothy Milley, Charles Godden.
The engineers' banquet, April 27' 1937.
c 0 ·~ Women's field hockey team fall1939. Front (1-r) ~ .,_ - Christine Roberts, Marion Peters. Middle (1-r) 0
~ -Ainslie Cole, Gladys Harvey, Jean Ross. Back ~ (1-r) - Sally Suckling, Allison Strong, Phyllis ~
8 Carter, Ruth Halfyard, Gwen Earle. Insert-E I o Georgie Carnel . .c
Q~--------------------~
Being there My memories of the
Parade Street campus
go back to 1936 and
the beginning for me
of the great adventure
of higher learning!
Flashbacks always
include the fatherly
smiles of Dr.
Hatcher; the
professional insights
gained in the
teacher training program under professor Edward
Powell; practice teaching at Bishop Spencer
College in St. John's under the searching gaze of
Miss Violet Cherrington; friendships that have
lasted a lifetime; and, above all, the fostering of
my life-long affair with English literature. Through
such teachers as A. C. Hunter, David Pitt, and
Alison O'Reilly Feder, any success I have had in my
own career owes much to their guidance, and my
hope is that I have been able to share with my own
students some of the insights gained in those
early days.
-Alice Wareham, '36
Celebrate Memorial 9 ~
Library in 1933.
10 Celebrate Memorial
In 1946 about 50 ex-servicemen entered Memorial University
College. The administration generously provided a room in
the basement for use as a club and meeting room. I recall
the many heated discussions on confederation and other
current issues in which veterans and younger members of
the student body participated. It was here that past
friendships were renewed and new ones
made that have continued down through
the years.
- Heward Peters, '48
Being there In 1941-42 we were issued khaki
coveralls with wedge caps of the same
limp-twill material. The shoulders bore a
large, bright-red "M" on a small cloth
patch of white. We were given basic
military training, using World War I
weapons, by Sgt. Crump, a feisty little
drill instructor from the Welsh Guards.
All our training was done at the CLB
Armoury.
One evening, on our way home, Len
Porter and I decided to use our
quasi-military garb to gain entry to a
lively dance "for servicemen only" in
the Guards ' Club Rooms at the top
of Barter's Hill. We were stopped at
the threshold of a promising evening
by the doorman, who loudly
demanded, "What outfit
are you fellows with, McKinlay
Motors?"
-Bruce Woodland, '41
Alfred Collinson Hunter
A. C. Hunter taught English and French at
the college. A vigorous and stimulating
teacher, he impressed upon his
students the value of clear thinking,
accuracy and intellectual integrity. In
1933 he became vice-president. On
his retirement from Memorial
University in 1958, Hunter was
appointed dean emeritus, and was
awarded an honorary doctorate by the
un versity in 1961. In 1971 university orator George
Story wrote of Hunter that he was the "dominant figure
of the institution by virtue of his fastidious scholarship,
h1s rigorous and demanding skill as a teacher, and the
r'c~ness of intellectual and moral culture. " Hunter died
at St. John's on May 16, 1971.
Women's basketball team, 1944-45. Front (1-r) -Jess Case, Betty Jamieson, Jan Story, Gert Peters. Back (1-r) - J~ne Clouston, Ruth Fraser, Betty Bastow, Marg Garland, Elizabeth
Carter.
Students on the front steps of the college, late 1930s.
The war years For much of the war the college shared its facilities with the Canadian forces. The gymnasium became a
hospital ward for sailors. Many students and faculty members volunteered for military service. Undergraduate men were required to participate in the
college's cadet corps, while the women enrolled in first aid and physical training cia ses. Members of the
Canadian armed forces and the Newfoundland military took courses at the college as part of the Canadian
Legion' War ervices Education Committee activities.
Celebrate Memorial
1948-1949 • Facilities: Gymnasium, four laboratories, engineering drafting room, lecture hall, library, lecture rooms, offices • Number of full-time students: 329 • Tuition fee (per academic year): $100 • Union fee: $5 per annum for games and societies, payable by all students • Number of faculty members: 26 . ~
teps of Memorial University College in the mid-1930s.
Students on s
1 Celebrate Memorial
S t pus to Pitts Memorial Graduating class parading from Parade tree cam
Hall, June 7, 1941.
Women's field hockey team fall1940. Front (1-r) -Shirley Morris, Ruth Butler. Middle (1-r)- Marion Peters, Jean Diamond, Gladys Harvey with athletic letter M, Lorna Collins, Elizabeth Angel, Marjorie Noftle. Back (1-r)- Helen Weir, Mabie Moore, Genevieve Winter, Daphne Barnes, Gwen Earle.
Celebrate Memorial 13
Engineering students on geology field trip at Manuels River, 194 7.
Sadie organ, librarian 1934-58.
14 Celebrate Memorial
University status As veterans returned from the Second World War, there was
another upsurge in enrolment. In 1946 enrolment peaked at
434 students, declining to 329 two years later. Overcrowded
classrooms and laboratories once more became the norm. Vice-president Hunter later recalled that the ''reading-room
planned for 100 had to serve four times that number" and noted "the utter inadequacy of the teaching staff- in 1946 ...
when students numbered over 400, 280 in the first year, the teaching staff in the Department of English numbered two,
both engaged at the same time in the Department of Foreign Languages."
As a temporaty solution, the government acquired two
nearby buildings from the American military, which had
established bases in Newfoundland during the war. As the
number of academic offerings grew, the board of governors
and the faculty sought university status, but the government
was unwilling to provide capital funding - although it did
agree, in 1946, to have the three-year teacher training
program included in the regular college curriculum.
On july 22, 1948, Newfoundlanders voted for Confederation
with Canada. On April1, 1949, joseph Roberts Smallwood,
the leader of the Confederate campaign, became premier of
Newfoundland. One of the first acts of the new Newfound
land legislature, on Aug. 13, 1949, was the enactment of a bill elevating the college to the status of a university to be known
a Memorial University of Newfoundland.
If there was a time to make the college a
university, that time is now,
now that we have become
a province of Canada
.... We will, as
Canadians, gradually,
more especially in
the generations to
come, gradually and
quite inevitably absorb a
wider outlook, a Canadian
outlook .... All the more reason, therefore, why
we should do something to see to 1t that our
distinctly Newfoundland culture and conscious·
ness do not disappear and are preserved and
maintained down to many generations in the
future. And l feel this university will be a great
means toward that end .... At the same time,
there is no reason, if we have the vision and if
we have the courage, ... the University of
Newfoundland for its size should not be the
most distinguished university in the whole
world ....
- Premier Joseph R. Smallwood speaking on Aug. 11, 1949, in the Newfoundland House of Assembly on second reading of legislation establishing Memorial University of Newfoundland.
Celebrate Memorial 5
Students at the entrance to the college, 1942.
Celebrate Memorial
1950 to1959 his is a provincial university, and the field within which it will have its immediate and
greatest opportunity for service will be among the people .... It is most fitting that
people should come to the university, but where that ideal is unattainable, within
certain fields it can and should go to the people .... [F]or its best work, the university
must have the sympathy and support of the public .... It is their university .... ''
- Raymond Gushue at his installation as president, Oct. 8, 1952 CHAPTER 2
Raymond Gushue · ~
Born in Whitbourne
on June 20, 1900,
Gushue earned a
law degree from
Dalhousie in 1925
and practiced law
until his appoint·
ment as chairman
of the Newfound·
land Fisheries
Board in 1936. He was chairman of the
Newfoundland Woods Labour Board
(1947-58) and a member of the Royal
Commission on Canada's Economic
Prospects (1955-58). In 1967 he
became the first Newfoundlander
appointed to the Order of Canada.
He died Dec. 18, 1980.
18 Celebrate Memorial
1 19 fir t degree-granting convocation 1 1952 philosophy 1 Gushue becomes president 1 Lord Rothermere installed as first chancellor 1 1953 physical education, geology 1 1954 commerce 1 1956 first master's degree (chemistry) 1 sociology, pre-forestry 1 1957 psychology 1 1958 master's degree in English 1 1959 sod· turning for new campus
First degree-granting convocation held by Memorial University on June 3, 1950. Seated- (l·r) George A. Hickman (dean, Education), Dr. A. C. Hunter (dean, Arts and Science), Dr. Albert G. Hatcher (president), Stanley J. Carew (dean, Applied Science). Standing (l·r)- Thomas J. Strapp, BA; John R. Courage, BA (Ed.); Denise J. Bon nave, BA; Bernard W. March, BA; Frederick J. Newhook, BA.
Academic foundation The newly-formed university's policy was ''to
proceed slowly and urely o as to establish
degree patterns on sound academic lines." Early
emphasis was on a broad-based undergraduate program in the arts and sciences. In the mid-
1950s, graduate programs in selected disciplines were added; English and chemi try were the first departments to offer these program .
Paton's legacy of acce sibility continued in
official government policy that the largest
possible number of students be able to attend.
Memorial maintained tuition fee well below the average for the univer itie in the Maritime Provinces.
Undergraduate enrolment increased during the
decade, and the Parade Street campus inevitably became overcrowded despite several temporary
measure designed to accommodate the needs of
a growing student population and faculty. In the mid-1950 the university took over an adjoining
government building and erected four pre-fab buildings, one behind the adjacent USO
Building, two on the football field, and a student
building adjoining the west wing of the main building.
Chemistry profes or Hugh Anderson later
recalled in his unpublished memoirs that the two
tructures on the football field were known as "Tin Can East and West."
In 1958 overcrowding forced the administration
to impose a cap of 600 on first-year student , a quota that remained until 1961, when Memorial
moved to the Elizabeth Avenue campus.
Professor Corb Noel (centre) and students in the physics lab.
Women's basketball team, 1956-57. Front(1-r) Joan Parsons, Georgie Elton, Maxine Guzzwell, Eleanor Squires, Carolyn Pike. Back- (1-r) Professor Doug Eaton (coach), Marg Templeman, Joan Lewis, Shirley Earle Linda Winter, Christine Whelan.
We got a T·E·A·M. That's on the B·E·A·M. We got a team that's on the beam, That's really hep to the jive, So come on, Memorial, Skin 'em alive!
'Ray!
Celebrate Memorial 19
Chancellors of Memorial University (from top left)
The Rt. Hon. the Viscount Rothermere of Hemsted, 1952 -1961
The Rt. Hon. the Lord Thomson of Fleet, 1961- 1968
Dr. G. Alain Frecker, 1971 -1979
Dr. Paul G. Desmarais, 1979 -1988
Hon. Dr. John C. Crosbie, 1994 -
20 Celebrate Memorial
~949-1950 • 1949 Unit of the University Naval Training Division established • 1950 Unit of the Canadian Officers Training
Corps established
University governance The 1949 legislation establishing the university provided for a chancellor, a board of regents, a president
(appointed by the board), a senate, and faculty councils.
appointed or elected under the
authority of the Board of Regent . The three faculties
formally recognized in 1950 were arts and science, applied science, and education.
The Board of Regents oversaw
the management, administration and control of the property, revenue, business
and affairs of the university. It
consisted of government appointees and two members elected by Convocation.
E. J. Pratt, addressing convocation on the occasion of the installation of the Hon. the Viscount Rothermere of Hemsted as first chancellor and Raymond Gushue as second president, Oct. 8, 1952.
During the 1950s the university received its funding from three
main sources: the annual
operating grant from the province, student tuition fees,
and, after 1952, the federal
government. Beginning in 1952 the federal government made
annual grants available to President Hatcher, the first
universities based on a per capita population basis for president of the university, retired from the position in
each province. This financial assistance was critical to 1952. His successor was Raymond Gushue, a St. John's lawyer who had had a long association with the
college. He was a member of the governing board of the college and vice-chairman of the Board of Regents
before his appointment as president.
Responsibility for academic matters rested with Senate, an appointed body consisting of the president, the deputy minister of education, the deans of faculties, a representative of any college or institution affiliated with the university, and a maximum of six others
Memorial's academic growth.
Although the student base and the research focus were primarily rooted in Newfoundland, Memorial recruited
faculty from many universities and countries. A large percentage of new faculty members were British, but many were American and Canadian, including Newfoundlanders. A long-term effect of this hiring
practice was the broadening of the province's cultural and ethnic awareness.
