The Inconvenient Indian: A Curious Account of Native People in North America.

GUELPH, Ontario February 25, 2014 - University of Guelph Campus Bulletin - Thomas King, professor emeritus in English at the University of Guelph, has won the $40,000 British Columbia National Award for Canadian Non-Fiction.

The award was announced at a ceremony in Vancouver on Friday afternoon. The award recognizes Canadian literary non-fiction and is one of the most prestigious prizes in Canadian literature. King’s book was selected from 140 submissions.

King, a writer and broadcaster and the first aboriginal Massey lecturer, was recognized for The Inconvenient Indian: A Curious Account of Native People in North America.

He says he tapped into his own background — from his study and teaching of native history to his experience as a native affairs activist — to write the book.

“I know that people have generally very little bits and pieces of native history that they understand, but they really do not understand the arcs of native history,” he told CBC News.

“Whenever you go back into your past and look at the history that you’ve been part of, when you look at history that happened before you were born to the people you’re a part of, it hits spots that are fairly painful.”

King is one of Canada’s most well-known and respected authors. In 2004, he won the Trillium Book Award, Ontario’s premier prize for literary excellence, for The Truth About Stories, published from his Canada Massey Lectures. The lectures were presented in fall 2003 over nine days in five provinces. They were recorded and broadcast on the CBC Radio program Ideas.

He has been short-listed twice for the Governor General’s Award and has won the Canadian Authors’ Award for fiction and the American Indian Film Festival Best Screenplay award for Medicine River. He received the Aboriginal Media Arts Radio Award for Dead Dog Café Comedy Hour, a popular CBC Radio show he starred in and created. In January 2003, he received the National Aboriginal Achievement Award for arts and culture.

The Inconvenient Indian was also one of five books shortlisted from 124 nominees for the $25,000 RBC Taylor Prize, which recognizes outstanding Canadian non-fiction. The winner will be announced March 10.

King began teaching at U of G in 1995, after completing his PhD at the University of Utah.

Tales from the Vault: diary offers glimpse into life of renowned OVC surgeon

GUELPH, Ontario February 24, 2014 - Ontario Veterinary College Bulletin

Throughout its long history, the OVC has been home to a number of distinguished faculty members who made a significant impact on science and the veterinary profession. Many of these individuals were pioneers in their fields.

One such individual was the owner of the diary shown here. W.J.R. Fowler graduated from the OVC in 1899. In 1902 he was hired to teach anatomy, beginning a career at the OVC that spanned more than 50 years. A globally recognized veterinary surgeon, he was the first Canadian to teach veterinary surgery and was well-known for his surgical demonstrations, particularly his ‘roaring’ operation on horses.

Journals and diaries are a rare glimpse into the personal and working lives of individuals and we are fortunate to have several of Fowler’s diaries in the C.A.V. Barker Museum of Canadian Veterinary History. The page here is from his 1922 diary and mentions the first lecture he gave to a group of fourth-year surgery students at the new OVC buildings in Guelph following its relocation from Toronto. 

Throughout this 1922 diary, Fowler chronicles his busy teaching schedule, packing up his home and family to move to Guelph, and the various service calls he made to farms and other facilities year. It gives us a rare and unique glimpse into a significant moment in the OVC’s history and what it must have been like for the college to transition from Toronto to its current home.

— Lisa Cox

Statement by the Honourable Shelly Glover, Minister of Canadian Heritage and Official Languages, on the Occasion of Heritage Day

OTTAWA, Ontario February 17, 2014 /Canada NewsWire/ - More than ever this year, Canadians are invited to celebrate Heritage Day. This year's theme proposes to have fun with heritage by visiting historic places made for play in our local communities.

As Minister of Canadian Heritage and Official Languages, I encourage Canadians of all ages, but especially our youth, to experience and enjoy the rich history of Canada through its historic places for play on this Heritage Day.

As we approach the 150^th anniversary of Confederation in 2017, I strongly believe it is important to provide Canadians with opportunities to improve their knowledge of Canada and its history. On behalf of Prime Minister Stephen Harperand the Government of Canada, I encourage everyone to discover and celebrate the unique heritage that brings us together as Canadians and makes us all proud.

Established in 1973 by Heritage Canada The National Trust, Heritage Day is celebrated every year across the country on the third Monday of February. It is meant to encourage the preservation and promotion of Canada's nationally significant historic, architectural, natural and scenic heritage.

2013 Lieutenant Governor's Ontario Heritage Award recipients announced

photo credit: BRIAN THOMPSON Brantford Expositor

TORONTO, Ontario February 14, 2014 /Canada NewsWire/ - Next week, the Honourable David C. Onley will present the 2013 Lieutenant Governor's Ontario Heritage Awards for outstanding contributions to the identification, preservation, protection and promotion of Ontario's heritage.

"Each year, volunteers play an integral role in conserving the heritage of this province. I'm pleased to recognize the achievements of these dedicated individuals who have made outstanding contributions to keeping our history alive for the benefit of future generations." - The Honourable David C. Onley, Lieutenant Governor of Ontario

Recipients of the 2013 Lieutenant Governor's Ontario Heritage Awards include:

• 18 individuals receiving the Lifetime Achievement Award for volunteer contributions to the conservation of community heritage over a period of 25 years or more.
• 32 young people (one individual and one group) receiving the Youth Achievement Award for exceptional voluntary contributions to heritage conservation. The individual honouree will also receive a $2,000 post-secondary scholarship, jointly funded by the Ontario Heritage Trust and Great-West Life, London Life and Canada Life - sponsors of the Trust's Young Heritage Leaders program.

The Lieutenant Governor will present the awards at a Queen's Park ceremony on February 21, 2014. This presentation is part of the province's annual celebrations marking Heritage Week.

"The Ontario Heritage Trust is delighted to see these individuals receive special recognition from the Lieutenant Governor for their achievements in heritage conservation. It is the hope of the Trust that the impressive accomplishments of these volunteers will encourage others to follow in their footsteps." - Thomas H.B. Symons, Chairman of the Ontario Heritage Trust

QUICK FACTS

• The Lieutenant Governor's Ontario Heritage Awards are administered by the Ontario Heritage Trust, an agency of the Government of Ontario dedicated to identifying, preserving, protecting and promoting Ontario's heritage.
• Nominations for the awards are submitted annually by municipal and regional councils, First Nation band councils, Métis community councils and schools from across the province to recognize local contributions to heritage conservation.

LEARN MORE

• See the 2013 Lieutenant Governor's Ontario Heritage Award recipients backgrounder.
• For additional information on the Lieutenant Governor's Ontario Heritage Awards, including how to submit nominations, visit www.heritagetrust.on.ca or www.lt.gov.on.ca.

The Ontario Heritage Trust is an agency of the Government of Ontario dedicated to identifying, preserving, protecting and promoting Ontario's heritage.