Walter Thompson served on the staff of the University of Saskatchewan from 1913 to 1959. He joined the university four years after it opened when, having just received his doctorate from Harvard, he was appointed professor of biology and head of the department. For the next forty-sixty years he held several positions, including dean of arts and president of the university. During that time he was involved in making and implementing many important decisions, and in the course of his work he formed close friendships with nearly all the outstanding people who have been connected with the university over the years. Because of his long service to the university and the fund of information he has accumulated, Dr. Thompson is well qualified to write a personal history of the institution.

In this memoir the author has done more than merely recount the historical facts as recorded in official documents; he goes behind the scenes to give the background of those events. He explains the reasons for decisions and actions, and examines the give and take of personal relationships and the influence of personal characteristics.

An informative and entertaining look at the history of a university, this volume will be fascinating reading for everyone interested in education, in the history of the west, or in the development of Canadian institutions.

WALTER P. THOMPSON was born in southern Ontario in 1889. After studying biology at the universities of Toronto and Harvard, he joined the faculty of The University of Saskatchewan. He was appointed junior dean of arts in 1933, became senior dean of arts in 1939, and in 1949 president of the university, a post which he held until his retirement ten years later. In addition, he has been president of the Royal Society of Canada (1948), a member of the National Research Council and recipient of the Flavelle medal, president of the National Conference of Canadian Universities (1954-5), and Companion of the Order of Canada (1968). He has received honourary degrees from ten universities and was chairman of the Saskatchewan Advisory Planning Commission of Medical Care. He is the author of Graduate Education in the Sciences in Canadian Universities and Medical Care: Programs and Issues.

W.P. Thompson's profile page