J.W. Spencer fonds, 1866, 1881-1921

Joseph William Winthrop Spencer (commonly known as J.W. Spencer) was a geologist and geomorphologist best known for his work on the geology of southern Ontario and the Great Lakes. He was born in Dundas, Upper Canada in 1851, but moved to Hamilton, Ontario in 1867. In 1871, he began studies in geology at McGill College in Montreal. In 1875 he worked in the Michigan copper mines and shortly afterwards prepared a thesis on the copper deposits. He submitted this thesis to the University of Gottingen in Germany in 1877 and was awarded a doctorate in geology, the second Canadian to earn a doctorate in this field. In 1880, he became a professor of geology and chemistry at King’s College in Windsor, N.S. Subsequently, he taught at the University of Missouri, and then the University of Georgia, but moved to Washington, D.C. in 1894, where he worked as a consultant geologist. Spencer spent much of his life studying preglacial river valleys in Ontario and the origins of the Great Lakes, as well as the Niagara River and Falls. In 1907, he published a book titled The Falls of Niagara: their evolution and varying relations to the Great Lakes. His opinions in these areas differed from some of his contemporaries, namely the American geologist Grove Karl Gilbert. Gilbert published a review of the The Falls of Niagara that exposed some flaws and inaccuracies in Spencer’s estimate of the age of the falls. Spencer’s studies also took him to the Caribbean and Central America. In 1920 he moved back to Canada, but died the following year.

Outline of the evolution of the Falls of Niagara, contrast with the Falls of Zambesi /

At head of title: For the International Geological Congress.

David William Smith House correspondence, 1798 [transcription]

The correspondence from D.W. [David William] Smith to President Peter Russell regarding Smith’s desire to sell a certain piece of property in Newark (now Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ont.) to be used as a location for a common grammar school. The notice gives a description of the building situated on the property as being adaptable for the use of a school. The Board of Survey convened in December 1798 to examine Smith’s property and gave an appropriate valuation of the properties and buildings Smith was offering for sale. Smith was the deputy surveyor general of lands for Upper Canada.

Founders Committee

Members of the Founders' Committee. Pictured here in a clockwise fashion from the left are: R. L. Hearn, W. J. Freeman, M. A. Chown, M. L. Swart, C. Bruce Hill, C. B. Slemon, Dr. James A. Gibson, D. G. Willmot, J .M. Trott, A. C. Rae, W. B. C. Burgoyne, E. S. Howard, L. R. Williams, S. J. Leishman, E. J. Barbeau, and E. R. Davey. Missing from the photo were: W. B. Gunning, W. S. Martin, C. W. Morehead, and B. P. R. Newman.

Sketches of Niagara Falls and river /

Title on cover: Juvenile sketches, Niagara Falls & river.

Ontario Medical Association fonds, 1972-1973, 1977-1978, 1980-1982, 1984-1985

This archive contains materials relating to the Ontario Medical Association. The bulk of the materials are correspondence. A complete administrative history of the association is available from, The first 100 years : a history of the Ontario Medical Association / Glenn Sawyer, Toronto : The Association, 1980? (R15 O58 S39 1980).

Essay on the influence of the War of 1812 in the confederation of the Union

Cover title: Influence of the War of 1812.