Robert Jon Meyer Shipley was born in Toronto on February 26, 1948, the youngest of three children to Miriam Irene (Smith) and Captain Vernon Meyer Shipley (captain in the Pay Corps and served as paymaster at the Royal Military College). Shortly after his birth, the family moved to Kingston (1952) and later to London (1959).

Robert J. M. Shipley got an Honours BA from the University of Western Ontario in History and Philosophy in 1972. Between 1972 and 1976 he was an officer of the Canadian Armed Forces serving in Calgary, Chilliwack, Halifax, Atlantic Canada, the Caribbean, Europe, and London (Ontario). In 1976, Shipley was released from the Armed Forces and became a freelance writer, publishing articles in different media (sometimes under the pseudonym Jon Meyer) and receiving several research grants for his work on Canadian history and heritage. During this time, Robert Shipley also worked as an editor, wrote and published poetry and theatre plays, taught courses on writing in schools throughout Ontario, and illustrated many of his own articles and publications. In the late 1970s and early 1980s, Shipley’s work focused on corporate and community histories, political speeches, planning studies, and tourist promotions, and publishing history and fiction books.

Shipley’s paintings were selected in the Western Ontario Jury Show; were displayed in galleries in Halifax, Toronto, and London; and appeared regularly in Perception Magazine. In 1978, he travelled to Cyprus to illustrate a book about Canadian soldiers on UN peacekeeping duty titled The 8th Hussar: Cyprus 1978-1979.
Between 1984 and 1987, Robert Shipley worked as the administrator at the Welland Canals Preservation Association (WCPA) and, in 1987, he became the senior developer consultant for the Welland Canals Society. In the late 1980s, Shipley’s work focused on cultural heritage, heritage-based tourism, and community development.

In 1990, Shipley began his Ph.D. studies at the University of Waterloo, becoming an active associate of the University’s Heritage Resources Centre (HRC). Shipley received his doctorate in 1997 with his dissertation Visioning in strategic planning : theory, practice and evaluation, and joined the University of Waterloo's Faculty of Environment as Professor and Associate Director of the School of Planning. While at the University of Waterloo, Shipley conducted international research on cultural heritage issues and published dozens of articles, book chapters and consulting reports. In 2003, he became the director at the HRC. As an academic, Shipley was a guest lecturer at Michigan State University, the University of Western Ontario, Brock University and Niagara College.

Robert Shipley retired in 2016 and, in 2018, he received the National Trust for Canada’s Governors’’ Award.

In 1983, Shipley married Pamela Fielding. The couple had a son, Ceilidh Jamieson Meyer, in 1985. The couple divorced in the 1990s. In the 1990s, Shipley met who would become his second wife, Dana Švihlová.

During his professional years, Robert Shipley published numerous books, including, among others:

• Relation ships (1984),
• To mark our place : a history of Canadian war memorials (1987),
• St. Catharines, garden on the canal : an illustrated history (1987),
• The girl who got stuck in the… mud (1987),
• Written with Fred A. Addis and part of the Great Lakes Album series: Paddle wheelers (1990), Schooners (1990), Propellers (1992), and Wrecks and disasters (1992),
• Exploring the value of heritage properties (1992),
• On leaving Bai Di Cheng : the culture of China’s Yangzi Gorges with Caroline Walker, Ruth Lor Malloy, and Fu Kailin (1993),
• Editor of The first 50 years by the Faculty of Environment at the University of Waterloo (2019).

