John Frederick Bligh Livesay (January 23, 1875 – June 15, 1944) was an English-born Canadian journalist and author. Livesay held a number of management positions with

The Canadian Press The Canadian Press (CP; french: La Presse canadienne, ) is a Canadian national news agency headquartered in Toronto, Ontario. Established in 1917 as a vehicle for the time's Canadian newspapers to exchange news and information, The Canadian Pre ...

. He was born on the

Isle of Wight The Isle of Wight ( ) is a county in the English Channel, off the coast of Hampshire, from which it is separated by the Solent. It is the largest and second-most populous island of England. Referred to as 'The Island' by residents, the Isle of ...

and came to Canada when he was 20. He worked for the ''

Winnipeg Tribune ''The Winnipeg Tribune'' was a metropolitan daily newspaper serving Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada from January 28, 1890 to August 27, 1980. The paper was founded by R.L. Richardson and D.L. McIntyre who acquired the press and premises of the old '' ...

'' and later the ''

Winnipeg Telegram The ''Winnipeg Telegram'' was a daily newspaper in Winnipeg, Manitoba which was published from June 9, 1898, to October 16, 1920. The paper originated as the ''Daily Nor'Wester'', which was founded in 1894 by William Luxton who also founded the W ...

''. He was the general manager for the Canadian Western Associated Press from its establishment in September 1907 until it merged with The Canadian Press (CP) in September 1917. During

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 ...

. Livesay served as Press Censor for Western Canada. In 1918, he went overseas as war correspondent for CP, returning to

Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749,6 ...

in early 1919. Livesay was named assistant general manager for CP's Winnipeg bureau in 1917. In 1920, he moved to

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 ...

and he served as CP's general manager there until his retirement in 1939. Livesay married

Florence Randal Livesay Florence Hamilton Randal Livesay (November 3, 1874 – July 28, 1953) was a Canadian writer. The daughter of Mary Louisa Andrews and Stephen Randal, she was born Florence Hamilton Randal in Compton, Quebec. She was educated at the Compton L ...

in 1908. The couple had two daughters, Sophie and the poet

Dorothy Livesay Dorothy Kathleen May Livesay, (October 12, 1909 – December 29, 1996) was a Canadian poet who twice won the Governor General's Award in the 1940s, and was "senior woman writer in Canada" during the 1970s and 1980s.Mathews, R.D.. "Dorothy L ...

. He wrote two books: ''Canada's hundred days : with the Canadian corps from Amiens to Mons'' (1919), describing his experiences as a war correspondent, and ''The Making of a Canadian'' (1947). Livesay died in Clarkson, Ontario in 1944. In 1974, he was inducted into the Canadian News Hall of Fame.

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* {{DEFAULTSORT:Livesay, John Frederick Bligh 1875 births 1944 deaths Canadian newspaper reporters and correspondents Canadian war correspondents British emigrants to Canada