1952 • President Hatcher unveils Memorial's coat of arms • Memorial revives the custom of wearing undergraduate gowns to classes
Executive of the Athletic Union, 1952·53.
t
. ·ty with engineering students in drafting lab. Open House at the un1vers1
Engineering students in 1956 conducting survey work at the future site of the new campus at Hal liday Farm. (1-r) Sidney Dyke, Edwin J. Snook, Roland Avery, Darryl Fry, and Roger March.
Celebrate Memorial
Feb. 10, 1959 -Three members of the MUN Radio Society who helped VOCM with announcing during the regular day's program - (1-r) Florence Walsh, Eileen Yard, VOCM announcer Bob Cole and Edwina Suley.
22 Celebrate Memorial
Being there The Memorial University of the
mid-1950s was compact,
companionable and collegial. It
was also a place of intellectual
ferment and great opportunity.
The electoral scholarships had
just been introduced and these
and other awards allowed the best
students from across the province
to gather on Parade Street. Many
of us were the first members of
our families to attend university.
Newfoundland was very outward-looking in the years
immediately after the Second World War, and my
contemporaries imagined themselves in careers all
over the world. Happily, their dreams came true.
-Peter Neary, B.Sc. '59
Chairs of the Board of Regents (from left)
Hon. Sir Albert Walsh, 1950 -1953 Dr. Edmund J. Phelan, 1953 -1968 Hon. Dr. Gordon A. Winter, 1968 · 197 4 Hon. Dr. Frederick W. Russell, 197 4 -1982 Hon. Dr. Charles W. White, 1982 -1991 Dr. Janet Gardiner, 1991- 1997 Edward M. Roberts, 1997 ·
..: 0
University Day. Each year the university designated a special day to invite the public to tour its facilities and meet the students and staff.
May 16, 1956 Convocation- Memorial 's first graduate students, from the master of science in chemistry program. (1-r) - Martin B. Sheratte, Audrey S. Ralph, William A. Mueller and Vernon W. Hiscock.
('pfpf'll'nfn M .:-I
How the muse was ·~
named A contest for a name for the new student
voice was held but no worthy names were
produced. In desperation the staff turned
to the English Department.
Asked why the name was chosen,
Professor David Pitt said: "A familiar
symbol of the university is the letter M.
The Greek M is called mu, which may also
be regarded as the symbol of a university
whose initial letters are MU. Thus a paper
issued by a university, where classical
learning is held in high regard, and whose
initials are MU, might very appropriately
be called 'MU's paper'- which is also a
kind of pun on 'newspaper. ' By adding the
'e', all the rich associations of the word
'muse' are added. We call the daily
newspaper 'The News'; we call MU's
paper the 'Muse' or Muse paper."
- the muse, Mar. 29, 1956
24 Celebrate Memorial
Memorial contingent of the COTC in April1958. Front (1-r)- Robert Furlong, Graham Peddle, Major Jack Blundon, Capt. Mike Stapleton, Capt. Doug Eaton, John Rahal, Robert Kelly. Middle (1-r)- Leonard Cowley, Sid Noel, George Lee, Mike Kennedy, John Small, Desmond Kearney, Francis Barnes, John Sullivan, Miles Tremblett, Harold White, Dave Carmichael, Cyril Boone, George Case. Back (1-r)- Neville Russell, Doug Chaytor, Tom Ressesco, Clyde Wells, Clyde Vincent, Gerald Ryan, Robert J. Olivero.
Memorial Till)es
Student organizations The Students' Representative Council (SRC) had re ponsibility for athletic, social and other activities. The SRC was elected annually by the student body
to serve as a liaison with the president and faculty. In 1957 it was replaced by the Council of the Students' Union (CSU).
Students quickly formed their own special interest groups such as the pre-
medical, engineering, education, arts and science, radio and dramatic The Memorial Times, first societies. On Dec. 11, 1950, the fir t issue of the student newspaper, the published in 1936.
muse, was published. The newspaper succeeded the Memorial Times, which
had been published on an irregular basis since 1936.
956 • w iam Mueller was the first recipient of th 'othermere Fellowship established by the chancellor, Lord Rothermere. The fellowship enables a Memorial graduate to do post-graduate study at a university in Britain.
Being there We were fewer than
1.000 students in
what President
Gushue called ua
community of
scholars." Coming
from town and bay,
we argued about
Newfoundland in the
new Confederation;
we discussed
philosophy and history - to the amazement
of our sociology professor, most of us
partied without alcohol! We danced under
the mirror ball, played hockey on Bell Island,
and drank coffee at the Candlelight. Out of
our ~+udent revolt came the constitution that
backs today's CSU. Out of our number came
premier, senator, archbishop, airline and
university presidents, judges, engineers,
teachers, and doctors. We carry the memory
and our love for Memorial - we will carry it forever.
-Elizabeth L. Reynolds, BA '58
Joint Services Ball
• 19 5 7 • Facilities: Three buildings, including library, 18 labs, gymnasium, assembly hall, and bowling alleys • Number of students: 1.134 • Tuition fees per academic year: $100 • Number of faculty members: 72 • Number of staff: 12
"The paper on 'Research in the Language and
Place Names of Newfoundland', read to the
Canadian Linguistic Association, was received
with the liveliest interest. One of the purposes
of the paper was to describe our work in
Newfoundland in the hope that we might profit
from an association with mainland skills and
financial resources. In the event, this hope
was over-optimistic. As soon became apparent,
in no other English-speaking region of Canada
is work as advanced in these fields as it is in
Newfoundland, and in no other region is it
being pursued so vigorously. Only in French
speaking Canada is a comparable effort being
made .... The lively interest shown in our work
is flattering, both to the individuals concerned
and to the university. "
-Memo written by Dr. E.R. Seary and Dr. George Story on July 14, 1957. The work of scholars in the English Department on the Newfoundland language and family and place names was published between the 1960s and the 1990s; the latest one, The Place Names of the Great Northern Peninsula, by Dr. W.J. Kirwin, Robert Hollett and the late E.R. Seary, will be published in 1999.
2 Celebrate Memorial
Research in Newfoundland studies From the beginning, the university recognized the paramount role
Memorial must play in promoting Newfoundland studies, long the
domain of amateur enthusiasts and popular writers including Premier
Smallwood. In 1954 the univer ity applied to the Carnegie Corporation
for help to establish a provincial archives. The corporation agreed to a
three-year grant of $30,000 on condition that, once established, the
archives would be handed over to the province.
When the grant expired in 1958, the university received financial
assistance from the Canada Council and the archives was transferred to
the province in 1960. As part of this project, librarian Agnes O'Dea
began compiling the first comprehensive bibliography of Newfoundland
and Labrador writings. Her efforts to collect and preserve publications
on ewfoundlancl and Labrador eventually led to the establishment of
the Centre for Newfoundland Studies.
English professors E. R. Seaty and George Story studied the Newfound
land dialect and the origins of Newfoundland place and family names.
University scientists were active in marine research. Chemist Douglas
Cooper and William Forbes and physicist Corb Noel studied artificial
drying techniques for salt cod and de igned an experimental fish plant
at Valleyfielcl, Bona vista Bay. Biologist Cater Andrews investigated the
size of fish stocks off ewfoundland and undertook collaborative
research with federal fisheries biologists such as Wilfred Templeman.
May 13, 1957- Dr. A.C. Hunter with colleagues who were once his students at Memorial University College. Front (1-r)- Eli Lear, Edna Baird, Moses 0. Morgan, Dr. Hunter, George A. Hickman, Sadie Organ, and Cater Andrews. Back (1-r) - Chesley lvany, Margaret Williams, William G. Rowe, Marina Hann, T. Corb Noel, Anne White, George M. Story, Kathleen Norris, Jack Blundon, Ada Green, John B. Ashley, Jean Pratt, Michael Harrington, Alison O'Reilly, Anthony Nemec and Ruth Trickett.
Celebrate Memorial 27
Photo courtesy of The Telegram
Winners of the talent show held on Feb. 10, 1959, during University Week. Front. (1-r)Barbara Hand, John Smith, Marguente Short. Back (1-r) - Melvin Pike, Bruce Hallett, Bob Lockhart, Phillip Patey, David Gill.
P~ofessor Doug Eaton with the candidates for a Mtss Memorial contest, 1959.
Faculty Fossils basketball and volleyball team. Back (1-r) Bill Forbes (chemistry), Gordon Hyde (captain, resident COTC officer), David Baird (geology), Moses Morgan (political science). Front (1-r)- David Genge (physics), Hugh Anderson (chemistry) and Doug Eaton (physical education).
University Week- 1958 "The week beginning March 3 saw the celebration of University Week.
On Sunday students and faculty members attended divine service at
various St. John's churches. On Monday the university played host to
members of the public and visitors from the schools. Demonstrations
and exhibitions were held in the science laboratories (included in the
exhibits in the Geology Lab was a large round beach-stone, hopefully
labeled 'Dinosaur egg'). and the Geography Department, COTC
(Canadian Officers Training Corps) and library also had displays. Among
the attractions sponsored by the library were exhibitions of paintings by
2 Celebrate Memorial
Mr. Harold Goodridge, and cartoons by Dr. A.A. MacDonald, who,
incidentally, was awarded a first prize in this year's Arts and Letters
contest.
"On Tuesday, March 5, the students staged a talent show (watched with
fear by the faculty members selected as victims) and a debate. The
afternoon was given up to sport, including the now-classic faculty
[known as the 'Faculty Fossils'] vs. student basketball game. There was
a dance in the evening.·
-Memorial University Newsletter, No. 5 {Apri/1957)
Top: Sod turning ceremony for the new university campus on Elizabeth Avenue. Ce;ntre: The Physical Education building under construction. Bottom: Bowater and Rothermere Houses under construction. Background photo: View from Mount Scio of Halliday Farm and surrounding area, the site of the Elizabeth Avenue campus.
Construction of a new campus Since becoming a university Memorial has more than tripled its
enrolment .... The old parade ground has now reached its capacity for
temporary buildings. Only enough space for a parking lot has been
left. There is no room to beautify the present campus, which has been
dubbed the mud bath' by the students. This is why the situation at
Memorial is desperate. It is impossible to expand further on the
present university site. The problem of non·existent space was
rea'ized last year wnen an enrolment of 1,134, an increase of 250
students over the 1957 enrolmert, was squeezed into the campus
buildings. This year lack of space has forced the university to grind
down the annually·increasing number of potential students by raismg
entrance and examination standards .... The situation at Memorial has
long s nee reached the point where it concerns the overall welfare of
Newfoundland. Surely this fact alone is enough to warrant an -~----
re·nedy.
-the muse, Feb. 9, 1959
Temporary buildings) 1957 ''Three temporary buildings have been added to
the campus. One of these is a wooden structure,
designed as a student building. It contains
common rooms and lounges and offices for the
student societies. This has relieved the
congestion in other buildings and has given the
5 ,.----~---., students space and ~
! independence. Two " ~ prefabricated
buildings have been
placed on the
.._. playing.field, both
USO Building fronting Merrymeeting Road.
containing offices
for faculty members
and additional lecture and seminar rooms. The
space thus provided in the older buildings has
been used for much·needed laboratory expansion
in the departments of Biology, Chemistry,
Engineering and Physics. For the time being, all
this has provided a temporary, but needed,
easing of congestion."
-Memorial University Newsletter, No. 6 (Dec. 1957)
30 Celebrate Memorial
1959 • 1959 In January Memorial University is visited for the first time by a mainland college hockey team, the University of King's College of Halifax.
Construction scenes of the Elizabeth Avenue campus. Clockwise from top left - (two photos) Arts and Administration Building in 1960, interior of the library in 1961.
Photos courtesy oflhe Telegram
Students march to the Colonial Building to protest Term 29, Mar. 26, 1959.
In 1951 the government chose an 80-acre site for a new campus located in a planned suburb the St. John's Housing Corporation had commenced building in the mid-1940s. The site on Elizabeth Avenue (then at the fringes of the city) had been part of the Halliday farm.
In October 1952 Chancellor Lord Rothermere presided over an official
ceremony to lay the cornerstone for the main building. For financial reasons, construction did not commence until1959; by then university and
government officials had planned every aspect of the university's physical and academic needs. On May 23, 1959, Premier Smallwood presided over a
sod-turning ceremony at the site of the new campus. Funding for the new campus came from the provincial government and the Canada Council.
Students cheered the premier in that year when they staged a public protest
from the campus to the Colonial Building, the first march by university students on the provincial legislature. Thi protest, differing from those of
later decades, was in support of the provincial government, which wa objecting to the federal government's refusal to give the province more
funding under Term 29.