Arthur Gordon Shoosmith (1888-1974), an English architect who worked in India, was born in St. Petersburg in 1888. He grew up in Russia and Finland and was educated in England at Haileybury. He served his articles in Reading, and then attended the Royal Academy Schools in 1911. After serving in the war as an interpreter for the Intelligence Corps, he worked for the architectural practices of H.S. Gooodhart-Rendel, and J.J. Burnet. In 1920 he won the Soane Medallion and was appointed as Edwin Lutyens's representative in New Delhi, where he worked from 1920-1931. He was nominated by Lutyens for the commission of the design of St. Martin's Garrison Church in New Delhi (1928-1930), and his other major work is the Lady Hardinge Serai in New Delhi (1931). Shoosmith returned to England in 1931, where he made a career of teaching and as an inspector with the Ministry of Town and Country Planning. He retired in 1957, and died in 1974. Source: Davies, Philip: "Shoosmith, Arthur (Gordon)" The Grove Dictionary of Art Online, (Oxford University Press, Accessed [13 April 2004]) http://www.groveart.com.

William E. Short was born in Tottenham, England on Dec. 18, 1878. He enlisted with the 34th Battalion of the Canadian Expeditionary Force in Jan., 1915 in Galt, Ont., trained in Canada and England, and arrived in France on Aug. 3, 1915, where he was attached to the 1st Battalion. He was promoted to Corporal on Oct. 11, 1916 and to acting Company Quartermaster Sergeant on Feb. 1, 1917. William Short married Lilly Meechum August 7, 1918, while on leave in London, England, a fact not noted in his diary. W.E.Short returned to Canada in May, 1919. (Source: attestation papers, diary contents.)

Elizabeth Smith was born January 18, 1859 at 'Mountain Hall', Vinemount. She was educated by a governess in the home, at Winona School and at the Hamilton Collegiate Institute. She attended Queen's University, Kingston and received her degree in medicine at the Royal Medical College in 1884 (one of the first 3 women M.D.'s in Canada). She also received a diploma from the Ontario College of Physicians and Surgeons.

For two years Dr. Elizabeth Smith practised in Hamilton. She was married December 3, 1886 to Adam Shortt. They moved to Kingston where Elizabeth lectured at Queen's on Medical Jurisprudence and Sanitary Science. She worked for the first Y.W.C.A. in Canada and served as its president, and was a sponsor of the Kingston Musical Club and presided over it for seven years.

In September 1908 she and her husband, Dr. Adam Shortt, moved to Ottawa where she became very active in the local, provincial, and National Council of Women affairs. In connection with these organizations she wrote pamphlets on social aspects of tuberculosis, housing, inspection of markets, clean-up weeks, fly control, pasteurization of milk, care of mentally deficient, child welfare, and mother's pensions'. In 1911 she was the first Convener of the Public Health and Mental Hygiene Committee of the National Council of Women. She was also Convener of the Committee on Immigration in the Council and was instrumental in organizing a hostel for women immigrants in Ottawa. She was largely responsible in convening a committee to petition the Provincial Government to establish Mother's Allowances in Ontario, and when this was accomplished in 1920, she was appointed vice-chairman of the Provincial Board of Mother's Allowances and acted in that capacity for seven years. She died in Ottawa Jan. 14, 1949.

Muriel Shortt and Roger Clark married in 1917 and settled into fruit farming in Vineland. Her portion of the fonds contains details of the struggle to become established in this field.
Lorraine Shortt, a graduate of Queen's, chose a field in the public service - social work, and the collection traces her successful career in this area.

