Angus McGill Mowat,

B.A. Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

M.A. A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Tho ...

, (November 19, 1892 – September 21, 1977) was a Canadian librarian who initiated and contributed to the continuing improvement of the library systems in Saskatoon and Ontario, from the 1920s through to the 1960s. During his post World War I career he held a number of positions as chief librarian at Trenton, Belleville, Windsor, and Saskatoon, before being appointed in 1937 as Chief Librarian and Inspector of Public Libraries for the province of

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

. He remained head of the provincial library office – a part of the

Ministry of Education An education ministry is a national or subnational government agency politically responsible for education. Various other names are commonly used to identify such agencies, such as Ministry of Education, Department of Education, and Ministry of Pub ...

– until his retirement in 1960. He was a dynamic and positive force for library progress in Ontario, especially his advocacy for county and regional library service in rural and northern parts of the province. Throughout his career he encouraged better quality collections for adults and children, professional staffing and library training, the necessity for improved finances, more efficient management by trustees and librarians, and upgraded or new buildings. He believed strongly that the 'personal touch' was essential for library service and that local effort, supplemented by provincial assistance, was the key ingredient in advancing local library development. His personal efforts to establish a public library at

Moose Factory Moose Factory is a community in the Cochrane District, Ontario, Canada. It is located on Moose Factory Island, near the mouth of the Moose River, which is at the southern end of James Bay. It was the first English-speaking settlement in lands no ...

stimulated improvements for aboriginal library service on reservations throughout Canada.

Early life and education

The son of Robert McGill Mowat and Mary Jones, Angus was a member of the Trenton High School Cadet Corps, graduating and then attending Queen's University in Kingston, as part of the Canadian Officer Training Corps from 1912 until 1914. Post World War I, Angus finally graduated with a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

degree in 1931 (after taking part-time courses from 1926 to 1931). In 1926, Angus received his

Diploma A diploma is a document awarded by an educational institution (such as a college or university) testifying the recipient has graduated by successfully completing their courses of studies. Historically, it has also referred to a charter or offici ...

from Library Training School from the Ontario Department of Education,

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

. Angus received a Masters degree in English from the

University of Saskatchewan A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, t ...

in 1935. Of significance, his grandfather was

John Bower Mowat John Bower Mowat M.A., D.D. (June 8, 1825 – July 15, 1900) was a Presbyterian minister and university professor in Ontario, Canada. John Bower Mowat (known as Professor John), the son of John Mowat and Helen Levack, was born in Kingsto ...

, a noted professor at Queen's University. His great-grandfather, John Mowat was also one of the founders of Queen's. His uncle was Major

John McDonald Mowat John McDonald Mowat (February 17, 1872 – October 7, 1916) was a lawyer and politician in Ontario, Canada. He served as mayor of Kingston from 1906 to 1907. Known as Major John, the son of John Bower Mowat and Emma McDonald, he was called ...

, whom also served in

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. And the politician

Sir Oliver Mowat Sir Oliver Mowat (July 22, 1820 – April 19, 1903) was a Canadian lawyer, politician, and Ontario Liberal Party leader. He served for nearly 24 years as the third premier of Ontario. He was the eighth lieutenant governor of Ontario and one of ...

was his great uncle.

War Service

Angus joined No. 6 Company of the

Canadian Military Engineers The Canadian Military Engineers (CME; french: links=no, Génie militaire canadien) is the military engineering personnel branch of the Canadian Armed Forces. The members of the branch that wear army uniform comprise the Corps of Royal Canadian Engi ...

in August 1914 – part of the

Canadian Expeditionary Force The Canadian Expeditionary Force (CEF) was the expeditionary field force of Canada during the First World War. It was formed following Britain’s declaration of war on Germany on 15 August 1914, with an initial strength of one infantry division ...

– attested for overseas service in early November 1914 and was later commissioned a

2nd Lieutenant Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces, comparable to NATO OF-1 rank. Australia The rank of second lieutenant existed in the military forces of the Australian colonies and Australian Army until ...

in the 4th Battalion in 1917. He served in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

and

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

, and was wounded badly in his right arm at the

Battle of Vimy Ridge The Battle of Vimy Ridge was part of the Battle of Arras, in the Pas-de-Calais department of France, during the First World War. The main combatants were the four divisions of the Canadian Corps in the First Army, against three divisions o ...

, returning to

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

late in 1917. Angus joined

the Hastings and Prince Edward Regiment The Hastings and Prince Edward Regiment is a Primary Reserve infantry regiment of the Canadian Army. The regiment is part of 33 Canadian Brigade Group, one of four brigade groups of 4th Canadian Division. The regimental headquarters and one co ...

in 1921 as a Cadet Corps Officer until July 1928. When he left Trenton, Angus joined the

Reserve of Officers The Army Reserve is the active-duty volunteer reserve force of the British Army. It is separate from the Regular Reserve whose members are ex-Regular personnel who retain a statutory liability for service. The Army Reserve was known as the Ter ...

as a

Major Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...

on 23 July 1928. From 1940 until 1944 Angus Mowat was a

in the Hasty P's and was in charge of the Trenton Armouries – which was also his father's hardware store. He was also a Liaison and Recruiting Officer for this Kingston Military District until 1944, and often rode dispatch between

, Kingston and

Ottawa Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...

on a

Harley-Davidson Harley-Davidson, Inc. (H-D, or simply Harley) is an American motorcycle manufacturer headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States. Founded in 1903, it is one of two major American motorcycle manufacturers to survive the Great Depressi ...

motorcycle.

