McGill and its Story, 1821-1921 — John Stuart Mill — John Shaqi
McGill and its Story, 1821-1921
John Stuart Mill · en
Over the period that followed since the turn of the century we may pass
briefly. It was a period of continued development, not always, however,
without its discouragements and problems which need not be here
recorded. But disappointments and obstacles were met by Dr. Peterson
with courage and energy and hope. The result was progress. The Medical
Faculty, which had grown beyond its quarters, needed more room if it was
to keep pace with modern research and with the increased number of its
students. Lord Strathcona, who had given the first Medical endowment
fund in 1882, again came to the rescue, and in September, 1901, a new
wing to the Medical Building was opened. In October, 1904, the
Conservatorium of Music was established. Later, by the will of Sir
William Macdonald, it was left an endowment fund which placed it on an
independent basis and enabled it to be expanded into a Faculty of the
University. In 1903 Dr. Alexander Johnson, who had been
Vice-Principal for seventeen years, retired and was succeeded by Charles
E. Moyse, Professor of English. In the spring of 1907 two disastrous
fires occurred; in April, within eleven days of each other, the
Macdonald Engineering Building and the largest part of the Medical
Building were destroyed. Again the University's two great benefactors
came to its assistance. Sir William Macdonald replaced the Engineering
Building with a new building which was opened on April 27th, 1909, and
Lord Strathcona provided for the erection of the new Medical Building,
which was opened on June 5th, 1911.
Meanwhile Sir William Macdonald had undertaken to provide in connection
with the University an institution intended to meet the needs of the
country at large, particularly the rural districts, and to afford better
facilities for the training of teachers. With this object in view he
founded, in 1907, Macdonald College, at St. Anne de Bellevue, twenty
miles from Montreal. It was designed to include three schools, one for
Agriculture, one for Household Science and one for Normal Training. The
gift for buildings, grounds, consisting of nearly eight hundred acres,
equipment and endowment amounted to over six million dollars. The
College was incorporated in the University as the Faculty of
Agriculture.