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Major John Agnew, 127th Battalion, Canadian Infantry, served in World War I, along with his three sons, Lt. Donald Agnew, of the Canadian Reserve Artillery, Lt. Ellis Agnew, 351 Brigade R.F.A., and Lt. Ronald Agnew, of the Royal Canadian Navy. Major Agnew's first wife, Daisy Edith Stocks, died in 1902. He married Elizabeth Dickenson prior to the start of the First World War. The Agnew family lived in Toronto, Ont. During the war, his wife Elizabeth Agnew, moved temporarily to Hamilton, Ont. while her husband and sons were overseas.

H.R.H. Prince Arthur William Patrick Albert was born on 1 May 1850, the seventh child of Queen Victoria. He was created Duke of Connaught and Strathearn on 24 May 1874. From 1911 to 1916 he served as Governor-General of Canada.

J.N. Weekes served aboard H.M.S. Sapphire. H.M.S. Sapphire was a light cruiser of 3,000 tons built in 1905. At the outbreak of the war the ship formed part of the 7th Battle Squadron and was on escort duty in the English Channel as the British Expeditionary Force crossed to France. Later on the ship took part in operations at Gallipoli and eventually was stationed at various Italian Naval Bases.

Frank Henry Waters was not a dominant journalist on the scale of James Louis Garvin. He was, however, trusted and enormously well-liked on Fleet Street. Because of his probity and discretion, many members of the Establishment confided in him. He started in the Beaverbrook newspaper empire in 1936 and then from 1945 to 1950 was Assistant Manager of The Times. He ended his career as Managing Editor of the News Chronicle.
Longer biographical sketch by Richard A. Rempel can be found in Library Research News 9, no. 2 (Autumn 1985): ii-iv.

Oliver Frederick John Bradley Woods spend his entire career with The Times. His work with that newspaper started in 1934 and was only interrupted by military service in World War II. After the war, he was appointed Colonial correspondent and travelled extensively. In 1961 Woods was appointed Assistant Editor of The Times and shifted his attention primarily to the British domestic scene. Just before his death in 1972 he had nearly completed his draft of The Story of The Times (1983).
Longer biographical sketch by Richard A. Rempel can be found in Library Research News 9, no. 2 (Autumn 1985): ii-iv.

W. B. Yeats, poet and playwright, was born in Dublin on 13 June 1865. His most popular play is the patriotic Cathleen ni Houlihan first performed in 1902. His poetry includes The Tower (1928) and The Winding Stair (1929). Yeats won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1923. He died in Roquebrune, France on 28 January 1939.

James Anson Farrer was born in London, England, the son of Rev. Matthew Thomas Farrer and Mary Louisa Anson. He was a prolific author, writing fifty works, including Invasion and Conscription (1909).

Ralph Sheldon was probably an Englishman temporarily living in Nancy, France. He undertook a tour of Switzerland in the late eighteenth century.

William Fleetwood was born on 1 January 1656 in the Tower of London and educated at King's College, Cambridge. He became one of the most celebrated preachers of his day, often speaking before the Royal family and to parliament. On 2 June 1702 he was appointed to a canonry at Windsor. He also held several other appointments and a fellowship at Eton. He was created Bishop on Ely on 19 November 1714. Many of his sermons were published. The Chronicon was written to address the question about the ability to retain a College fellowship while in the possession an estate of practically no value because of the change in the value of money. It was published anonymously in London in 1707. Fleetwood died at Tottenham, near London, on 4 August 1723.

Francesco Gnecco, composer, was born in Genoa, ca. 1769. He was primarily a composer of operas but also wrote chamber and sacred music. The most famous of his twenty-five operas is La prova d'un opera sera. It was originally in one act with a libretto by Artusi and titled La prima prova dell'opera gli orazi e curiazi (Venice, 1803). It was changed to a two act work with Gnecco's own libretto (Milan, 1805) and performed throughout Europe until 1860. Gnecco died in Milan in 1810 or 1811.

Comiers was a mathematician and kabbalist.

Little is known about Richard Nisbet. His coat of arms (Argent three boars heads erased sable within a bordure sable) and his crest (a boar salient regardant) taken together with his motto "Vis Fortibus Arma", suggests that he may be of the Nisbets of Greenholm, a branch of the Nisbets of that ilk dwelling in Ayr. He refers to himself as a 'philomath' — a lover of learning or a student of mathematics.

A contemporary Richard Nisbet — an erstwhile planter of Nevis who subsequently relocated to Philadelphia — published at least two works defending the institution of slavery (especially as practised in the West Indies) before being consigned to a Philadelphia hospital for reasons of insanity. It is possible that this is the same Nisbet, but there is no conclusive evidence to suggest it.

