Edgar Andrew Collard (6 September 1911 – 9 September 2000) was a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

journalist and historian, best known for his ''

Montreal Gazette The ''Montreal Gazette'', formerly titled ''The Gazette'', is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Three other daily English-language newspapers shuttered at various times during the second half of th ...

'' column "All Our Yesterdays". He was born in

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

. He received his MA in history from

McGill University McGill University (french: link=no, Université McGill) is an English-language public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1821 by royal charter granted by King George IV,Frost, Stanley Brice. ''McGill Universit ...

in 1937. However health problems prevented him from completing his formal studies and ended his hopes of becoming a history professor. Collard's association with ''

The Montreal Gazette The ''Montreal Gazette'', formerly titled ''The Gazette'', is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Three other daily English-language newspapers shuttered at various times during the second half of th ...

'' began when he submitted articles on Montreal's history. This led to an offer of a full-time job in the newspaper's library. The first issue of his column "All Our Yesterdays" appeared in ''

'' on August 14, 1944 and appeared every weekend for 56 years. Each week the column addressed an episode or aspect of Montreal history. The column was reportedly read by figures including

Pierre Trudeau Joseph Philippe Pierre Yves Elliott Trudeau ( , ; October 18, 1919 – September 28, 2000), also referred to by his initials PET, was a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 15th prime minister of Canada The prime mini ...

and

Robertson Davies William Robertson Davies (28 August 1913 – 2 December 1995) was a Canadian novelist, playwright, critic, journalist, and professor. He was one of Canada's best known and most popular authors and one of its most distinguished " men of letters" ...

. His columns were compiled in several books which were illustrated by his longtime collaborator John Collins. In 1949, he won the inaugural

National Newspaper Award The National Newspaper Awards (french: link=no, Concours canadien de journalisme) are prizes awarded annually for the best work in Canadian newspapers. Synopsis The awards were first given in 1949 by the Toronto Press Club, which ran the awards un ...

for editorial writing and was to win it another three times, a record unmatched in that category. In 1953, he became editor-in-chief of ''The Gazette'', retiring from that position in 1971. He continued his column until a month before his death. He was survived by his wife, the historian Elizabeth Collard who died soon after. Collard was made a Member of the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada (french: Ordre du Canada; abbreviated as OC) is a Canadian state order and the second-highest honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the ...

in 1976.

External Links

Edgar Andrew Collard fonds (R11618)
at

Library and Archives Canada Library and Archives Canada (LAC; french: Bibliothèque et Archives Canada) is the federal institution, tasked with acquiring, preserving, and providing accessibility to the documentary heritage of Canada. The national archive and library is th ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Collard, Edgar Andrew 1911 births 2000 deaths Members of the Order of Canada Anglophone Quebec people Canadian male non-fiction writers McGill University alumni The Globe and Mail columnists Historians from Quebec History of Montreal Canadian columnists Montreal Gazette people Writers from Montreal 20th-century Canadian historians