Celebrate Memorial 31
Students at the main entrance at the Parade Street campus, 1952.
32 Celebrate Memorial
1960 tol969 o institution can be understood except in relation to its history and the dreams which
foreshadow its development. Dreams also provide the inspirational beacon for future
development. For Memorial must be not simply a replica of a university to be found
elsewhere nor a composite of the features of others that already exist, however
established and famous they may be. It is and must remain unique, with its roots deep
in the traditions of the university college and more profoundly in the traditions of this
province. It must remain of Newfoundland, reflecting the ethos of its people and their
aspirations, as it remains both the gateway and a contributor to a fuller life. ''
- M.O. Morgan, dean of arts and science, in an address to the St. John 's Rotary Club, Sept. 7, 1961
CHAPTER 3
View of the Elizabeth Avenue campus in October 1961: L-r- Physical Education Building, Arts and Administration Building, Science Building and the Library. The Dining Hall and Bowater and Rothermere Houses are behind the Science Building.
Eleanor Roosevelt presenting the keys of the university to the chancellor, Lord Thomson,
• ~ 9&::' 1 F1rst honorary degree (Monnie Mansfield) • 1961 Elizabeth Avenue campus opened • 1962 Dining Hall, Rothermere House and Bowater House opened • 1964 Doyle House opened • 1965 First doctoral programs (English and chemistry) • 1966 Education Building opened • ETV established • Division of Student Services created • 1967 Chemistry-Physics Building and Barnes, Burke, Curtis, Biackall , Hatcher, and Squires residences opened • 17 new academic departments • 1968 Residence complex named Paton College • Thomson Student Centre opened • First issue of MUN Gazette published • 1969 tri-semester year instituted
34 Celebrate Memorial
Oct. 9, 1961.
The three greatest thing that ever happened to
Newfoundland, according to]. R. Smallwood, were
its discovery in 1497, its confederation with Canada
in 1949, and "the building of our great university." As
Memorial prepared to move from the cramped
quarters of the old college to spacious new buildings
on Elizabeth Avenue, a great celebration was planned
- including a province-wide holiday. A special
convocation on Oct. 7 installed Roy Thomson, a
Canadian-born British newspaper publi her (later
Lord Thomson of Fleet), as chancellor.
The official opening was held on Monday, Oct. 9.
Fifteen thousand high school and university students,
no doubt thankful for the warm, sunny morning,
formed ranks at Churchill Square and paraded along
Elizabeth Avenue. The parade included several
marching bands as well as local schools, and service
and conununity organizations.
On the viewing rand were Eleanor Roosevelt
(representing the president of the United States),
------Prime Minister John Diefenbaker, Premier Smallwood,
the presidents of 41 of Canada's 42 universities, and
representatives from d1e United Kingdom, the United
States and Portugal.
The key to the university was presented to the new
chancellor by Eleanor Roosevelt. The Monday
evening banquet with 1,000 guests, including many
ewfoundlanders brought home by the government
for the occasion, was held at Holy Heart of Ma1y
High School.
In its short history, the university had conferred
just one honorary degree - a master's to retiring
registrar Mannie Mansfield in 1960. As part of the
new campus celebrations, on Oct. 10, 1961, the
university awarded its first honorary doctoral
degrees. The 19 recipients included Mrs. Roosevelt,
Premier Smallwood, Prime Minister Diefenbaker,
poet E.]. Pratt and the heads of the major religious
denominations in the province.
Photo courtesy of The Telegram
Students participating in the Oct. 9, 1961, parade celebrating the official opening of the new campus.
Celebrate Memorial 35
Retirement of President . ) Gus hue
On Feb. 28, 1966, Dr. Raymond Gushue
retired as president and vice-chancellor ....
To the problems he was called upon to
solve, he brought ... qualities and
experiences of a special kind: a mind
sharpened by training in law, a native
son's love of Newfoundland, broad
knowledge of its life and economy, and
wide experience as an international civil
servant. With these went personal
qualities ... detached fairness in the
strange world of academic debate;
unruffled calm amid storms internal and
external; a deep concern for the quality of
undergraduate life and the expanding role
of the university in society. The prime
function of president, he once observed,
is to be a good co-ordinator. He, himself,
excelled in that.. .. He used the powers of
his office not to impose a pattern but to
encourage a process, immanent in the
body academic.
- President (pro tern) M.O. Morgan, May 1966 convocation address
3.~ Celebrate Memorial
Physical Education Building, 1961.
Sign showing the fundraising objectives of the university in its National Fund campaign, held in 1960 and 1961.
After the weekend's festivities, the new campu was open and ready for
business in four buildings: the Arts and Administration building, the Science building, the Physical Education building and the library.
The new campus would be home to explosive growth for the young
university during the 1960s, as Memorial evolved from a small, primarily undergraduate institution to a comprehensive university offering
masters' and doctoral degrees. When the new campus opened in 1961,
enrolment stood at 1,907; by the end of the decade it had risen to 7,239.
Already plans were in the works for more facilities. A national fund
raising effort in support of this cau e in the early 1960s raised nearly $5 million.
Despite the many new facilities, rapid growth in enrolment once again
re ulted in a shortage of classroom and office space. In 1968 the
univer ity opened several one-storey wooden "tempora1y" buildings, some of which were still in use in the '90s.
School students on parade at the ope ning of the new campus.
May 16, 1964- Premier Joseph R. Smallwood speaking at the official opening ceremony for Doyle House Residence, named in honour of American entrepreneur John C. Doyle. Behind Premier Smallwood are (1-r) John C. Doyle; Edmund Phelan, chair of the Board of Regents; President Raymond Gushue, Chancellor Lord Thomson; and Mrs. Clara Smallwood.
courtesy of The Telegram All photos on these two pages Celebrate Memorial
Henrietta Harvey Research at the university was
given a boost in 1964 when a
bequest was received from the
estate of Henrietta Harvey, the
widow of St. John's businessman
John Harvey. With this gift (valued
at $650,000 in 1966) the
university established an
endowment fund in 1967; the
Henrietta Harvey Chair, which it
supports, has been occupied by
some of our most distinguished
faculty scholars. Part of the endow
ment also went towards a
Distinguished Visiting Scholars
fund. In 1970 the building housing
the university library was named in
her honour. After the construction
of the new library, the Henrietta
Harvey building in the 1980s
became home to the Department
of Mathematics and Statistics, the
Department of Computing and
Communications, the Maritime
History Archive, and the Maritime
History Group.
38 Celebrate Memorial
E til
While the range of formal academic ~ Q)
~ programs gre"' rapidly, the university's ~
... commitment to the province at large
was never forgotten. In 1959 John
cdlman was appointed the first head of
Extension Service, a the uniwsity
expanded its outreach program · with
non-credit cour es and educational
televi ion programs broadcast on local
stations.
In 1961, with help from the federal
Department of Fisheries, Memorial
instituted the TV program Decks AU'ash,
designed especially to keep fishermen in
touch with technological and scientific
advances in the industry.] uly 1968 saw
the birth of a magazine of the same name
devoted primarily to community and rural
development issues.
S t 11 1968 - unveiling of the master plan for the ep. ' . . f
university (1-r) - Hon. Frederick W. Rowe, m.mister o education; Premier Joseph R. Smallwo~d; Sir Fredenck Gibberd (university architect); and President Lord Taylor.
Extension Service also offered programs in art
instruction taught by artist Christopher Pratt, "'ho
also managed the small art gallery in the library,
and music taught by composer Murray Schafer.
Ignatius Rumboldt developed the St. John's
Extension Choir and the university established the
St. John's Orchestra.
Student enrolment after 1965 was greatly boosted
by Premier Smallwood's decision to provide free
tuition and student allowances for all Newfound
land residents and to pay every student a salary
over and above free tuition. This program lasted
until1969 when the province required all
applicants for financial assistance to borrow a
minimum of $400 from the new Canada Student
Loan Plan Program before being approved for free
tuition.
In 1966 President Gushue retired and Mo es 0.
Morgan, dean of arts and science, tepped in to
serve as president pro tern. While the government
searched for a permanent successor, Morgan, ever
inclined to action, initiated Senate reviews of
Memorial's academic and administrative programs.
Within a year, the university hacl17 new academic departments.
The search for a president resulted in the selection
of the Rt. Hon. the Lord Taylor of Harlow. He
assumed office on June 1, 1967; Dean Morgan was
appointed vice-president and pro vice-chancellor,
and Leslie Harris, who had been acting dean of
art and science, was confirmed a clean.
1963 • Premier Smallwood lectures 500 students on the art of debating
Lord Stephen Taylor of Harlow Born at Marlow-on-Thames, England, in 1910, Stephen
Taylor was a physician who also served as a Labour MP
from 1945 to 1954. After 1954 he was appointed a
member of the Harlow Development Corporation. In
1958 he was named to the House of Lords as Lord
Taylor of Harlow. In 1966 Premier Smallwood chose him
to be president of Memorial. Following his retirement in
1973, Taylor was visiting professor of community
medicine at Memorial, and in 1986 the university
awarded him an honorary degree. He died in Wales
on Feb. 1. 1988.
Temporary buildings under construction.
In Newfoundland and Labrador, in St.
John's and our other towns, life is
still good and worthwhile. It is part
of our duty here at Memorial to see
that all that is good is preserved as
we plan and march forward into the
future .... We may count ourselves
blessed in our faculty - more
international than any other faculty in
Canada. We may count ourselves
blessed in our staff - devoted and
diligent.. .. Our duty is plain. We have
to be worthy of the confidence that
has been placed in us by the people
and the government of Newfound
land, to be humble and yet proud,
to be bold and yet wise.
- Lord Taylor, installation address as president of Memorial University, Feb. 24, 1968.
Celebrate Memorial 3
Photos courtesy ofThe Telegram
4 Celebrate Memorial
From left, clockwise: Dance in the gym of the Phys Ed building. - Students marching in support of free tuition for students at other Canadian universities. -A float in the 1967 Winter Carnival parade celebrated Canada's centenary as a nation. The Council of the Students' Union began holding an annual winter carnival in 1962.- On Sept. 12, 1967, over 1,000 students conducted a clothes drive for the Newfoundland Tuberculosis Association, which distributed the clothes to various charitable organizations. Carl Keeping of St. John's and Roger Crann of Windsor sort out the clothes. -Students participating in the free tuition demonstration.- Sept. 1967 Frosh march to Quidi Vidi Lake.
1967 • The first issue of the The Concrete Vine is published. Edited by John Sutherland, the newspaper provided news about residence life. • Memorial students form an anti-war group to protest American military involvement in VietNam. Protesters led by student organizers Andrew Mackey and Shane O'Dea subsequently mount a peaceful demonstration at the office of the American Consulate in St. John's
Top to bottom: Joyce Nevitt, Dr. Angus Bruneau and Dr. lan Rusted.
The professional schools In the 1960s Memorial established professional degree programs in nursing, medicine, social work, and engineering. In the decade following the incorporation of the Association of Registered Nurses of
Newfoundland in 1953, the organization documented the need for a school of nursing. In 1961 the association presented to Senate its brief approving the establishment of a Department of Nursing within the Faculty of Arts and Science. In 1965 joyce Nevitt was appointed head of
the new unit. The first class was admitted to programs for basic and post
RN students in 1966. Registered nurses (RNs) had a head start on the
novices; thus four RNs received the bachelor of nursing degree in 1969, while the first basic students graduated in 1971. In 1974 the department was elevated to the status of a school.
The creation of Canada's sixteenth medical school wa, the culmination of
many years of work. The Royal Commission on Canadian Health Services (1961) recommended a medical school for Newfoundland; the university's own McFarlane feasibility commission report (1966) recommended that a
medical school and a health sciences complex be built at Memorial; and the Lord Brain Royal Commission (1966) also recommended that provision of adequate medical smices could not be achieved without a
medical school. With financial commitments from the federal and provincial governments, a medical program was developed. Jan Rusted
was appointed dean, and by fall1969, instructor were in place and the first undergraduates in medicine were admitted to Memorial. The first graduating class was in 1973.
Being there
It was a time of intense
excitement and
cataclysmic change for
a boy from a one-room
school in Jackson's
Cove, Green Bay. The
mind set, for example,
to speak out against
government, the great
provider, required a
huge leap in attitude
and confidence.