Sidney Grenfell served in the British Royal Navy from 1822-78. Born in 1806 to John Grenfell of Chelsea and entered the navy in 1822. He was the Captain of the HMS Amethyst from 8 July 1856 to 22 December 1860 (until paying off at Chatham). As part of his command of the Amethyst, he participated in the second Anglo-Chinese War or Opium War.

William Eric Windridge was born in Bexley, Kent in England on the 17th of July 1895 to Thomas Windridge. His occupation is listed as a clerk when he enlisted with the Canadian Expeditionary Force in September 1915 and he served with the 2nd Canadian Pioneer Battalion. He enlisted again in 1942 and served with the Veteran Guards of Canada until September 1945. Between the wars he married his wife, Edith, and they had one daughter, Dorothy, born in 1926. Edith passed away in March of 1943.

Catherine Wilson attended the University of Western Ontario. She was appointed as copywriter and publicist for McClelland & Stewart Ltd in 1969 and was promoted to Director of Marketing. In 1972 she was a consultant to the Department of the Secretary of State in Ottawa. She joined James Lorimer & Co. where she was General Manager from 1973 to 1976. She was the senior arts producer for the CBC radio program Sunday Morning in its first season from 1976-1977 and Assistant to the Publisher at Clarke Irwin from 1977-1978. From 1978 to 1980 she was a Communications Department consultant for the Government of Botswana, Africa. In 1980 she was appointed Vice-President and General Manager of James Lorimer & Co. Ltd. Wilson has also worked as Director of Publishing for the United Church of Canada from 1990-1996; as General Manager and Director of Human Resources from 1997-2002 and as Policy Consultant for Children’s Mental Health Ontario from 2004-2005.

FCB Crompton served with the Army Service Corps as a Lieutenant. He was demobilized on 13 April 1919. After the war, Crompton wrote Glimpses of Early Canadians: Lahontan (1925).

R.H. De Pencier served in the Canadian Contingent of the South African Constabulary in the South African War. From Montreal, De Pencier was part of the Volunteer Rifles and received the Queen’s Medal. His regimental number was 1662.

Stuart Ivison was an active member of the Canadian Baptist community and served as a chaplain during the Second World War in England, Italy, Belgium, and the Netherlands. Ernest Hauber Stuart Ivison was born 26 March 1906 in Wheatley, Ontario. Joining the Talbot Street Baptist Church during the end of high school and through his work with the church made the decision to enter the ministry. Starting at McMaster University in 1925, Ivison joined the debating team, worked on the McMaster Monthly and was the first editor of The Silhouette.

After graduating in 1930, Ivison was ordained and began his first ministry at a church in Brockville. Two years later he moved to Ottawa to fill a vacancy at First Baptist Church. On 5 August 1931, he married his wife Marjorie, and they had three children: Donald, Duncan and David. As a consequence of his role at Ottawa First Baptist he was often a liaison between the government and the Baptist Convention after the start of the Second World War. He was asked to join the National Defence Headquarters by Bishop Wells of the Anglican Church of Canada. He enlisted in July 1941 and served at Headquarters for two years. In 1943 he requested to go through basic training and serve overseas. Ivison served most of his time with the Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry, until just before the end of the war when he became Staff Chaplain at Army Headquarters. Following his service he returned First Baptist in Ottawa and was an active member of the Baptist community in Canada.

For a detailed account of his life, including a wealth of contextual details for this archive, researchers should consult the oral history recorded in 1986 that is housed in Box 2, File 25.

Herb Gibson, farmer, First World War soldier (787167), was born 11 November 1889 to William Russell Gibson (1848-1917) and Euphemia Nairn. After serving in the 42nd Lanark and Renfrew Militia, Herb worked on the family farm in Balderston, Ontario until March 1916, when, despite his father’s wishes he enlisted with the Canadian Expeditionary Force.

Trained at Valcartier, Quebec, he was initially appointed to the 110th Reserve Battalion for training and then transferred to the 4th Canadian Division to begin fighting in France. He was drafted into the 75th Battalion to replace their losses on the Somme and he arrived in France in December 1916. In March 1917, he was part of the offensive at Vimy Ridge, where he was shot in the right arm. After recovering in England, he returned to France in November 1917. In January of 1918 he learned that both his parents had died just before Christmas. Then in July, while lying at a listening post at Arras, Gibson was shot in the chest. He would see out the rest of the war while recovering in England and be sent back to Canada to be discharged in March 1919.

Due to the wounds Herb sustained, he was unable to work on the farm as he had prior to the war. He sold his farm and moved to Winnipeg to build houses with his brother. Herbert Gibson and May Bell Keays (1896/7-1999) were married in St. Vital, Manitoba on 10 February 1931, after she had finished caring for her younger siblings. They had two children and returned to Ontario in 1939, where Herb first worked at Batawa, Ontario, and then at the #6 Repair Depot RCAF Station, Trenton until 1955. He passed away on 17 October 1967.