Our Supporters

The Kaufman Family Library Fund is a professional development fund supported by an endowment trust generously donated by the Kaufman Family. The fund supports general professional development and continuing education activities for regular full-time Library staff who do not have access to Professional Development Funds.

Janet Kaufman retired on June 30, 2011 after dedicating 35 years of service to the University, serving in a variety of capacities in her time including Co-Director of the Library’s Learning Commons, Acting Associate University Librarian, and Head of Information Services. Janet and Don Kaufman directed this endowed gift upon her retirement from the Library.

The Unwin Room is named for Professor G.H. Unwin, chair of the Department of English at OAC from 1909 to 1913. This room was originally located in Massey Library and later transferred to the first floor of the McLaughlin Library. It was dedicated by the class of OAC 1925 in 1941.

The OAC Centennial Room was dedicated by the class of 1974 for OAC's centennial anniversary. This group study room is located on the second floor. It officially opened July 11th, 1974.

The Macdonald Stewart Room is named after David Macdonald Stewart and Sir William Macdonal Foundation. The Archives reading room was renamed Wellington County Room on November 12th, 1990.

The Learning Commons was founded by a provincial facilities renewal grant and a contribution from the U of G Heritage Fund.

The Kortright Reading Room is a memorial to Francis Kortright (1887-1972) who was a professional engineer and business executive known for his life-long conservation interests. The furnishings and decorations were made possible through a grant from the Canadian National Sportsman's Show, which was founded by Mr. Kortright to raise money for purposes of conservation. The reading room is located on the fifth floor and officially opened on July 13, 1972.

The Forster Memorial Room on the first floor is dedicated to former U of G president Donald F. Forster, who served from 1975 to 1983.

The Canadian Room is dedicated to Professor O.J. Stevenson, who served as chair of the Department of English, OAC, from 1916 to 1939. In 1941, the class of OAC 1941 furnished the room, which was originally located in the Massey Library. It is now a group study room on the third floor of the McLaughlin Library.

The Mary Buyers Memorial Book Collection was given to the Library of the University of Guelph in memory of Mary Katherine Buyers, B.Sc.Agr. (Posthumous) 1992, OVC Class of 1996.The collection was kindly donated by her family and friends, by her classmates at the Ontario Agricultural College and the Ontario Veterinary College, and by the Central Student Association of the University of Guelph, that others might share her curiosity for life and love of learning.

The Ontario Golf Superintendents' Association makes an annual gift of $500 to the Library in support of a fund established by the association in 2000 for purchase of Library materials related to golf course and turf grass development. The Library reciprocates by providing standard library borrowing privileges to all OGSA members at the University of Guelph, the University of Waterloo, Wilfred Laurier University and the TriUniversity Annex.

A U of G donor chose to honour the rural roots of her late uncle Glenn MacGregor by helping expand the collection of rural heritage materials in the Library's archives.

Lynn Ridley made a $10,000 gift to the Library from an inheritance she received upon the death of her uncle in 2004. MacGregor spent most of his life on a farm in Morewood, southeast of Ottawa, where he served on the local municipal council and wrote local history.

The donation paid for a summer student to finish cataloguing almost 2,500 International Harvester photos, making them available to users of the Library's extensive rural heritage collection.

This collection focuses on the history of landscape architecture in Canada. It includes digitization projects and website development that chronicle the evolution of the profession.

The Landscape Architecture Canada Foundation established the Frances McLeod Blue Collection in 2007 with a grant of $5,000 and a commitment for subsequent annual grants.

The collection is named for Frances Blue, who served the profession as a dedicated volunteer. Blue became an early member of the Canadian Society of Landscape Architecture in 1938 and a full member in 1939. For many years, she served as the organization's secretary. Although formally trained as a landscape architect, she did not pursue the field as a career but generously volunteered her time while raising her family and pursing her passion for gardening.

Fascinated by history, Jane Croft has explored countless archives as a researcher and volunteer, including those at the University of Guelph Library. She and her husband David also have a connection to U of G through their daughter, Ann (BSc '96, DVM '99) and son-in-law, Patrick Levesque (BSc '96), which has led to their long-time support of the Parents' Library Fund, the Library and Pet Trust.

So when Jane's financial planner urged her to consider a means of giving that would allow her to enjoy the results of her philanthropy, she contacted the Library to create a new type of gift — a library internship.