Post-war

Angus Mowat was appointed Chief Librarian of

Trenton, Ontario Trenton (2001 population 16,770) is a large unincorporated community in Central Ontario in the municipality of Quinte West, Ontario, Canada. Located on the Bay of Quinte, it is the starting point for the Trent-Severn Waterway, which continues no ...

on 16 July 1922 after the retirement of Mrs. Pattee. Next he became Chief Librarian of Belleville in 1928. Angus was then made Chief Librarian of

Windsor Windsor may refer to: Places Australia * Windsor, New South Wales ** Municipality of Windsor, a former local government area * Windsor, Queensland, a suburb of Brisbane, Queensland **Shire of Windsor, a former local government authority around Wi ...

in 1930, followed with the position of Chief Librarian of

Saskatoon Saskatoon () is the largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It straddles a bend in the South Saskatchewan River in the central region of the province. It is located along the Trans-Canada Hig ...

in 1932 until July 1937 when he and his family moved back to Ontario, settling in Richmond Hill. In 1937 he took the position of the first Inspector of Public Libraries for the Province of Ontario which he held until 1948 – interrupted by his service in the second war – when he was promoted to Director of Public Libraries for Ontario. He held that position until 1959 when his title was changed to Director of the Provincial Library Service. He retired to

Port Hope, Ontario Port Hope is a municipality in Southern Ontario, Canada, approximately east of Toronto and about west of Kingston. It is located at the mouth of the Ganaraska River on the north shore of Lake Ontario, in the west end of Northumberland County. ...

in 1960 where he became very active with the Port Hope Public Library and was a trustee for several years on the local library boar

Positions: * 1922–28 Chief Librarian, Trenton, ON. * 1928–30 Chief Librarian, Belleville, ON. * 1930–32 Chief Librarian, Windsor, ON. * 1932–37 Chief Librarian, Saskatoon, SK. * 1937–47 Inspector of Public Libraries, ON. * 1948–59 Director of Public Libraries, ON. * 1959–60 Director of the Provincial Library Service, ON. Prior to

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

he wrote his first novel, ''Then I'll Look Up'' (1938), and after the war his second, ''Carrying Place'' (1944) both published by Reginald-Saunders, Toronto. After his second novel, he decided that writing was not his forte, and focused on his upgrading of the library system. His son is celebrated Canadian author

Farley Mowat Farley McGill Mowat, (May 12, 1921 – May 6, 2014) was a Canadian writer and environmentalist. His works were translated into 52 languages, and he sold more than 17 million books. He achieved fame with the publication of his books on the Can ...

, who often fondly wrote about Angus in his books. He had a lifelong love of boats and sailing them. From 1968 to 1971 he painstakingly restored the wreck of a boat he had seen under construction in Trenton as a boy in 1908, originally called the ''Scott Hutcheson''. The boat is now in the Marine Museum of the Great Lakes at Kingston's collection and is called ''The Black Angus'' in homag

Late in his life became a good friend of the poet,

Al Purdy Alfred Wellington Purdy (December 30, 1918 – April 21, 2000) was a 20th-century Canadian free verse poet. Purdy's writing career spanned fifty-six years. His works include thirty-nine books of poetry; a novel; two volumes of memoirs and four b ...

, and was the subject of the

National Film Board The National Film Board of Canada (NFB; french: Office national du film du Canada (ONF)) is Canada's public film and digital media producer and distributor. An agency of the Government of Canada, the NFB produces and distributes documentary fi ...

short documentary ''Angus'' in 1971. Angus Mowat died at Northport, Ontario on 21 September 1977.

Publications

*Books: **Mowat, Angus M. (1938) – ''Then I'll Look Up''. Toronto: Reginald Saunders, 1938. [nove

**Mowat, Angus M. (1944) – ''Carrying Place''. Toronto: Reginald Saunders, 1944. [nove

*Papers: **Mowat, Angus M. (1923). "Better Reading and How to Attain It," Ontario Library Review 8, 1 (Aug. 1923), 3–6. **Mowat, Angus M. (1929). "Adult Education," Proceedings of Ontario Library Association Annual Meeting (1929), 12–16. **Mowat, Angus M. (1932). "The Passage Over," Queen's Quill 1 (March 1932), 5–12.

hort story Hort may refer to: People * Erik Hort (born 1987), American soccer player * F. J. A. Hort (1828–1892), Irish theologian * Greta Hort (1903–1967), Danish-born literature professor * Josiah Hort (c. 1674–1751), English clergyman of the Chur ...

