Last month I learned that my first year political studies professor,Rae Murphy, had passed away. Among many other books, Rae wrote Brian Mulroney: The Boy from Baie Comeau. He was an excellent teacher who kept his own politics (in his case, left leaning) out of the classroom and instead simply cultivated a strong love for Canada’s history within his students. When it came time to pick a prime minister to write about, I didn’t want to pick one of the ‘greats’ so that my paper would stand out. I chose Arthur Meighen, our ninth prime minister, who followed Robert Borden’s successful reign. After getting permission to choose Meighen, Rae then regaled me with wonderful historical anecdotes about Meighen versus Mackenzie King and the King-Byng-Thing. I eventually found Roger Graham’s excellent three volume treatment of Meighen and devoured them. Rae may have been an ‘under-the-radar’ teacher, as much as Meighen may have been an under-the-radar leader, lost in history’s pages. But Rae was a good man who readily shared his passion for Canadian history with his students. In so doing he left an enduring legacy through each of us. Rest in Peace, Rae. |
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CategoriesFirst NationsGovernment Prime Ministers Teaching History The Settlement of the West This and That |
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