The diaries of Rev. J. H. Shoults provide details of his life history over the period 1870-1884. Rev. Shoults worked as a minister with the Christian Church during this period. The majority of diary entries relate to his work with this church though reference is also made to his work as a teacher, family affairs, farming and gardening activities, shopping and errands, prices of food and farm goods, his personal finances, social visits (Rev. Shoults had many friends and acquaintances), and to weather conditions.
Rev. Shoults was born on Mar. 27, 1843. At the time of writing the diaries he has already married and many references are made to "Mrs. Shoults" or "Mrs. S." Diary entries also include references to his three children - Ella, Herschel, and Bertha. Rev. Shoults appears to have begun his career working as a school teacher and in 1870 (the first year for which the diaries are available) he was teaching and living on a farm in Whitevale, Ont. During this year he was also involved in the activities of both the Baptist and Christian churches, and he began to play a small part in preaching for the Christian Church working with Elder Jesse Tatton. In 1871 Rev. Shoults became involved in working as a Minister of the Christian Church on a full-time basis preaching in Bloomington, Ringwood, Markham, and Brougham. Rev. Shoults writes increasingly of his preaching, church meetings, funerals, and baptisms, and other activities of the Christian Church.
In Apr. 1872 Rev. Shoults moved from Whitevale to Altona, Ont. and in 1873 he moved from Altona to Little Britain, Ont. In 1879 he took up a new position as an Evangelist under the direction of the Mission Board and lived in a rented house in Newmarket, Ont. During 1880 Rev. Shoults moved from Newmarket to Kettleby and later in this same year he moved to live in J. Steven's house called "Mt. Pleasant" on the third line of King Township.
In 1883 Rev. Shoults' circumstances suddenly changed when he decided to rent a store and dwelling at 345 Yonge St., Toronto. However, his plan to open a store selling stationery and books was never realized, as he returned to the country and resumed working as a Minister with the Christian Church, first living at Bro. George's residence in Markham, and then in Oct. 1883 moving to Orono. In Feb. 1884 Rev. Shoults' daughter Bertha died of an illness. The final year covered by the diaries is 1884.
(Source : Materials in GA 110 Rev. J. H. Shoults Fonds.)

Jennifer Shousterman has been in the Office of the President since 2015, and is currently an Executive Assistant, although she previously held roles as Information and Project Specialist. She enjoys being the link between the President’s office and members of the university community, as well as external stakeholders. As a life-long resident of the Waterloo Region, she also enjoys giving back to the community within various volunteer roles.

The Shtaxʼhéen Ḵwáan, or Stikine Tlingit, are an Indigenous people and a Tlingit ḵwáan (tribe). The Shtaxʼhéen Ḵwáan community is located in Wrangell, Alaska. Their historical territory included Wrangell Island and other islands of the Alexander Archipelago, as well as the basin of the lower Stikine River.

The name Shtaxʼhéen Ḵwáan in the Tlingit language translates to Bitter Water Tribe.

Charlotte "Lottie" Mary Ahrens was born in January 12, 1885 in Berlin (later Kitchener) Ontario to parents Charles August Ahrens and Laura Emma Hirschy. She had two siblings; Frederick Hirschy and Florence Louisa. She married Stanley Shupe of Dunnville, Ontario on January 11, 1916. In the 1921 Census the couple and a son, Charles, aged 5 were living with her parents in Berlin. She died July 11, 1969 and was buried in Woodland Cemetery, Kitchener.

Reverend Cornelius Louis Siegfried was born in Formosa, Ontario on September 7, 1916. He attended school in nearby Walkerton, before attending St. Jerome's College. He graduated from Western, Ontario in 1938 with a Bachelor of Arts and was ordained as a minister in 1941. Siegfried earned a teaching certificate from the Ontario College of Education (1942-1943), going on to teach science and mathematics at St. Jerome's high school until 1946, at which time he enrolled at the University of Michigan, where he obtained a Master of Science in 1948. The same year, at the age of 31, he was appointment to president of St. Jerome's College. He served in the role until 1953, from 1955 to 1965, and again from 1973 to 1979. Between his first and second terms as president at St. Jerome's he served as president of North Bay College. He played an active role in developing a university charter for the school (1959) and federating with the University of Waterloo (1960). In 1966 Siegfried was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Laws Degree by the University of Waterloo in recognition for his role in founding the school. In 1980 he was later named President Emeritus by the governors of St. Jerome's. Siegfried resigned form his role as president of St. Jerome's in 1979 due to poor health. He died August 2, 1989.

Emma Louise Siegner was born on July 21, 1894 to parents John Metz and Helena Schneider, their only daughter and youngest child. She married Walter Valentine Siegner on June 23, 1920 with whom she had three children; John, Kathryn and Carolyn. Siegner died in Kitchener on June 15, 1994 of pneumonia in her 100th year of life and was buried at Woodland Park Cemetery.