Croft's gift is being used to hire archival interns to work on acquiring, processing, cataloguing, preserving (digitizing), housing, and providing electronic access to collection materials. They also conduct classes in archival research for undergraduate and graduate students.

Novelist and playwright Timothy Findley's extensive personal collection of theatre memorabilia has been donated to the University of Guelph's renowned L.W. Conolly Theatre Archives. The collection spans 40 years and includes all the costume designs, set designs, production photographs and props from the plays involving Findley and his partner William Whitehead.

Renowned Canadian actor William Hutt has forever enriched the Library's L.W. Conolly Theatre Archives with his donation of more than 400 items, including scripts, reviews, articles, correspondence, essays, photos and personal papers. Hutt made the gift the year before his death in June 2007 at age 87. Born in 1920 in Toronto, Hutt served in the Second World War and studied at the University of Toronto's Trinity College before landing a role at the Stratford Festival at age 33. He retired in 2005 after taking part in 39 seasons at Stratford, stretching back to the festival's inaugural performance in 1953.

Their avid pursuit of local history convinced Francis (OAC '45) and Ruth Redelmeier of the importance of preserving and documenting printed materials from days gone by.

The Redelmeiers combed through libraries and archives across the continent, gathering information about the original owners of their family farm near Richmond Hill. In U of G's Rural Heritage Collection, they were thrilled to find a wealth of material about the entrepreneurial Patterson family, pioneers in the Canadian agricultural implement industry and owners of a firm that amalgamated with Massey-Harris Co. in the late 19th century.

The Redelmeiers' experience led to a commitment to recognize the University of Guelph through a bequest. After Francis passed away in 2001, Ruth established the Francis and Ruth Redelmeier Cultural Heritage Fund to support the Library's Archival and Special Collections.

The bequest will be endowed, providing support for the collection in perpetuity. Each year only a percentage of the interest of the gift is spent and the rest of the interest is reinvested. The Francis and Ruth Redelmeier Cultural Heritage Fund will help with acquiring, processing, cataloguing, preserving (digitizing), housing, and providing electronic access to the University of Guelph's Rural Heritage or archival collections.

Florence Partridge's lifetime commitment to the University of Guelph is reflected in a generous legacy gift shared by Library and the Florence G. Partridge Fund, which supports acquisitions to the Macdonald Stewart Art Centre.

Partridge was a significant presence on campus for nearly 40 years (1932-1971), most of this time presiding over OAC's Massey Library. Whenever her library budget had funds left at the end of the year, she purchased artwork for the college, which helped initiate the University's fine art collection. After the formation of the University of Guelph in 1964, Partridge oversaw the rapid growth and development of the Library and served as associate and finally chief librarian.

To commemorate her special gift, the Library has refurbished a large, multi-purpose room on the third floor of the McLaughlin Building that is used primarily for Learning Commons programs and special events. It was renamed the Florence Partridge Room in her honour on October 1st, 2005 and features works of art purchased from her fund.

The Library has been honoured by a generous anonymous donor who created an endowment to support the LAS.This gift enhances the ability the LAS to provide services and adaptive software that help students with disabilities to read, write, and research more effectively.

The Library has been honoured by a generous anonymous donor who created an endowment to support Archival and Special Collections.

This gift enables us to enhance and preserve this world-class resource of 30,000 rare and specialized books, including renowned subject collections such as the L.M. Montgomery Collection, and specialized research archives related to agriculture and rural heritage, the culinary arts, landscape architecture, Scottish history, regional and campus history, and professional theatre in Ontario.

The Library and the Stanley Thompson Society work together to archive, restore, and preserve materials that celebrate the life and works of noted golf architect Stanley Thompson. His plans, notes, contracts, photos, memorabilia, etc. collected to date and in the future will be housed in the Library's Archives and Special Collections, as part of the Centre for Canadian Landscape Architecture Archives.

The Stanley Thompson Society and other benefactors are currently raising funds for an endowment that will become part of the agreement. It will ensure preservation and retention of archived materials in perpetuity.

Stanley Thompson (1893-1953) was one of the world's leading golf course architects, renowned for this work from the 1920s to the early 1950s.

Thompson designed, remodelled, or constructed more than 140 golf courses in Canada, the United States, the Caribbean and South America. The vast majority of his work took place in Canada, including Capilano in Vancouver; Jasper and Banff in Alberta; Green Gables at Cavendish, PEI; Highlands in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia; Seigniory and Lachute in Quebec; and St. George's in Toronto.