I remember Doyle
House shenanigans, sock hops, sing-alongs
in a crammed lobby at Bowater House,
rehearsing for Winter Carnival talent shows,
bonding with the brothers at the Mu Upsilon
Nu Fraternity and singing in the Glee Club
with Nish Rumboldt. I also have vivid
memories of Student Council and several
other campus organizations. They played a
major role in instilling the confidence that
anything you wanted could be within your
grasp.
- Dennis Knight, B.Sc., BA (Ed.) '67
Celebrate Memorial A
The Maltings at Harlow showing extension to the right constructed in 1988 containing staff offices and a lecture room. This building has 11 single and 10 double study /bedrooms for students.
Memorial had offered a three-year diploma program in engineering since
1930. Graduates completed degree requirements outside Newfoundland, usually at the Nova Scotia Technical College. Because of the province's need for civil and electrical engineers, a Senate committee recommended in 1966
that Memorial establish a degree program in engineering. Later that year, Senate and the Board of Regents approved an engineering co-operative
program that saw students alternate academic terms with work terms in
industry, graduating with a healthy mixture of the theoretical and the practical. In 1968 Angus Bruneau wa appointed dean, and engineering
degrees were offered in four disciplines - civil, mechanical, mining and
electrical engineering - and the first class graduated in 1974.
Diploma courses in public welfare had been offered at Memorial since 1961. That expanded in 1963 when the university, in response to a request from the provincial Department of Public Welfare, established a two-year diploma
program. In 1965 social welfare became a major for the bachelor of arts degree, with Ella Brett as the program's first full-time faculty member. A 1968 study of needs and potential conducted by the first department head, Frank
Turner, led to the approval of a five-year bachelor of social work degree program, which had its first graduating class in 1970.
42 Celebrate Memorial
St. John's House, the faculty residence at Harlow.
Harlow campus Soon after Lord Taylor was installed as president, Memorial approved the establishment of a residential campus in the town of Harlow,
England, 37 km northeast of London. During the 1950s Lord Taylor had been the town's public medical officer, and he believed that a campus
in England would strengthen relations between ewfoundland and Britain and help students gain practical experience in engineering, social services and teaching. In 1968 the university purchased several
adjoining buildings to accommodate about 70 students and in the
following year opened its Harlow campus with a board of trustees to oversee its affairs.
The College of Fisheries, Navigation, Marine Engineering and Electronics opened on Jan. 14, 1964, at Memorial's former Parade Street campus. In 1992 the government merged the college, renamed the Marine Institute in 1984, with the university.
Students at the College of Fisheries in the 1970s.
Celebrate Memorial 43
Celebrate Memorial
Photo courtesy of The Telegram
Clockwise from left: In 1964 and 1965 the Biology Department acquired five specimens of the giant squid from fishermen in Newfoundland. The tentacles of the squids varied in length from 7 to 10 metres. -The Marine Sciences Research Laboratory at Logy Bay opened on June 22, 1967.- Dr. Fred Aldrich.- The new seismograph, a machine used to detect and measure earthquakes, being inspected on June 2, 1964, by (1-r) Adrian Walsh, Physics Department; Gordon Winter, vice·chair, Board of Regents; F. Lombardo, federal Department of Mines and Technical Surveys; President Gushue; and Dr. Ernst R. Deutsch, Physics Department.
Research The expansion of the 1960s was not merely
programs, buildings and student numbers. New
and exciting research programs reflected
Memorial's continuing committment to the
province. In 1961 the univer ity established the
Institute of ocial and Economic Re earch (I ER)
to examine rele\'ant i sue in the province.
Under the direction of !an Whitaker and Parzival
Copes (and, after 1965, Robert Paine), ISER
gained an international reputation for scholarly research and publishing.
In 1967 the Marine Sciences Research Laboratory at Logy Bay, with Dr. Fred Aldrich a director,
wa · established with the financial assistance of
the National Re earch Council of Canada and the
e\\'foundland government. Aldrich had already
generated a lot of public attention as a result of his research on the giant squid.
Photo courtesy ofThe Telegram
Above: Academic procession, May 16, 1964, to the gymnasium of the Physical Education Building. In 1972 the university began holding convocation in the Arts and Culture Centre. Below: Olga Broomfield receives the hood for master of arts at the university's 15th spring convocation, May 16, 1964.
The Department of English language and Literature had been
researching Newfoundland place names and language, with the
encouragement of Canada Council grants, since the late 1950s; the chief researchers were professors Ronald Seary and George
Storv ln 1959 and 1962 they were joined by William Kirwin and Herbert Halpert as specialists in linguistics and folklore
respt.:ctirely. Seary subsequently published books on family
names and place names, while Story, with Kirwin and john
Widdowson, toiled on The Dictionary of Newfoundland
Englisb, which was published to great critical acclaim in 1982.
When the Department of Folklore was established in 1968, it
came complete with the Newfoundland Folklore and Language
Archive, more familiarly known as MUNFLA. There was a
growing collection of sound recordings, manuscripts, artifacts
and audiotapes, mo t of it resulting from student research. Christmas Mumming in Newfoundland (Halpert and Story, eds.,
1969), an interdisciplinary study of the tradition of mumming (also known as mummering or jannying), was the first major
study of Newfoundland culture published by Memorial. The
book represented for many the growing maturity of research on topics close to home. Under Halpert's leadership, the
Department of Folklore became the first and only one of it
kind in English Canada, offering bachelors', masters', and
doctoral degrees in that discipline.
Celebrate Memorial 45
"Bowater girls" participating in skits at Winter Carnival.
Being there Residence life in the mid-1960s gave me lifelong friendships,
treasured memories, and valuable experiences I will never forget.
Bowater House was the only women's residence at that time,
flanked by the mens' houses of Rothermere and Doyle, with the
Dining Hall as the meeting place. It was here that we spent many
hours engrossed in conversation: politics, sports, exams, and
relationships. For many of us it was our first time away from
home. Many came alone, the only one representing her small
community, nervously anticipating what lay ahead. Friendships
Celebrate Memorial
Residents of Curtis House, 1968-69.
developed - we helped each other through the difficult times and
celebrated the good times together. We had great fun at
residence-sponsored dances and sports activities; we even had
our own newspaper for a while - The Concrete Vine. Winter
Carnival was the time when competition was highest among
Memorial's faculties and our residences. Who can forget the
Bowater Girls winning skits in the Winter Carnival Concert and the
floats we built with the boys of Rothermere?
-Diane Lomond, BA (Ed) '67
968-1969 • 1968 A master plan drawn up by the university architect, Sir Frederick Gibberd, for the future expansion of the campus of Memorial University is unveiled. • 1969 The University Counselling Centre is established with Dr. Charles Preston as director.
Above: Students in the Dining Hall in the late 1960s. Left: View of the Dining Hal l.
The Fogo Process In 1967 the Extension Service's Fred
Earle and the National Film Board,
under its senior producer, Col in Low,
made 28 short films totaling six hours
in which residents of Fogo Island
discussed community development
interests. One month after each film
was made, the film was shown to
residents of the island; they began to
recognize the problems they had in
common and asserted their identity as
Fogo islanders who had pride in their
communities. The films were also
shown to politicians and civil servants
to present the views and aspirations of
the residents. This technique became a
model for community development
media programs outside Newfoundland.
Celebrate Memorial 4'
Memorial University hockey team- Boyle Trophy champions, 1964-1965 Front row (1-r) - John Smith, Neil Winsor, Tom Collingwood, ian Campbell (capt.), Wayne Bradbury, Doug House, Ray Halley, Ed Hunt (manager). Middle row (1-r)- Barry Fraser, Roland Martin, Don Campbell, Barry James, Bob Smith, Gar Pynn, Foster Lamswood, Michael Donovan, Bob Davis. Back row (1-r)- Orin Carver (coach), Terry Haire, Vic Parsons, Roger Flood, Doug Moores, Rhodie Mercer, Ed Browne (assistant coach).
48 Celebrate Memorial ______I
''G he Report of the Task Force on University Priorities set forth the ... essential nature of
a university, its basic objectives, and the purposes it should be pursuing- under-
graduate programs of high quality; graduate programs in selected areas; research,
particularly that related to the needs and opportunities of this province; student
services, designed to provide a proper climate for the intellectual, social, and cultural
development of our students; and community services, planned to meet the needs
and aspirations of our people. These are, in fact, the purposes that this university
has been pursuing, with uncertain financial support, since 1949. ''
- Convocation address by President Moses 0. Morgan, Oct. 30, 1976 CHAPTER 4
-
Aerial view of the campus in the early 1970s showing the temporary buildings.
50 Celebrate J1emorial
1970-1979 • 1970 Mun radio installs a Broadcast News wire service • 1971 Maritime History Group established • 1972 Burton's Pond apartment complex opened • Botanical Garden established • 197 4 French study institute opened in Saint· Pierre • Rrst PhD in ocean engineering awarded • C·CORE opens • 1975 coast campus opened with Arthur Sullivan as principal • Institute for Research and Development established • Three new education programs instituted • School of Business Administration and Commerce established • Department of Music established • Nutrition/dietetics (biochemistry) • Community nursing and psychiatric nursing • Building for Engineering, C·CO and Geology opened • 1976 Provincial art gallery responsibility given to Memorial • 1977 Newfoundland Institute of Cold Ocean Science opens within Science Faculty • Cyril Poole named principal at Corner Brook campus • Botanical Garden opened to public • 1978 P.J. Gardmer Institute opened • Archaeology Unit • Computer Science Department • Health Sciences opened • 1979 Corner Brook campus re-named Sir Wilfred Grenfell College • Engineering Building named for S. J. Carew • Fundraising for new library
building started
Student occupation of the Arts and Administration Building; at far right is Earle McCurdy.
tudent occupation Memorial had its share of the student activism that was prevalent on American and Canadian campuses during the late 1960s and early 1970s. Perhaps the best
known incident took place in November 1972.
Hundreds of students occupied the Arts and Administration Building to protest
the decision by the Board of Regents to stop collecting compulsory student fees on behalf of the CSU. The CSU leadership under acting president Wayne Hurley,
preferring that any change be delayed until it held a referendum on the matter,
considered the board's decision to be an attempt by the administration to
weaken the students' union. The occupation began on November 14 and ended 10 days later when both sides accepted the appointment of an independent
arbitrator and the board decided to reverse its position.
In a February 1973 referendum, students voted to retain compulsory students' union fees.
Being there Student activism at MUN in the late 1960s and early
1970s had its roots in the "student power" movement
and the general youth
rebell iousness of the era.
Our protest and issues were
basic principles of
participatory democracy and
the right to have input into
the decision-making process
that had impact on our
lives. The occupation of the
Arts and Administration
Building in 1972 is probably
the most telling example.
Many of the activists of that era went on to
become the activists, organizers and spokespeople of
today's social, environmental, feminist, and political
groups. It was a time of heady rebel liousness in an
intellectual environment that encouraged a challenging of
the status quo and a questioning of rigid bureaucratic
regulation.
When I travel around the province today, and meet
people who were students of MUN during the occupation,
they take pride in telling stories about what they did and
how they were part of winning that battle. The student
activism of the 1960s and 1970s was the spark that
ignited the flame of the social conscience that continues
to flicker bravely into the 1990s.
- Bob Buckingham, BA '73
Celebrate Memorial 511
President Moses 0. Morgan
Dr. G.A. Hickman, dean of Education, and Dr. A.A. Bruneau, dean of Engineering and Applied Science, place the robe on President Morgan, Feb. 9, 1974.
Born in Blaketown, Trinity Bay,
in 1917, Mose Morgan
attended Memorial University
College and then Dalhousie
University, where he received a
bachelor's degree. The
Newfoundland Rhodes Scholar
for 1938, he delayed graduate
study at Oxford University until
after the Second World War.
From 1940 to 1942 he taught
at King's College School in
Windsor, Nova Scotia. In 1942
he enlisted in the Canadian
Army and saw service in Europe
as a platoon commander. After
the war he completed a
master's degree in classics at Dalhousie followed by further graduate studies at
Oxford. He joined the faculty of Dalhousie in 1948 and came to Memorial in 1950 to
teach political science. Morgan played a prominent role in the development of
academic policy at Memorial, and from the late 1950s his influence as dean of arts
and science was second only to that of President Gushue. He was president (pro tem)
1966-67 and president 1973-1981. He died in St. John's on Apr. 24, 1995.
52 Celebrate Memorial
Following Lord Taylor's retirement as president in
August 1973, the Board of Regents selected M.O.
Morgan as president.