**Mowat, Angus M. (1933). "Panic,"Canadian Forum13 (Aug. 1933), 423–27.

**Mowat, Angus M. (1934). "Jury-Rig in the Canadian Northwest," Library Journal 59 (15 June 1934), 503–05. **Mowat, Angus M. (1936). "Ex Libris: Saskatoon," Queen's Quarterly 43 (Summer 1936), 196–200. **Mowat, Angus M. (1938). "Dead, but Not Yet Taken Away," OLR 22, 1 (Feb.1938), 2–5. **Mowat, Angus M. (1938). "Vulture on Education," Saturday Night 53 (2 April 1938), 2–3. **Mowat, Angus M. (1938). "They Who Do the Job," OLR 22, 3 (Aug. 1938), 170–72. **Mowat, Angus M. (1938). "Some Library Experiences in the West," OLR 24, 3 (Aug. 1938), 200–1. **Mowat, Angus M. (1939). "Co-Operative Libraries," OLR 23, 1 (Feb. 1939), 2–5. BL radio address, 26 Nov. 1938**Mowat, Angus M. (1939). "The Great James Bay Raid," Saturday Night 55 (9 Dec. 1939), 7. ictional war news**Mowat, Angus M. (1940). "Report on Inspection of Certain Military Camp Libraries," OLR 24, 1 (Feb. 1940), 3–7. **Mowat, Angus M. (1940). "School and Library Co-Operative Schemes in Ontario," OLR 24, 1 (Feb. 1940), 17–23. **Mowat, Angus M. (1940). "Simplified Cataloguing and Classification," OLR 24, 2 (May 1940), 136–37. **Mowat, Angus M. (1942). "Soldiers Can Read," OLR 26, 1 (Feb. 1942), 9–10. **Mowat, Angus M. (1944). The Public Library, Why You Need It, How to Start It, How to Keep It Going. Toronto: T. E. Bowman, 1944. nd rev. ed. issued in 1946 by Dept. of Educatio

**Mowat, Angus M. (1946). "The Royal Commission on Education," OLR 30, 1 (Feb. 1946), 5–6. **Mowat, Angus M. (1946). "Glory Be! The Canadian Library Association-Association canadienne des bibliothèques," OLR 30, 3 (Aug. 1946), 227–56. ersonal record of CLA's first conference**Mowat, Angus M. (1947). "On Human Worthlessness," Saturday Night 62 (14 June 1947), 48. **Mowat, Angus M. (1947). "County Libraries of Ontario," OLR 31, 2 (May 1947), 160–62. **Mowat, Angus M. (1947). "The Books Drive on," OLR 31, 4 (Nov. 1947): 351–54. **Mowat, Angus M. (1947). "County Libraries: Amendment to Public Libraries Act," OLR 31, 3 (Aug. 1947), 265–67. **Mowat, Angus M. (1947). "Librarians Short Course," OLR 31, 3 (Aug. 1947), 325–26. **Mowat, Angus M. (1950). The Public Library in Ontario; a Handbook for Its Establishment. Toronto: Public Libraries Branch, Ontario Department of Education, 1950. [3rd ed

**Mowat, Angus M. (1954). "Children—A Dangerous Gap," OLR 38, 4 (Nov. 1954), 299–30

**Mowat, Angus M. (1956). "Creating New Local Service in Canada," Library Trends 4 (Spring 1956), 388–9

**Mowat, Angus M. (1959). "On the Personal Side," OLR 43, 1 (Feb. 1959), 4–

**Mowat, Angus M. (1959). "A Word to the Wise," OLR 43, 2 (May 1959), 119–21.

Awards

The ''Angus Mowat Award of Excellence'' was established by the Province of

in 1985 for public libraries in recognition of excellence in public library service. It is given annually to projects that demonstrate an innovative application or methodology which other libraries might use as a model and which has resulted in the achievement of improved library service.

References

External links

* Ontario Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Sport, Public Library Service Awards, http://www.mtc.gov.on.ca/en/awards_funding/oplsa.shtml * Libraries Today Blogspot, http://libraries-today.blogspot.ca/2014/05/angus-mowat-and-ontarios-public.html
Angus McGill Mowat biography
at Ex Libris Association {{DEFAULTSORT:Mowat, Angus McGill Canadian librarians 1892 births 1977 deaths People from Northumberland County, Ontario 20th-century Canadian novelists Queen's University at Kingston alumni University of Saskatchewan alumni Canadian male novelists 20th-century Canadian male writers

Angus Angus may refer to: Media * ''Angus'' (film), a 1995 film * ''Angus Og'' (comics), in the ''Daily Record'' Places Australia * Angus, New South Wales Canada * Angus, Ontario, a community in Essa, Ontario * East Angus, Quebec Scotland * An ...

Canadian Expeditionary Force officers Hastings and Prince Edward Regiment officers Canadian Army personnel of World War II Canadian military personnel from Ontario Canadian military personnel of World War I Royal Canadian Engineers soldiers Hastings and Prince Edward Regiment