Charles Willson Woodside (1905 – May 29, 1991) 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 A journalist is an individual that collects/gathers information in form of text, audio, or pictures, processes them into a news-worthy form, and disseminates it to the public. The act or process mainly done by the journalist is called journalism ...

well-known for his

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 ...

reporting. He was also an author and a professor of

political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and la ...

at the

University of Guelph , mottoeng = "to learn the reasons of realities" , established = May 8, 1964 ()As constituents: OAC: (1874) Macdonald Institute: (1903) OVC: (1922) , type = Public university , chancellor ...

Biography

Willson Woodside was born in Portage la Prairie,

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and raised in the prairies of Canada. He attained a bachelor's degree in engineering at the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution ...

just prior to the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

; following this he worked briefly as an engineer and then taught at the University of Toronto from 1929 to 1934. During this time he travelled extensively during the summers in Europe and particularly in

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

, although he was barred from the country by the

Nazis Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Na ...

after several visits. During this period Woodside became a journalist and prominently predicted the outbreak of war in Europe. During the

Second World War 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 was a member of the Allied press corps and reported nightly on the radio for the

Canadian Broadcasting Corporation The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (french: Société Radio-Canada), branded as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian public broadcaster for both radio and television. It is a federal Crown corporation that receives funding from the government. ...

. Following the war, he became Foreign Editor at Saturday Night. Woodside also served in the post-war period as the executive director of the United Nations Association in Canada. In 1954, he ran unsuccessfully for a seat in the

House of Commons of Canada The House of Commons of Canada (french: Chambre des communes du Canada) is the lower house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Crown and the Senate of Canada, they comprise the bicameral legislature of Canada. The House of Common ...

as a

Tory A Tory () is a person who holds a political philosophy known as Toryism, based on a British version of traditionalism and conservatism, which upholds the supremacy of social order as it has evolved in the English culture throughout history. Th ...

in a by-election in the Toronto riding of

Trinity The Christian doctrine of the Trinity (, from 'threefold') is the central dogma concerning the nature of God in most Christian churches, which defines one God existing in three coequal, coeternal, consubstantial divine persons: God the F ...

, losing to

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

Donald Carrick by 1352 votes. He wrote a book entitled ''The University Question'' which discussed the funding and use of higher education in Canada. He then joined the political science department of the University of Guelph, Ontario, as a founding member of the faculty and also chair. He was a professor of the university from 1966 to 1974. His archives are presently held in the university's library. Woodside was the great-nephew of Henry Joseph Woodside, an entrepreneur and soldier known for his photography during the Boer War and the First World War.

References

External links

Stalin's Biggest HeadacheArchive
, 9 Feb 1950 speech by Willson Woodside to the Empire Club of Canada
Radio clip from the CBC on the

Archive
(begins at time index 4:32) {{DEFAULTSORT:Woodside, Willson 1905 births 1991 deaths People from Portage la Prairie University of Toronto alumni Progressive Conservative Party of Canada candidates for the Canadian House of Commons Ontario candidates for Member of Parliament Canadian political scientists Academic staff of the University of Guelph 20th-century Canadian journalists 20th-century political scientists