Almost immediately upon his appointment,
Morgan reorganized the university administration,
appointing several new senior academic
administrators to reflect an expanding academic
program. Leslie Harris later observed that Morgan's
"favorite technique was to identify the right person
for a particular role and then, following the
military strategy of reinforcing success, offer to
such a person unstinting loyalty and such
financial, administrative and moral support as the
resources of the university could command or as
governments or private corporations could be
cajoled or browbeaten into providing. Areas of
particular intere t were those that combined the
greatest potential for community development
with the best opportunities for high class scholarship."
In a 1995 tribute to Morgan, former president
Leslie Harri observed that "there can be no doubt
that [his] first loyalty was to the university. Nor can
we doubt his belief that in serving that institution
well he wa serving the entire province. But his
university was no ivory tower. There was, within
his composition, a strong pragmatic streak coupled
with an unyielding commitment to the idea that
the special expertise that could be mobilized and
brought to bear by the university was that which
would ... move the ewfoundland community
towards appropriate development."
Lobby of the Thomson Student Centre.
In 1974-75 the university celebrated the 50th anniversaty of the founding of Memorial
University College and the 25th anniversary of the college becoming a university. In addition to
public lectures, the Jubilee Year included a February 1975 conference to provide an open
forum for public debate about the role of the university, past, present and future. The
celebration was a special pleasure for President Morgan: He had come to Memorial as a student
in the mid-1930s, returned as a professor in 1950, and later helped to shape its academic development.
Classroom in a temporary building.
Model of a proposed universit . two buildings: an arena-audito~i centre In 197 4 consisting of capacity of 5 ooo d . um (nght) With a seating
, an a social-cultural-service centre.
Celebrate Memorial 53
Being there I was a student at Memorial from 1965 to
1975 and the recipient of four university
degrees from this marvelous institution.
The 1960s were interesting times,
characterized by vociferous student
debate all over North America and
evidenced at Memorial with student sit
ins and other peaceful demonstrations
against the political authorities of the
day. And yet, those were the days of
free tuition, student stipends, student
frivolity, and growing student enrolment,
which mirrored an accessibility to
higher education of which most young
Newfoundlanders and Labradorians had previously
only dreamed.
The early 1970s saw the continuance of debate but heralded a focus
to discourse and undergraduate degrees - I began studies at
Memorial's new Faculty of Medicine! A school of medicine was new to
Memorial, new to St. John's, new to our province, and very new to
those first few classes of students and their teachers. The class of
197 4 began and finished in hastily built "temporary buildings'' where
the Queen Elizabeth II Library now resides.
It was an exciting time of study and introduction for students and
patients alike! The medical school at Memorial has been the single
and most important determinating factor for the quality of health care
and its accessibility in our province's recordable history! I am
extremely proud to be a graduate of Memorial University!
- Linda lnkpen, B.Sc. '69, BA (Ed) '70, BMS '72, MD '7 4 Alumna of the Year 1988
54 Celebrate Memorial
1971 • E.R. Seary's Place Names of the Avalon Peninsula of the Island of Newfoundland was published by the University of Toronto Press.
New initiatives During the 1970s Memorial's annual enrolment averaged about 10,000 students.
There was continued growth and consolidation of academic programs and Memorial established a strong research presence in Newfoundland and in the
Canadian university community.
New academic initiatives continued to enrich life at the university and within the
province. In 1974 Memorial established an institute (later named Institut Frecker)
at Saint-Pierre, where students could spend a semester immersed in French language, culture and literature.
In 1975 the Institute for Educational Research and Development was established
to undertake and sponsor research in Newfoundland's educational philosophy
and practice.
In 1974 the Department of Commerce evolved into the School of Business
Administration and Commerce. In 1978 the school established the P.]. Gardiner
Institute for Small Busines Studies to provide as istance to small businesses; Memorial was the first university in Canada to establish this type of consulting centre.
In 1978 psychologist Jon Lien's ongoing research on whales led to the formation
of the Whale Research Group, best known for its ongoing work in helping to free whales caught in fishing nets.
Five years after the Maritime Hist01y Group was formed to study the maritime
and economic history of Newfoundland and the North Atlantic region, Memorial
received a five-year Canada Council research grant to study the rise and fall of
the shipping indu try of eastern Canada in the 19th century. In 1978 the
Department of Anthropology established an Archaeology Unit with James Tuck as director. He had excavated a large Maritime Archaic cemetery at Port au
Choix in 1968; during the 1970s and early 1980s, the work of Tuck and his
graduate students concentrated on a large Basque whaling station at Red Bay,
Historian David Alexander researching the history of the 20th-century salt fish industry in Newfoundland.
Delegates registering for the 1971 Learneds Conference held at
Memorial.
Labrador, which had been first brought to the public's attention by
historical researcher Selma Barkham.
The establishment of the Department of Music in 1975, with the appointment of Donald Cook as head, marked another major
development for the maturing univer ity. The mu ic department's
mandate wa twofold: to educate and train musical performers and
music educators to contribute to the musical development of the
province, and to enrich the musical life of the province by sponsoring
concert tours by student performing groups.
The arrival of oil exploration on Canada's east coa t in the 1970s made
a major contribution to the development of unique research program and academic options covering a broad pectrum of ocean
engineering.
Celebrate Memorial 55
1972 • Memorial University awarded an honorary doctor of letters to Newfoundland artist Christopher Pratt.
A college is born A far back as 1966, a enate committee had recommended that
Memorial establish a number of junior colleges throughout the
province, reflecting President Morgan's belief that it was more
practical, academically and financially, for Memorial to establish
these colleges to allow students outside the Avalon Peninsula to
study closer to home.
In 19 2 the univer ity approved the creation of branch campuses
to erre 1,000-1,500 students and offer the fir t two years of
tudy in arts, science and education programs.
Corner Brook was cho en as the site for the first branch campus.
The official opening was held on Oct. 24, 1975, with a special
convocation the next day to honour several prominent west
coast residents. The single building of the West Coast Regional
College- renamed Sir Wilfred Grenfell College in 1979-
housed 400 students who registered for first- and second-year
courses in arts, cience and education. The college began to
develop the interdi ciplinary nature that would later become the
hallmark of its degree programs.
1973 • Memorial University receives 100 acres of land from Bowater Newfoundland Limited as the site for the university's new regional college at Corner Brook. • NAPE Locals 7801 and 7803 sign first collective agreements with the university.
First graduating class in the Department of Music 1979 (1-r) - Carl Goulding, Karen Keirstead Mills, Glenda Abbott, Prof. Don Cook (department head), Andrea Rose and Rex Bowering.
Top left- In August 1978 a student brass quintent made a three-week tour of coastal Labrador, performing in communities as far north as Nain; right- Music student Elizabeth Brennan with a member of the Nain Moravian brass band.
Celebrate Memorial 57
Botanical Garden In 1972 the Botanical Garden at Oxen
Pond (within C.A. Pippy Park) was
established to preserve and promote
the natural history of the province.
The garden opened to the public in
July 1977, displaying plants native to
the province and cultivating plants
suitable to the local climate. It also
provides access to several habitats
with a trail system. The garden is a
resource centre for basic and applied
botanical research and education with
a particular interest in the flora of
Newfoundland and Labrador. It
fosters an appreciation of natural
history in the development and future
of the university and the province. The
garden became a not-for-profit corp
oration in 1994. Initial development
began in 1971 on one hectare of
land. The garden now covers 44.5
hectares, including the six hectares
that Oxen Pond occupies.
58 Celebrate Memorial
Studio audience at an ETV video taping.
Distance education students in rural Newfoundland viewing a videotaped lecture by Dr. Robert Crocker.
Distance education Prior to 1969 university credit courses were offered off-campus in only a few location ; cour es were
taught by local instructors certified by the university and administered by its appropriate departments.
In 1969 the Division of Summer Session and Extramural Studies was established, along with off
campus centres in 12 areas. Eleven courses were taught by local instructors and other courses were taught by instructors commuting from the university.
Also in 1969 Memorial pioneered in Canada the use of educational television (ETV) as part of off
campus course offering . Lectures for a psychology course were videotaped and made available to six
video playback centres in the province. By the mid-1970s this system had expanded to included 30
playback centres and 17 courses. In 1977 the Division of Part-Time Credit Courses was established with responsibility for all distance education courses.
• CUPE Local1615 signed its first collective agreement with the university.
Telemedicine In April1977, ETV and the Faculty of Medicine inaugurated an experimental
telemedicine project: The campus in St. John's was connected by satellite hook-up
with hospitals in Goose Bay, Labrador City, St. Anthony and Stephenville. The
pioneering project proved the practical use of communications technology in
medicine and, during the late 1970s, the Faculty of Medicine expanded its
teleconferencing facilities to provide consultations to and receive diagnostic tests
from remote areas of the province. Medical professor Maxwell House founded
the Telemedicine Centre in 1976 and developed a province-wide teleconferencing
system used in health care and education, in addition to world-wide projects in
medical communications.
First graduating class in the Faculty of Medicine, 1973, top to bottom (1-r):
showing the Health Aerial view of the ~amp)uasnd the S. J. Carew Sciences centre (nght building (left).
Ross Penney, All ister Paul Terrence Delaney, Diane Banikhin, Daniel Shu. Albert Giovanni, Douglas Simms, Richard Mead, John James Hardy, Albert Pike Mark Chalom, Paul Hart, Stephen Shore Neva Hilliard, Oleh Whaler, David Moores, Adaani Frost Francis Tudiver, Rosemary Hutchison, Howard Strong Donald Eddy, Thomas Noseworthy, Raymond Shandera
Celebrate Memorial 59
Winter Carnival Parade, 1971. Photo courtesy ofThe Telegram
Winter Carnival1971.
60 Celebrate Memorial Photo courtesy ofThe Telegram
Men's soccer team, 1970-71 National College Soccer Champions. Front (1-r)- Geoff Babstock, Byron James, Mike Reddy, Ed Arnott, Bob French, Ron Price, Brian Murphy, Len Davis Back (1-r)- Roland Dawe (manager), Blair Leonard, Keith Farrell, Don Pike, Ray Hurley, Alistair Rice, Chris Facey,
Sandy Gibbons, Gus Crotty, Alan Ross (coach).
1978-79 men's basketball team- Front (1-r): Tony Wakeham Ma k D ff Sean Brown, Dave Kielly, Glenn Normore. Back (1-r)- Frank Butlerr u ' (coach), Frank Foo, Dick Power, Glenn Stanford, Glenn Willar, Doug Spurell. Insert: Roland Smith (manager).
1978-79 women's volleyball! team Front (1-r) - Sandra Fole M - AAUA champions J y, aude Hynes s anes. Back (l·r) -Joan Churchill ( ' ue Rendell and Sharon
coach), Kathy Noseworthy (co- ca tm.anager), .Zita Dalton (assistant (co-captain), Anne English Bill Thplstalm)(, Debbie Eaton, Shelly Orr
' e coach).
Celebrate Memorial 61
1.977-1978 • 1977 -The Alumni Association of Memorial University launched its first Annual Fund Appeal. • 1978- Dr. George M. Story, professor of English language and literature and public orator at Memorial University, won the Molson Prize, given for outstanding contributions to the arts, humanities and social sciences
in Canada. I ~
(1-r) Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, Chancellor Dr. Alain Frecker, President Moses Morgan and Mrs. Grace Morgan.
62 Celebrate Memorial
Campaign for space Opened in 1961, the university library had outgrown its
ability to meet the ever-increasing demands of both
faculty and students by the early 1970s. Built to meet the needs of 2,000 students in 1961, the library was hard
pressed to accommodate approximately 10,000 students almost two decades later.
In 1979 Memorial launched a fund-raising campaign to construct a library and a commerce building, and to
establish funds for scholarships and research.
On july 27, 1978, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh presided over the ceremony to turn
the sod symbolizing the start of construction of the new
library - named the Queen Elizabeth II Library in her
honour.
The Queen viewing a model of the new library.
The Queen turning the ceremonial sod for the new library. The Queen Elizabeth II Library is now widely recognized as one of the best university libraries in Canada.
Celebrate Memorial 63
Honorary graduate Dr. Donald Hebb (extreme right) addressing Convocation, May 28, 1977.