Walter Valentine Siegner was born on June 5, 1897 to parents Valentine and Elizabeth Siegner. He got married to Emma Louise on June 23, 1920 with whom he had three children; John, Kathryn, Carolyn. He was the president of W.V. Siegner Lumber Co. which he organized in 1924. He served on the Kitchener Public School Board for eight years from 1934 to 1937 and then 1943 to 1948. Included was service as chairman in 1948. Siegner died August 15, 1952 and was buried at Woodland Park Cemetery.

The Sims family were early white settlers of what is now Hawkesville, Ontario. Members of the family are the descendants of Reverend James Sims was born ca.1812 in Insch, Aberdeenshire, Scotland. On June 1, 1836, he married the widow Janet Harvey Robertson and in 1837 came to what is now Canada with a large party of relatives: his father and mother, his wife and step-children Alexander, John and Jane Robertson, his brothers Peter and Andrew Sims, his sister Margaret, and nephews James and Peter Sims.

In 1838 the family settled as squatters on Queen's Bush land near Hawkesville in Wellesley Township. James and Margaret Sims had four children: Janet Sims, (1838-1926), James Campbell Sims (1842-1929), Peter Harvey Sims (1844-1920) and William Andrew Sims (1846-1930). James Sims died October 31, 1880. Both he and his descendants played an active role in the the educational, religious and commercial development of what is now the Region of Waterloo.

Florence Katherine Roos was born December 22, 1873 in Berlin (now Kitchener), Ontario to William Roos and Elizabeth Davidson. She married Harvey J. Sims on October 29, 1902 and together they had two children, James Kenneth Sims, born July 12, 1904 and William Harvey Sims, born June 27, 1908. Florence Sims died June 20, 1938.

Gay Estill Sims, born September 7, 1884, was the second wife of Harvey J. Sims of Kitchener, Ontario. She died May 8, 1970.

Harvey James Sims was born December 25, 1871 in Waterloo, Ontario to Peter Harvey Sims and Jemima Cook. A graduate of Trinity College at the University of Toronto, he went on to complete his law course at Osgoode Hall. "In 1921 he was made King's Counsel and became a well-known authority on municipal law, acting as Kitchener's solicitor for many years. He was a leading authority on insurance law and was author of Life Insurance Contracts in Canada." (Waterloo Region Hall of Fame) He became known for the landscape gardening of Chicopee, his country estate south of Kitchener, Ontario, and for reforestation programs in the area. Harvey J. Sims married Florence Katherine Roos on October 29, 1902 and had two sons: Kenneth James and William Harvey respectively. After Florence's death in 1938 Harvey married again, to Gay Estill. Harvey J. Sims died June 8, 1945.

The Reverend James Sims was born ca.1812 in Insch, Aberdeenshire, Scotland and was largely self-educated. On June 1, 1836, he married the widow Janet Harvey Robertson and in 1837 came to what is now Canada with a large party of relatives: his father and mother, his wife and step-children Alexander, John and Jane Robertson, his brothers Peter and Andrew, his sister Margaret, and nephews James and Peter Sims.

In the spring of 1838 the family settled as squatters in Queen's Bush near Hawkesville, Wellesley Township. The journey was likely complicated by the birth of James and Janet’s first child, Janet Sims, born March 1, 1838. They later had three sons: James Campbell Sims (1842-1929), Peter Harvey Sims (1844-1920) and William Andrew Sims (1846-1930). The family worked to clear a homestead on the land with James working as a labourer in surrounding areas when needed. He was ordained a minister on October 5, 1841, after joining the Baptist Church in Blair, and began working as an active itinerant preacher. In addition to preaching at the church in Blair every other weekend, he oversaw marriages, funerals and baptisms, and supported both Black and white residents in and around the Queen's Bush. He left the Baptist Church in the 1860s to join the Christadelphian faith.