Thompson was a founding member of the American Society of Golf Course Architects in 1947 and served as vice-president during its inaugural year. In 1980, he was posthumously elected to the Canadian Golf Hall of Fame.

The Stanley Thompson Society was founded in 1998 to research, record, and publicize his remarkable life and works.

Harold Campbell Mason was an OAC alumnus, farmer and agricultural history enthusiast who established an endowment in 1986 that supports the agricultural history collection. His family recently made a gift of $10,000 to further enhance this work. Mason earned an associate degree from OAC in 1915 and his graduate degree (B.S.A.) in 1920. He was the farm editor of The London Advertiser for 11 years and later head of the agriculture department of the James Fisher Co. in Toronto, in charge of advertising for Purina Feeds and Bray Chicks.

He farmed 190 acres at Wilton Grove, Ont., stocked with purebred Jerseys and his hobby was agricultural history. The Library also has a small collection of his agricultural history articles, research materials and notes.

OAC's Class of '48 celebrated its 50th anniversary by creating an endowment that supports the Library's Archival and Special Collections. It funds new acquisitions, conservation and digitization projects. The most recent purchase is a new map cabinet, valued at more than $1,200.

To commemorate their 70th anniversary in 2009, the OAC class of 1939 has created an endowment to support Library acquisitions. Class members have already raised $30,000 and the fundraising will continue until their anniversary celebration.

OAC '39 marked their 65th anniversary with a $25,000 fundraising campaign to name a room in the Learning Commons. The OAC '39 Room has been completely refurbished and features a new computer system and other learning resources.

This endowment honours Lois Lister, a prominent Canadian landscape architect. The fund, established by her family, supports the Centre for Canadian Landscape Architecture Archives, which includes the Lois Lister Collection.

Her husband, Maurice W. Lister, donated this extensive collection in 1996. It is the first known comprehensive collection of a major practitioner, and includes working notes, sketches, drawings, architectural blueprints and photographs that document her work for some 250 individual clients, mainly in Ontario.

Alumnus Ernest (Ernie) Kendall (OAC '32) has created an endowment to support the work of Archives and Special Collections. The fund will assist acquisitions, conservation and digitization projects.

He has also contributed additional letters and photographs to the collection established in his name. The black and white photos trace some of Kendall's early years against a campus backdrop, including a snapshot of him at two years of age perched atop Old Jeremiah when the cannon stood — unpainted — before Johnston Hall.

The collection also features letters written to Kendall in his later years by his former classmate, the late economist John Kenneth Galbraith (OAC '31).

This endowment, established in 1997, recognizes Richard and Sophia Hungerford's outstanding commitment to higher education. Richard B. Hungerford was a prominent Guelph lawyer and inaugural member of the U of G Board of Governors. His estate gift supports library acquisitions that benefit Guelph researchers, students and faculty from many disciplines. The fund has purchased more than 500 items over the past 10 years, including: historic books, manuscripts, maps, atlases, electronic archives, licences that allow documentary and feature films to be shown on campus.

174 rare books, manuscript items and posters were purchased in 2006-2007 alone.

Mrs. Sophia Buckinham Hungerford, a distinguished sculptor, also made a treasured gift to the University in 1996 when she donated a bust of J.D. MacLachlan, the founding president of the University of Guelph.

In recognition of the 10th anniversary of the Hungerford bequest, the University of Guelph has installed the MacLachlan bust in a place of honour on the first floor of the McLaughlin Building overlooking Johnston Green with a plaque that recognizes the Hungerfords' generosity.

Margaret Beckman, who retired in 1987 from her position as the McLaughlin Building's chief librarian, created this fund in honour of her parents, Cameron and Anne Armstrong. This endowment, called the C&A Armstrong Endowment, supports acquisitions of Ontario rural history.

The Armstrong Memorial Gallery is presented by the Armstrong family and named for Cameron and Anne Armstrong. It was originally located in the Macdonald Stewart Room, opening in 1982. It was officially re-opened on February 7th, 1991 in the Wellington County Room.

The Beckman Seminar Room was named for Margaret Beckman, who was involved in the original design of the library and also in the renovations for archival and circulation areas. It is located in the Wellington County Room.

The Edward Johnson collection was donated to the University of Guelph in 1992 by his grandchildren, Lady Sandra Scholey of London, England, and Edward Drew of Toronto.