64 Celebrate Memorial
1980 tol989 t is largely in consequence of our having recognized the importance of playing to local
strengths that we have been able to build solid graduate studies programs in so many
areas. The physical environment in which the university is set, the rock and the sea,
have in no small measure given us enviable opportunities upon which to build. At the
same time, a unique history and a unique pattern of socio-economic development has
produced a cultural environment as distinctive as the natural setting and one that has
invited the enthusiastic attention of substantial scholars. ''
- President Leslie Harris, report to convocation, Oct. 29, 1983 CHAPTER 5
President Leslie Harris
Born in St. Joseph's,
Placentia Bay, on Oct.
24, 1929, Leslie
Harns is a graduate
of Memorial, receiving
his BA(Ed.) in 1956,
and his MA (history)
m 1959. His PhD in
Asian history was
conferred by the
University of London
in 1960. From 1960
to 1962 he served as director of the Tri-College
C()-()perattve Program {Asran Studies) at Sweet
Bnar, Lynchburg College and Randolph-Macon
Worren's College in Virginia. He also served as
director of the Summer Institute (As1an Studies) at
the Uni ersity of Virginia in 1962.
In 1963 Dr. Harris joined emorial as an assistant
professor of history. He later became department
head. erved as dean of arts and science and, in
197 4, as named vice-president {academic).
Appo·nted president m 1981, he retired on
Aug. 31. 1990.
66 Celebrate Jtemorial
Queen Elizabeth II Library and the St. John's campus of the 1980s.
Pre ident Morgan retired on Aug. 31, 1981. Leslie Harris
was hi succe sor, the first Memorial Univer ity graduate
to fill the po t. During the 1980s he presided over a period of growth in academic programs at the
undergraduate and graduate le\·el a enrolment oared
annually, doubling from 9,000 students in 1978 to 18,000
in 1991. The university added extra classrooms and
teaching staff but remained underfunded becau e the
pro\'incial grant, plus revenues from the lowest tuition
fees in Atlantic Canada, failed to keep pace with increasing cost .
• 1980 Centre for Management Development established • 1981 Morgan retires as president, succeeded by Leslie Harris • Captain Robert A. Bartlett Building opens to house C·CORE • 1982 Earth Sciences Department created • Centre for Offshore & Remote Medicine established • 1983 Centre for Earth Resources Research established • 1984 Don Snowden Centre for Development Support Communications founded • 1985 Department of Music becomes School of Music • NRC opens Institute for Marine Dynamics on campus • 1986 Construction on Earth Sciences building begins • Chair in Industrial Research in Ocean Engineering established • MUN and Ml create Canadian Centre for International Rsherles Training • 1987 Industrial Research Chair in Marine Crustal Seismology established • Seabright Corporation reactivated • 1988 Chair in Fisheries Oceanography established • Ocean Sciences Centre established • Centre for Material Culture Studies established • Fine Arts degree programs launched at Grenfell • Fine Arts Building opens at Grenfell • Telemedicine and Technology Agency (TETRA) established • 1989 Queen Elizabeth II Library provides computer access to its public catalogue • Telemedicine links high schools in Newfoundland and Quebec as part of a French language instruction program
1980 student protest following the accidental death on Prince Phil ip Drive on Oct. 17, 1980, of Judy Lynn Ford, a 20-year-old fourth-year student from Port-aux-Basques. Student protests led to the construction of a skywalk over the parkway.
Celebrate J!emorial 67
Indeed, it is apparent that wherever we
look throughout the university we find
evidence that we are taking very seriously
our mission to be a major developmental
influence in this province. Whether in the
fine arts, the core disciplines of arts and
science, or in the professional schools, we
are using the resources accessible to us
in what we believe to be a responsible
manner to promote excellence, as a proper
university should, and, at the same time,
to serve the interests of the province and
the region. Nor have we conceived those
interests in purely material terms, but
rather in recognition of the fundamental
proposition that appropriate development
in any cufture demands attention to the
spirit as well as to the body. In an effort to
establish a proper balance in this regard
we have, in recent times, fostered
developments in the domain of the fine
arts.
-Dr. Leslie Harris, President's Report, 1987-88, Part I, pp.6-7.
Celebrate ,llemorial
New initiatives When the university moved to the Elizabeth
Avenue campus in 1961, Memorial was a small
liberal arts institution with minuscule graduate
programs, limited research facilities and almost
no professional schools. By the 1980s, Memorial
was a significant research establishment with
professional schools that provided high level
training and professional development in
meeting the many social requirements of the
province.
The university's expanding research efforts
recei1·ed considerable national and international
recognition and funding support. By the 1980s
Memorial was internationally known for its
research activities in specialized fields including
archaeology, folklore, linguistics, biochemistry,
marine biology, earth sciences, ocean
engineering, and telemedicine - all, of course,
directly related to the university's mandate of
serving its unique environment.
Our scholars were also working with experts at
the Institute of Fisheries and Marine Technology
(Marine Institute) to enhance fisheries research.
In 1988 Memorial and the Marine Institute
signed a memorandum of understanding to
foster greater collaboration in marine research
and educational programs. They also established
the Marine Communications Applications Centre
to promote marine communications research,
development and technology transfer.
In 1988 Memorial consolidated its marine
research facilities by merging the Marine
Sciences Research Laboratory at Logy Bay and
the Newfoundland Institute for Cold Ocean
Science (established in 1979 in the Faculty of
Science to co-ordinate research in ocean
sciences) to form the Ocean Sciences Centre
(OSC) at Logy Bay. The OSC researched the
development of aquaculture through the
commercial cultivation of mussels, scallops,
arctic char, cod and salmon.
The university's explosive growth in research
and outreach was not centred solely in t.
John's. During the 1980s, the Labrador Institute
of orthern Studies (based in Goose Bay)
organized conferences on community problems
in Labrador and studied the natural resources
and wildlife of the region. It also promoted
research on the community of Battle Harbour.
This led to the formation of the Battle Harbour
Historic Trust, which successfully raised funds to
restore the community's buildings to an 18th
century period. It made Battle Harbour a
significant tourist attraction, along with Red Bay
in southern Labrador excavated by Memorial's
Dr. Jim Tuck.
1982 • On Sept. 12 a Youth Festival was held on the north campus during the visit of Pope John Paul II.
In 1982 the Newfoundland gm·ernment established the
annual james G. Channing Fellowship, which enables
senior government executives to work at the university,
teach in their professional disciplines and conduct research
in areas of public policy. The fellowship also enables a
faculty member to work in gomnment in an area of
professional academic and research interests.
On the international front, research was fostered in 198-±
through the creation of the Don Snowden Centre for
Development Support Communications. Named for the
former director of the Extension Service who had died
while working in India, the centre worked with the
Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA)
helping Third World countries with community
development techniques and small business management.
Dr A Maxwell House, director of the Telemedicine Centre usi~g . teie~riter equipment as Malachy Mandeville, director of the DIVISIOn of
Continuing Studies, looks on.
Sciences Centre at Logy Bay.
Celebrate Jtemorial 69
Archaeologist Dr. Jim Tuck in the field.
7Q Celebrate Memorial
1984 • The Board of Regents approved the establishment of a fine arts program at Grenfell College.
Research and teaching awards Memorial established prestigious research awards in 1984. One
was the President's Award for Outstanding Re earch; the fir t
winnL1·s were Chester Jablonski (Chemistry), john Malpas (Eartl1
Sciences), and Michael Stones (Psychology). Another was the
title University Re earch Professor, which Memorial reserves for its most distinguished scholars. The first recipients were Jim Tuck (Archaeology) and Harold Williams (Earth Sciences).
Sh e O'Dea with students Tim Power and Mary Jane ~uxley Profe~~org1 a9n14 ·Insurance map as part of their research into histone exammm a buildings in St. John's.
Teaching accomplishments were not overlooked. In 1988, with the financial support of the MUN Alumni Association, Memorial established the President's Awards for Distinguishing
Teaching to recognize performance and innovation. The first winners were Dr. Sheldon MacKenzie, Religious Studies, and Shane O'Dea, English, who was also namecl1988
Canadian Professor of the Year by the Council for Advancement and Support of Education.
Newfounolanu
U !riff
Excerpts from the Dictionary of Newfoundland English
catalina stone n - pyrite coaker n - gasoline fueled engine used in fishing boats c1920s and named for Sir William Coaker, president of the Fishermen's Protective Union. dwy, also dwey, dwigh, dwoi, dwoy dwye n - brief shower or storm fun v- of the wind, to die down, abate /un a - also lund -sheltered
•....... ) .-' .
These books represent research started in the 1950s. They have found a wide audience.
Being there In the 1980s student
enrolment was on the
rise, yet Memorial kept its
friendliness; it was as if
you were in a small
community. Student
activities were rich and
diverse. This was an era
of growth in student
services on campus: We
established a student
volunteer bureau, saw a
new Breezeway and a
new child care centre,
and introduced student health plans. CHMR moved to
open-air FM broadcast. Students played active
leadership roles in provincial and national student
organizations. We achieved solid representation in
university governance, in particular on the Board of
Regents. Socially, we enjoyed Winter Carnivals, Super
TSC Nights, lobby parties and Dining Hall dances. We
debated the merits of free trade and Meech Lake, and
took on anyone who dared to threaten our pride in
Memorial.
The students of the '80s are already making their
impact as business leaders, policy makers, politicians,
and award-winning musicians!
-Ann Marie Vaughan, BA '86, B. Ed. '94
Celebrate Memorial 711
In 1989 the Registrar's Office introduced telephone registration for undergraduate students. This eliminated the traditional and sometimes frustrating line-up in the TSC gym. Memorial was the second university in Canada to provide this service.
Rock concert in the TSC, 1986.
72 Ce/ehratl! .11r!morial
Snow sculptures, Winter Carniva/1988.
CSU-sponsored clown troupe at the 1985 St. John's Regatta.
Summerfest 1987.
Celebrate Memorial
The Fine Arts Building built especially for Grenfell 's new theatre and visual arts programs.
On May 3 1980 Memorial replaced its telephone switchbo~rd s~st~.ml'w~h a new tel~phone' system known as Centrex, which all~wed direct-In· Ia In
and transfer from one extension to anotherl (1-r~Ph~::a (~~~~:~~::.a~~;~da ~~~~ji~~~ ~r~~~::r~~:;~~·a~~~~ :e~~~ :~~ A~~e ~ercer, chief operator.
7 4 Celebrate Memorial
New buildings In 1981, with funding of $1 million from the provincial
government, Memorial constructed the Captain A. Robert
Bartlett Building to house C-CORE. The building is named in
honour of the early 20th-century Arctic explorer who was born in Brigus and who captained the boat that carried
American explorer Robert Peary to the North Pole.
The Department of Music was elevated to school status in 1985 and housed in its own new building, funded by $2
million from the federal government and $3 million from a special fund-raising campaign headed by businessman Victor
Young. It was officially opened on Nov. 1, 1985, and named
in honour of M.O. Morgan in 1989. In 1987 a major extension was made to the building housing the Faculty of Business
Administration, with funding from the province and a special fund-raising campaign.
During the late 1980s the Health Sciences Centre was expanded to include the Schools of Nursing and Pharmacy, the Telemedicine Centre (which also houses Medicor), and
the Telemedicine and Technology Agency (TETRA),
established in 1988 as a joint venture of the Telemedicine Centre and the Division of Educational Technology.
One major addition to the St. John's campus in 1985 was the Institute for Marine Dynamics, built and operated by the
National Research Council of Canada. In 1978 the National
Research Council of Canada had chosen Memorial as a site
for one of the Centres of Excellence to be established in various parts of Canada. Constructed on a 20-acre site on the
north side of the campus, the facility has a 80m x 16m ice
tank and other open-water tanks for precise scale-model experiments in simulated ocean conditions. The tanks are
available to industry, university and government agencies for research in transportation and resource development in ice
covered waters.
John Russell and Agnes McCarthy in a scene from Gilbert and Sull~~·~ HMS Pinafore, a joint production of the School of Music and the Arts an u ure
Centre, May 1988.
-
English Department undergraduates Sean McCann and Janet Edmonds in 1890s costume for roles in William Shakespeare's Love's Labour's Lost, staged July 27-30, 1989. The production in the Reid Theatre included 25 actors and actresses and was directed by Dr. Gordon Jones for MUN Drama.
Celebrate Memorial 7
Being There ' I
• • •
on Corner Brook
like a bolt out of
the blue. For a
while people
didn't know what
to make of us. I
remember a
comment in the
Western Star.
"You 've probably
seen some of
the faculty from
the new college around town. A lot of them
have beards and long hair, but they seem
pretty harmless."