Excerpts from Waterloo Region Hall of Fame describe him as "a significant religious and educational leader in Waterloo County in the 1800s. [...] Sims was perhaps best known for his significant leadership role in promoting public education. In 1853, when Waterloo County was established, he became the first Superintendent of Schools for the Townships of Woolwich and Wellesley. He also became the first Chairman of the Board of Public Instruction.”

James Sims died October 31, 1880 and was buried in Kitchener's Mount Hope Cemetery.

James Campbell Sims was born February 14, 1842 near Hawkesville, Ontario to James and Janet Sims. He lived in Montreal, working as a civil servant in the Post Office Department. He died in Winnipeg, Manitoba on January 22, 1929 and was buried at the city's Brookside Cemetery.

Janet Harvey was born ca. 1806 in Insch, Aberdeenshire, Scotland. On January 2, 1823, she married John Robertson with whom she had four children, Alexander, James, John and Jane. Her husband died ca. 1832 and on June 1, 1836 she married James Sims. They emigrated to what is now Canada in 1837, settling as squatters on Queen's Bush land near Hawkesville, Ontario. Together Janet and James had four children: Janet McQueen, James Campbell Sims, Peter Harvey Sims and William Andrew Sims. Janet Harvey Sims died October 3, 1881 and was buried in Kitchener's Mount Hope Cemetery.

Jemima Sims was born October 4, 1845 to James and Elizabeth Cook. She married Peter Harvey Sims on May 18, 1869, with whom she had two children: Harvey James Sims and Rella Sims. Sims died in 1921 and was entombed at the Forest Lawn Mausoleum in Toronto, Ontario.

James Kenneth Davidson "Kenneth" Sims was born July 12, 1904 in Berlin (now Kitchener), Ontario to Harvey J. Sims and Florence Katherine Roos. He married twice. First, to Lyla Patterson Hughes (date unknown) and later to Mabel Alguire Cameron of Cornwall, Ontario on June 28, 1930. He died July 29, 1970 and was buried in Kitchener's Mount Hope Cemetery.

Mabel Alguire Cameron was born July 19, 1904 in Cornwall, Ontario to James Cameron and Mabel Alguire Cameron. She married James Kenneth Sims, son of Harvey J. and Florence Sims, on June 28, 1930, and died August 10, 1961 in Kitchener, Ontario.

Peter Harvey Sims was born May 18, 1844 in Hawkesville, Wellesley Township to the Rev. James Sims and Janet Harvey Robertson. He married Jemima Cook on May 18, 1869 and together they had two children: Harvey James and Rella May. He became a school teacher, serving for a time as principal of the Waterloo Central School. He later went in to insurance, eventually founding the Mercantile Fire Insurance Co in Waterloo, Ontario. As an adult he supported those of his family who did not flourish in Canada, including his parents James and Janet Sims and his sister Janet McQueen. At the time of his death, Sims was vice-president of the Dominion Life Assurance Co. He died November November 20, 1920 of pneumonia in Kitchener at the home of his son, Henry James Sims. He was entombed at the Forest Lawn Mausoleum in Toronto, Ontario.

William Andrew Sims was born in May, 1846 in Hawkesville, Ontario to James and Janet Harvey Sims. He died July 21, 1930 in New Westminster, B.C. after living in Swan River, Manitoba for many years. He was buried at Ocean View Burial Park.

Oscar Douglas Skelton was born July 13, 1878. He was appointed Undersecretary of State for External Affairs in 1925 by William Lyon Mackenzie King and filled that position until he died on January 28, 1941.

Harold Stanley Smart was a Lance Sergeant in the 2nd Canadian Survey Regiment, No. 2 Canadian Artillery Reinforcement Unit, stationed in England during World War II. Born in Grassie, Ontario, to Frank and Edith (McLeod) Smart, Stanley had a fraternal twin brother Stuart, older siblings Murray and Kathleen, and younger siblings Norman and Helen. He joined the army ca. April 29, 1942, as a Gunner in the 1st Canadian Survey Regiment. He was later promoted to the rank of Lance Bombardier and transferred to the 2nd Survey Regiment, and eventually became a Lance Sergeant. He spent most of his time during the war in England, but also did tours of duty and spent time on leave in France, Belgium, and Holland. After the war, Stanley worked for McKinnon Brothers in St. Catharines, Ontario, which became a division of General Motors. On October 7, 1950, he married Helen Josephine Scammell and they had two children: David Stuart and Marie Helen.

Damaris Isabella McGee Smith was an author and teacher. She was born Sept. 27, 1831 at Somerville, New Brunswick. She moved to Ontario when she was 18 and taught school in the Lee neighborhood [of Hamilton?]. She married Sylvester Smith, son of a United Empire Loyalist, in 1853. She wrote "Pioneer Wife" which describes the condition of life in the early days of settlement in the area. She died Nov. 18, 1913 and was buried in the Stoney Creek cemetery.

Colonel Herbert D. Smith, K.C. (November 2, 1866-November 2, 1938) was County Crown Attorney in Chatham, Ontario in the 1930s.

Mauritana Smith was the daughter of Damaris Isabella Smith and sister of Elizabeth Smith Shortt, who was one of the first three female medical doctors in Canada. Mauritana was born on August 9, 1856, to a loyalist family in Winona, near Hamilton, Ontario. She was educated by a governess, in the Winona School and at the St. Catharines Collegiate Institute. She taught in the Lee neighborhood and at Hamilton Beach, and the Waterford Public School. She married Hervey A. Coon in 1887. She died June 18, 1946.

Children's author and librarian Barbara Classen Smucker was born September 1, 1915 in Newton, Kansas. Barbara began writing in elementary school and would later go on to earn a degree in journalism from Kansas State University in 1936. After university she taught English and eventually returned to her hometown in 1939 to work as a reporter for the Evening Kansas Republican until 1941. In 1939 Barbara married Donovan Smucker who she had interviewed for the paper. Donovan was a Mennonite Minister and the couple moved to Wadsworth, Ohio where he pastored a church. Donovan later took a job at the Mennonite Biblical Seminary in Chicago where Barbara got the idea for her first book, Henry's Red Sea. From 1967-1969 the couple lived in West Point, Mississippi where Donovan was president of Mary Holmes College. In 1969 they moved to Ontario when Donovan accepted an offer to teach at Conrad Grebel College.

Barbara became a children's librarian at Kitchener Public Library (1969-1977) and then head librarian of Renison College (1977-1982). During this time Barbara continued to write, producing some of her most famous works including Underground to Canada (1977) and Days of Terror (1979). In 1993 the couple moved to Bluffton, Ohio where she would continue to write and speak to children about reading. In all, Barbara wrote 12 books which were published in 16 countries and translated into such languages as Japanese, Danish, Swedish, French and German. She and her books received numerous awards including the Canadian Council Children's Literature Prize and an honorary doctorate from the University of Waterloo. Barbara Smucker died in Bluffton in 2003.

Gertrude Mabel Snider was born March 19, 1913 to William B. and Faith Snider. She moved to Victoria with her family at seven years of age where she developed an interest in art. She was an active member of the Victoria Sketch Club and helped found an art gallery in the city in the 1946. She died June 25, 2001 in Victoria and was buried at Hatley Memorial Gardens.

Ralph Edward Snider was born July 19, 1904 to William B. and Faith Snider. He moved to Victoria with his family as a teenager, where he spent the rest of his life. Snider married Sarah Isobel Mowat September 19, 1928 and together they had several children. He owned an operated the Oaklands Nursery for 35 years in addition to being a long time member of the Rotary Club, the C.N.I.B., and a senior elder of St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church. Snider died March 23, 1968 at the age of 63.