Things gradually changed. We became
less isolated from the community, started
contributing more to it. We added degree
programs and constructed new buildings.
Grenfell now has the feel of a real
university campus. Students still come
back to see us, years after they have
graduated, when they return to the area to
visit parents or relatives.
- Adrian Fowler, BA '66, MA '77
7 6 Celebrate 1 m
"The role of the smaller, regionally based college is of particular and unique importance to
our province. Many more people will have the opportunity to further their education, for now
they can do so without completely uprooting themselves. The smaller college also allows for
closer communication between teachers and students and in doing so promotes better
understanding between both groups. n
-Premier Frank Moores, at the official opening of the college, Oct. 27, 1975
Sir Wilfred Grenfell College
Dr. Cyril F. Poole
Throughout the 1980s,
Grenfell College expanded on its road to fulfilling a
dream beyond the imagination of many who
attended its official opening.
"Who can imagine the
development that will
occur?" asked Dr. Arthur Sullivan, the college's first
,___ ____ _, principal, in his address at
the opening. "I will only say that the development is certain to be a challenging and exciting one. 1
think that we- faculty, staff and students of the college - are exceptionally privileged to be able to
participate in this important event."
The presence of Sir Wilfred Grenfell College, as it
wa officially named in 1979, had an enormous
influence on the west coast community
academically, culturally and recreationally. The changes were seen almost immediately, and became
firmly established during the 1980s as local school
and community groups used college facilities for tournaments, meetings, rehear als, and conferences.
The college established co-operative relationships
with recreational groups in Corner Brook and on the west coast. Recreational facilities were shared by
all. Academically, the college reached out to residents outside Corner Brook by offering a variety
of off-campus credit courses through extension services.
Under the leadership of Dr. Cyril F. Poole, who was
principal from 1977 to 1990, the college gradually expanded, offering four-year fine arts degree
programs in theatre and visual arts. In 1988 Grenfell College opened its School of Fine Arts Building,
with a black box theatre, rehearsal hall, studios, darkrooms and art gallery to support these
programs.
Theatre students in dress rehearsal for a production
of Marat-Sade.
987-1988 • 1987 On Jan. 7 CHMR Radio commenced broadcasting on the FM band • Fine arts degree program launched at Grenfell College
Inside the Fine Arts Bui lding: right, an open staircase highlights a lobby flooded with natural light. Inset: a student at work in one of the studios.
Mid 1980s aerial view of the st J h , . Paton Coli . o n s campus showmg the residence complex ege (foreground), and the Chemistry-Physics Building (background). '
78 Celebrate J1emorial
1984-85 men's varsity swimming team, AUAA champions. Front (1-r)Chris Daly, John Gillis, Jim Tuck, Carson Noel, Shenley Orr. Back (1-r)Greg Hennebury, Andrew Rowsell, Sean Roach, Marc Campbell, Vincent
Gogan, Ralph Wheeler (coach).
• Memorial University Faculty Association (MUNFA), representing the university's faculty and librarians, signed their first collective agreement on Mar. 16, 1989
Residents of Squires House, 1987.
Celebrate Memorial 7
Exam time in the Thomson Student Centre, captured through a photographer's wide-angle camera lens in 1987.
8 Celebrate Memorial
he mission of Memorial University of Newfoundland derives from
three realities: that it is a university, that it is the only university in
the province, and that the province and the university are located
where they are. Therefore, the university has a special obligation to
educate the citizens of this province, a special obligation to focus its
research on the problems this province faces, and a special obligation
to share its expertise with the local community.''
- President Arthur W. May, address to convocation, Oct. 31, 1992
CHAPTER 6
Arthur W. May Arthur May was born in St. John's in 1937. He
was educated at Memorial University, w~ere he
received B.Sc.(Hons.) and M.Sc. degrees, and
McGill University, where he received a PhD in
marine sciences. He
has worked as a
fisheries scientist, a
fisheries manager
and an international
negotiator, and has
been the CEO of
several public service
organizations. He
was deputy minister
of the federal
Department of
Fisheries and Oceans
from 1982 to 1985,
president of the
Dr. Robert Crocker (dean of education) helps with the robing of Dr. May at his installation as president, Feb. 2, 1991
Natural Sciences and Engineering Research
Council of Canada from 1986-1990, and
president of Memorial University from 1990·
1999. Named Memorial's Alumnus of the Year in
1983, he received a honorary degree from
Memorial in 1989. He was appointed an Officer
of the Order of Canada in December 1995.
82 Celebrate Memorial
90-1999 • 19S Earth Sciences Building opens • President Harris retires •President May appointed • 1991 Dr. Albert Cox retires as vice-president (academic); succeeded by Dr. Jaap Tuinman • Dr. Kathryn Bindon
appointed principal, Grenfell College • 1992 Marine Institute merges with Memorial • Arts and Administration Annex opened • Animal Care /Biotechnology building opened • 1993 Multi-media classrooms established • 1994 Centre for International Business Studies established • Grenfell BA, B.Sc. degrees established • 1995 Marine Institute introduces bachelor of technology and bachelor of
maritime studies degrees • Chair in Telelearning established • Smallwood Centre for Newfoundland Studies activated • Canada Games Park transferred to MUN • Grenfell's Library and Computing Building
opened • 1996 Grenfell introduces BA programs in environmental studies, historical studies • BN (Collaborative) introduced at St. John's and Corner Brook campuses • Forestry program moves to Grenfell College • Fisheries Conservation Research chair established • 1997 Marine Institute introduces master of marine studies degree • Memorial hosts the Learneds • Opportunity Fund launched • Grenfell's
Student Centre Annex opened • Adrian Fowler appointed principal, Grenfell College • 1998 Dr. Tuinman retires as vice-president (academic); replaced by Dr. Evan Simpson • Forest Centre opens, Grenfell
College • 1999 President May retires; succeeded by Dr. Axel Meisen • 1999 Grenfell introduces BA programs in humanities, social and cultural studies
In 1991 there were four Newfoundland-born presidents of Canadian universities - Drs. Downey, Ivany, May and Strong - and they were recognized with honorary degrees at the convocation installing President May. Front (1-r) Dr. James Downey, Dr. George Ivany and Dr. David Strong. Back (1-r) Dr. Albert Cox, vice-president (academic), Charles White (chair, Board of Regents), The Hon. James McGrath, Lieutenant Governor, President May, Dr. Philip Warren (minister of education), and St. John's Mayor Shannie Duff.
996 • 1996 Students can pay their fees by credit card using the telephone registration system
If the history of Memorial to 1990 had been one of almost
constant growth and expansion, the last decade of the 20th century brought sudden changes: wage restraint, cost
reductions, tuition increases, organizational changes and staffing reductions. These moves were a necessary response
to massive funding cuts by the provincial and federal government .
During the 1990s the provincial government, in an effort to reduce its deficit, regularly reduced the annual grant to the
university, often unpredictably. In 1996, faced with the
likelihood of yet another reduction, Memorial negotiated an agreement for a three-year plan to manage the institution's finance and accommodate the reductions. "Memorial University of Newfoundland is a strategic resource of knowledge, technology and
expertise" - President Arthur May, Oct. 31, 1992. Despite the cuts, the decade has also seen the university enhance it existing research infrastructure, add new degree
programs and conduct a successful fund-raising campaign.
President Harris retired on Aug. 31, 1990, and wa succeeded by Dr. Arthur May, a Memorial graduate (B.Sc., 1958) who had most recently been president of the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of
Canada. His appointment coincided with the beginning of reduced grants for the university; the challenge during his tenure was to maintain the
quality of education and research.
In 1993 Memorial developed a mission statement and adopted a strategic plan defining the university's role in the future social and economic
development of the province. The mi sion statement says that Memorial University is "committed to excellence in teaching, re earch and scholar hip, and ervice to the general public." It also "recognize a special obligation to educate the citizen of ewfoundland and Labrador, to undertake research on the challenges this province faces and to hare its
expertise with the community." Entitled Launch Forth, the strategic plan was intended to provide a planning guideline for teaching, research and
budgeting priorities.
Celebrate Memorial 83
Launch Forth -A Strategic Plan jGr Memorial University of Newfoundland 1. Quality
The university will systematically act to enhance quality in all of its services: to students, to the rest of the university community and to external stakeholders.
2. Outreach Education
The university will adapt its programs and services to meet the changing needs, expectations and characteristics of students.
3. Community Resource
The university will enhance its presence in the community and create means for our community to learn about and to utilize the resources of the community.
4. Mid·North/ Atlantic
The university will take advantage of its mid-north and Atlantic location in
84 Celebrate Memorial
educational programs, research activities and community services.
5. Expanding Horizons
The university will develop its international linkages to promote individual, cultural and economic growth, and to provide a means to contribute to the world community.
Marine Institute.
The Marine Institute In 1992, following a review of the Marine Institute and the community
college system, the provincial government decided that the Marine Institute should merge with the university. Throughout the decade MI added degree
programs at the undergraduate and masters levels, while maintaining the diploma programs, hart-term training and industry research for which it had
developed an international reputation.
In 1999 the MI can boast more than 4,500 students instructed by 130 faculty members. About 1,500 are "traditional" students, in that they attend classes full-time from September to June. Several thousand others, though, benefited
from MI's fisheries and marine expertise, coming to either the St. John's or Foxtrap facilities or receiving instruction in their own areas of the province.
Increasingly, MI is becoming a site for national and international training.
Students in the environmental technology program.
Full-mission ship's bridge simulator.
The institute has several major research facilities: a flume tank, one of only a few in the world capable of testing scale models of fishing equipment; and a complex
of hip's bridge, ballast control and engine room simulator that allow hips' officers and crews to practice routine and emergency situations in total safety. The complex is used by industrial clients to develop new equipment and by
researchers to conduct experiments under carefully controlled conditions. In 1995 the Marine Institute offered its first degree programs - bachelor of technology and
bachelor of maritime studies; the master's degree in marine studies was introduced in 1997.
MI is the only unit of Memorial that actually receives a majority of its funding from
outside the university/government granting scheme. In 1998, almost 70 per cent of its operating budget came from corporate and other clients.
Leonard Lahey, .~anager of the Marine Institute's aquaculture facility, feeding fish being used . research project. In a
Celebrate Memorial 85
New initiatives It's only natural that we attract people
interested in oceanography, marine
biology, ocean engineering, marine
geoscience and so on .... Nobody else
is in such a good position to deal with
the physics of sea ice or the engin
eering of offshore structures. We have
the (National Research Council) ice
tank on campus and we certainly have
benefitted from the merger of the
Marine Institute with us.
That is our natural role, as it is for
maritime history, folklore, music and
theatre which tell of our evolution as a
coastal people and how people
interact with the sea .... This is our
territory and we should decide to be
the best in that game, forego other
games, and put our resources there."
-President May, Evening Telegram, Mar. 29, 1998
86 Celebrate Memorial
1997 • Students can apply for undergraduate admission and can access their records, including final grades, using the Web
The profile of research within the university was boosted when the post of vice-president (Re earch) was created. Dr. Kevin Keough was appointed and
given responsibility for admini tering all of Memorial's research and technology transfer
programs. In 1994 the university converted much of Spencer Hall into a technology incubator centre to
encourage the establishment of new research and
development companies. While Y!emorial
encouraged new re earch effort in the province, it was not forgetting those in which it already had
expertise.
During the 1990s archaeologist Jim Tuck undertook
a major restoration of Lord Baltimore's 17th-century colony at Ferryland. Graduates of the master's
program in archaeology also commenced their own research programs at Cupids, Dildo Island, Burnside and Bird Island. Many of these projects combined
an interest in preserving the past with a community
economic development component. By 1998 the
Ferryland site, for example, was attracting more
than 15,000 visitors a year and providing seasonal
employment to 50 to 70 people.
In 1994 the Faculty of Business Administration
established the Centre for International Bu iness
Studies to help local businesses, students and
faculty connect to the international business community. ClBS also acts as a resource for local
businesses, providing information on international
business issues such as markets, business conditions, cultural differences and identi~ing
potential trading partners. The centre also co
ordinates student exchanges between Memorial and
universities in other countries.
In 1995 the university established a chair in telelearning in the Faculty of Education with funding of $1.5 million from Industry Canada and
the Atlantic Canada Opp01tunities Agency/Human Resource Development. This was the first chair of
this kind in Canada. In 1996 the university added to expertise in telecommunications with $1.8 million
funding for a chair in telecommunications engineering and information technology, a joint
initiative of Memorial, NewTel Communications, Northern Telecom ( ortel), and SERC.
In 1996 a research chair in fisheries conservation was established, with initial funding for five years
from the provincial and federal fisheries departments, NSERC and Fishery Products
International. Ba eel at the Marine Institute the
chair provides an integrated focus for fisheries research, with particular emphasis on under
standing groundfish stock dynamics and supporting the development of a conservation
based fishery in the province.
Above(l-r) -Professor Derek Wilton and earth sciences graduate students in the field in northern Labrador 1994; archaeology students at work at the Colony of Avalon site in Ferryland.
In September 1995, with a $950,000 endowment from the J.R. Smallwood Heritage Foundation, the university activated the J.R. Smallwood Centre for Newfoundland Studies, a research facility
to investigate and document Newfoundland culture and history.
The centre made possible the 1998 re-publication of E.R. Seary's
popular Family Names of Newfoundland and Labrador (1977).
It also initiated, in conjunction with the Bronfman Foundation of Montreal, a Web page (http://www.heritage.nfca) devoted to
Newfoundland and Labrador culture.
Clockwise: Faustina Hwang (graduate student, seated), Patricia Lefeuvre (research engineer at C-CORE and t t' t d ) · . par - 1me graduate s u ent , Jamie Kmg (graduate student) Peter W d ( . . undergraduate) with Dr. Ray Gosine Dr 'Go . , oo man engmeenng
. · · sme s research team carnes out research into improved methods for h - b Interaction. uman ro ot
Celebrate Memorial 87
1997 -Members of the "Creaking Bones· group, which consists of former and present employees who have been meeting socially since 1962 to celebrate their friendship. Front (1-r)- Helen Hinchy (Registrar's Office), Carmel Woodford (Mail Room), Grace Layman (Education), Mary MacDonald (Bursar's Office), Maureen Stapleton (President's Office, now Faculty of Business Administration), Phyllis (Dunne) Delaney (Switchboard). Back (1-r) Theresa Stokes (Education), Frances Healey (Registrar's Office), Rosemary Barron (Chemistry), Marjorie (Dodge) Frampton (Administrative Services), Helen Carew (President's Office), Lillian Sullivan (Biology), and Jo Barron (Physics).
88 Celebrate Jfemorial
1997 Remembrance Day Ceremony in the Founder's Lobby, Arts and Administration Building.
J h 's campus in 1997. Tree lighting ceremony at the St. o n
Term 7 civil engineering students Jason Phillips (bow) and Trevor Bolt (stern) paddle Lukey's Boat during the concrete canoe's christening in the engineering wave tank. The vessel was awarded first place for presentation and innovation at the National Concrete Canoe Competition in Sherbrooke, Quebec, in May 1999.
Cast of the 1960s rock opera Tommy produced b Culture Centre, Apr. 7-9, 1999. Y students of the School of Music at the Arts and
Students in th Q e ueen Elizabeth II Library.
Celebrate Memorial 89
Delegates relaxing outside the Thomson Student Centre.
1997 Learneds In 1997 Memorial hosted North America's largest
annual interdisciplinary gathering of academics in the humanities and
social sciences. More than 5,000 delegates
visited the St. John's
campus to attend the
Congress of Learned Societies ("the
Learneds"), held from
May 31to June 14, 1997. The conference
Guest speaker Rex contributed between Murphy and Learneds $5 and $7 million to delegate Joan Bessey. the local economy.
90 Celebrate Memorial
New buildings and services Although restraint and cutbacks may have been the themes of the decade, several necessary
changes and improvements were made to facilities. The denominational colleges were
closed in the early 1990s and were acquired by the government, which in turn transferred
ownership to the university.
In January 1992 a five-storey annex to the Arts
and Administration Building opened to provide badly needed teaching and office space for
several departments housed in the "temporary buildings" near the Queen Elizabeth II Library
and in Queen's College. Later that year, an animal care and biotechnology facility opened
adjacent to the Chemistry-Physics Building.
It was a sign of changing times that better daycare facilities were desperately needed on
campus. This need was largely met in 1992, when the CSU and the community officially
opened a new building dedicated to thi
purpose, replacing the childcare services that
had operated since 1976 in the Burton's Pond residential complex.
In 1994 the CSU arranged to lease space on the first floor of the TSC from the univer ity. In this
space, the tudents' union established a food
court, a postal outlet, a photocopying centre, a
travel agency, a pharmacy and other services to meet the ongoing needs of the campus
community.
1997 • MUNet, Memorial's computer network, becomes part of the Smithsonian Institution's Pennanent Research Collection of Infonnatlon Technology Innovation.
Earth Sciences Building.
In summer 1999 the University Centre, on the St. John's campus, is near completion. Insert: Memorial Tower (artist's rendering).
The Opportunity Fund In March 1997 the university launched a fund-raising campaign to provide scholarships, support for teaching and research initiatives, and to construct badly needed student services facilities at St. John's and Corner Brook, and an athletics complex at the St. John's campus. The goal of the Opportunity Fund was to raise $50 million for 50 years, $25 million from the private sector. Planning and preliminary fund-raising
began in 1995 under the leadership of Chancellor John C. Crosbie. The provincial
- THE OPPORTUNITY
FUND
FORA BETTF.ll TOMORROW
Student Centre Annex, Grenfell College,
Corner Brook.
The Johnson Family Foundation has provided funding for the construction of a Memorial Tower adjacent to the new centre. The rotunda inside the base of the tower will feature a display of the university's history.
government promised a dollar-for-dollar match to a maximum of $25 million (for a total of $50 million); however, at the campaign launch Premier Brian Tobin committed the government to matching all monies raised. By April1999 the original goal had been met and the campaign stood at $25.2 million.
The proposed Field House complex, on the St. John's campus (artist's rendering)
9 Celebrate Memorial
Grenfell College 1990s From a single complex, housing classrooms, laboratories, library, bookstore, gym, pool, dining hall and residence, Grenfell has developed into a liberal
arts institution of 1,200 students, with five modern
buildings. The Grenfell College of the 1990s now offers 11 distinct Memorial degree programs: six
bachelor of arts programs, one bachelor of science in two streams, the fine arts programs, the bachelor of
nursing and, ince 1996, the fir t two years of a forestry degree de igned to be completed at the Univer ity of ew Brunswick.
The Forest Centre, which opened in 1998 to meet the
needs of this collaborative program, is shared with
the Newfoundland Division of the Canadian Forestry Service and the We tern Newfoundland Model Fore t Incorporated
The Library & Computing Building opened in 1995. In
November of that year, the library itself was dedicated in memory of E.J. Ferriss Hodgett, Grenfell's first vice
principal, who had always displayed unconditional commitment to the College.
The Student Centre Annex was added in 199 ; it is a place students call their own, complete with a food court, student lounge , meeting rooms, student union
offices and a licensed lounge.
Although Grenfell College has developed into a bigger campus, serving three times the number of tudents it
had in 1975, its commitment and focus remain the same. Memorial's west coast campu prides it elf on providing a personalized, interactive and
interdisciplinary education for every student.
Above: Grenfell's first BFA graduates, theatre and visual arts, May 1992. Front (l·r) - Ruby LeRicheBeaumont, Mary Jenkins, Audrey Marie Feltham (v); Deborah Anne Joseph, Maria Annette Bourgeois, Janice Kitchen, Donna Humber (t); Helly Greenacre (v). Middle (1-r) - Phil Matz (t); Darren Cranford, Brian Ball (v); James Davis (t); Joanne Snook (v); Todd Hennessy (t); Paul Hewson, Dale Roberts (v). Back (1-r) -Maurice Smith, Michael s· Payne, Neil Robbins, Carol lr Wilfred Grenfell College Student Centre Annex, Corner Brook.
Nelson, Michael Fenwick, Jeffrey Boone (t); Bradley Colbourne (v).
Celebrate Memorial 93
999 • Students can vote for CSU elections using the web.
Memorial in 1999 . . I
And the wmner 1s .... Dr. Neil Rosenberg of the Folklore Department was the co-winner of a 1998 Grammy in the Best Album Notes category. The album was An Anthology of American Folk Music, released by Smithsonian/Folkways Recordings.
Dr. Elizabeth Miller's research on Bram Stoker's classic vampire novel has earned her international recognition. In 1995, at the World Dracula Congress _ held in Transylvania, of course - she was named a Baroness of the House of Dracula. She teaches the
...__ ___ ...J novel in her first-year English
Four of our alumni made it big in the '90s. Great Big sea is a recognized name on both sides of the Atlantic. They are (clockwise from bottom) Alan Doyle, BA '92, Darrell Power, BA B.Ed.'91, Sean McCann, BA'89, Bob Hallett, BA'90.
and third-year Gothic fiction courses.
Now the largest university in Atlantic Canada, Memorial
in 1999 ha approximately 16,000 students, consisting
of 14,200 undergraduates and 1,600 graduates. It has approximately 800 tenured faculty members and nearly 2,100 full-time and contractual support staff in six faculties and seven chools. Of these numbers, over
150 are international undergraduate students and 195 are international graduate students.
Although Memorial is a relatively young university, it ha been shaped by and has helped to shape, the
people and economy of ewfoundland and Labrador in the latter half of this century. It ha lived up to the
promise of 1949 with its profound impact on the cultural, economic and social life of Newfoundland and
Labrador. It has awarded more than 50,000 degree ,
most to re ident of the province. By far the great majority of people in leadership positions in Newfoundland and Labrador are graduate of Memorial - in government, bu iness, education, the professions
and the arts. Many thousands of graduates are
contributing to Canadian prosperity elsewhere in the country.
1994-95 women's varsity basketball team, AUAA champions. Front (1-r)- Doug Partridge (coach), Lisa ~yan, Karen . Cameron, Jaime Hearn, Lori Squires, Sandi Blundon, Michelle Healey. Back (1-r)- Bill Wiseman (assistant coach~, Janlc.e r Gillingham, Angela Torraville, Judy Byrne, T.ara Bulgm, Jemfe Devereaux, Andrea Dinn, Tani Pennell (assistant coach).
1996-97 men's varsity basketball team. Front (1-r)- Shane Harte, John Coaker, Loren Kielly, John Devereaux, Jermaine Bruce, Peter Benoite, Paul Byrne (assistant coach). Back (1-r) - Howie Greene (manager), Glenn Taylor (coach), Marc Woods, Darren Payne, Leon Peddle, David O'Keefe, Glen Squires, Matt Woods, Mike Woods (assistant coach).
The Arts and Administration Building Annex.
96 Celebrate Memorial
Acknowledgments
We greatly appreciate the assistance of the staff of the Centre for Newfoundland Studies Archives - Bert Riggs, Susan Hadley, Gail Weir and Linda White - and the staff of Photographic Services, Division of University Relations- Chris Hammond, Patricia Adams and Sharon Merils -for making their photograph collections so readily available. Thanks to Scott Courage of The Telegram, who gave us access to the newspaper's extensive photographic files. Readers for the manuscripts were Dr. lain Bruce, Dr. J. Douglas Eaton, Dr. Brian Johnston, Dr. Malcolm Macleod, Professor Shane O'Dea, Bert Riggs and Bruce Woodland. Pam Gill was instrumental in ensuring we had Grenfell College information and pictures.
Published by the Division of University Relations for Memorial University's Anniversaries Committee 042-017-08-99-5,000 (c)1999 ISBN 0-88901-364-0
A considerable number of people have helped with the preparation of material for this book. In particular, we would like to thank Eleanor Bennett, Joan Bessey, Dr. Jim Black, Frank Butler, Mike Callahan, lan Campbell, Helen Carew, Glenn Collins, Victoria Collins, Roger Flood, Deryck Harnett, Leslie Harris, Eric Hart, Dr. Doug House, Ed Hunt, Leo Mackey, Arthur May, Maire O'Dea, Rick Predham, Gar Pynn, Margaret Pynn, Linda Russell, Ernst Rollmann, Sheila Singleton, Kevin Smith, Harold Squires and Bill Woolgar.
For more information on Memorial's history, visit the Celebrate Memorial website at www.mun.caj celebrate.
M. Baker and J. Graham
Memorial ~University of Newfoundland
St. John's, NF, Canada A1C 5S7 (709) 737-8000 www.mun.ca
88880023450 l llllllllllllllllllllllllllli~o 888800234500
HISTORY OF MEMORIAL