William Morley Tweedie was born on 16 October 1862 in River John, Nova Scotia. He was the second child and only son of Reverend William Tweedie (1820-1903) and Dorcas Dykeman (Calkin) (1832-1909). He received his early education at the Charlotte County Grammar School in St. Andrews, New Brunswick, and subsequently attended the Mount Allison Academy in 1877-1878. Shortly before his 16th birthday, Tweedie entered the Mount Allison Wesleyan College (now Mount Allison University) as one of only 11 freshmen.
Tweedie was quick to demonstrate his high academic aptitude. He was the recipient of numerous prizes and scholarships, including the Philosophy prize ($15), the prize for proficiency in English Literature ($25), and the first prize for the B.A. examinations of 1880 ($75). Tweedie became a literary editor for The Argosy in his junior year and its business manager in his senior year. As Tweedie remarks in his Recollections, the landscape of the Mount Allison Institutions was radically different in those early days.
Tweedie received a Bachelor of Arts with honours in 1882 and was named valedictorian of his class. He graduated alongside Wilford Burwell Jonah, John Walter Read, James Richard Ruggles, Harriet Starr Stewart (the first woman to receive a Bachelor of Arts in Canada), Hedley Vicards Thompson, and John Clarence Webster.
Mount Allison University Archives, Academic Calendars, 1893.
May only be reproduced with permission of the Mount Allison Archives
Gilchrist Scholarship
A few months after graduation, Tweedie learned that he had been chosen as one of the recipients of the prestigious Gilchrist Scholarship. As soon as President Inch's office received results of the Canadian Gilchrist examinations, Dr. A.D. Smith, secretary of the faculty of Mount Allison, wired Tweedie, “You are successful—stand second out of all the matriculants.” Morley ranked higher than any of the previous fourteen Canadian scholarship holders, and shortly before his death he admitted that he had scored equal to the winner of the Empire competition.
Dr. Smith wrote to Tweedie the following day to say:
“The boys went wild yesterday on receipt of the news. Last night they rang Lingley Hall bell at midnight for about half an hour. Poor Dr. Stewart was racing about the College after them until about three o’clock this morning. Twenty or thirty villagers put in an appearance and wanted to rush into the College and bulldoze the offenders, but Dr. Stewart, like Horatius of old, ‘kept the bridge.’ I telegraphed at once to Mr. Burwash and Dr. Inch. Got a telegram from Dr. Inch this morning. He said he had made the announcement in the General Conference amid great enthusiasm. I also telegraphed to the Halifax and St. John papers. The professors and boys will want to give you a supper. We may put your likeness in the Illustrated News. If you have a good likeness save one for me. If not get a good tin type taken.” [1]
Mr. John Burwash, professor of chemistry and experimental physics, also wrote to Tweedie to say “Many congratulations. Every success across the wide sea. Be a good boy and a good Methodist.” [2]
On 29 September 1882 students and members of the faculty assembled in the college chapel for a feast held in honour of Tweedie. The feast lasted until midnight, when Tweedie left to depart on the midnight train for Rimouski, where he boarded the S.S. Circassian to sail for England.
Illustrated by A. Borden for the 4 November 1882 issue of Canadian Illustrated News.
Mount Allison University Archives. Tweedie family fonds, 5201/8/1/12
May only be reproduced with permission of the Mount Allison University Archives.
Tweedie maintained contact with his alma mater even while studying in Europe. He regularly contributed articles on his travels to The Argosy under the pseudonym "Tamawa." In these letters Tweedie paints a vivid picture of his life in England. In February 1883 The Argosy published a letter dated 10 January 1883 in which Tweedie describes life at the University of London College:
The Professors number some distinguished men, and some men of world-wide fame have been enrolled as its students. In the lower hall, near the door, sits a large statue of John Stuart Mill, which proclaims that 1828-30 saw him studying at University College. The beadle, a notable man of the present, sits near there also, in the flesh. He is principally noted for his laziness. His reputation is not quite so established as John Stuart Mill's, but he is a young man, and is making good progress. Farther along the hall are the reading and smoking rooms. Presumably, the Board of Governors will have an eye to look at the latter at Mt. Allison, and will plan the near hall accordingly! Laboratories, libraries, museums, and all the necessary equipment for college work are of average efficiency. [3]
Tweedie also talks of his early travels through Europe. In a letter dated 1 September 1883 Tweedie writes of a vacation spent in Germany:
Armed with a Baedeker's "Rhine" and a knapsack I set out, at the commencement of my holidays in August, without any definite plans. Up the Rhine I was bound, but how long to stay, or how far to go, I knew not. It was sufficient that I was free and getting out of the smoke of London somewhere. [4]
His sense of adventure led him to Heidelberg, where he would pursue further academic work in the years that followed. In light of this, his initial reaction to visiting Heidelberg during that first visit to Germany seems all the more interesting:
From Worms I took a train to Heidelberg, and remained there nearly a fortnight. It presented a contrast to my late rustic life. Strangers of all nations were numerous, and all was gaiety. I think of all the places I have visited, this pleased me the most. The numerous walks and tramps around the mountains and up the Neckar were just what I was wishing for, and that evening (which was the "slow" part of the country day), could be passed in the city promenade or aulage, or boating on the river.
The University is closed for vacation, but a few students, with their characteristic caps and scarred faces, were around the city. I had quite a conversation with one who could muster up some English. He seemed to be a much-worked man, but escaped with very mild class fees. From him I learned that the students held a duel meeting every Tuesday, and then settled the differences of the week. The Hirschgasse tavern is famous as the students' resort. The practice of dueling, according to my informer, is dwindling every year, but the slashed faces one sees show that it is by no means defunct. The University is of course an old looking building with little recommendation externally. The museums and laboratories are scattered in various positions through the city. [5]
Tweedie earned a Bachelor of Arts from the University of London College in 1884 and subsequently decided to pursue further studies in English and German at the University of Heidelberg, in Heidelberg, Germany, and at the University of Edinburgh, in Edinburgh, Scotland. He obtained a Master of Arts from University of London College in 1887.
Annotation reads "Heidelberg with the castle in the foreground. View from the Terrace, looking down the River Neckar."
Mount Allison University Archives. Tweedie family fonds, 5201/8/4/5
May only be reproduced with permission of the Mount Allison University Archives.
On 1 June 1887 the Mount Allison Board of Regents passed the following Resolution:
“It being understood that Mr. Tweedie is about to return to Canada and available for professorial work and believing that the appointment of one of his brilliant and educational qualifications and reputation to a chair at Mount Allison College would place the Institution upon a better vantage ground of competition and would be likely to promote an improved attendance of students, therefore Resolved that if in the judgment of the President any such engagement can be made for an addition to the professorial staff that would not involve obligations of too serious a nature, he be authorized to secure the services of Mr. Tweedie for the coming year.” [6]
President Inch wrote to Tweedie in July 1887 to offer him a temporary appointment in modern languages with a view of creating a permanent chair in English language and literature the following year. By early August Tweedie had returned to his home in Hampton, New Brunswick, and he began teaching English and German at Mount Allison in the fall of 1887. He took full charge of English language and literature in 1888, at which point he also introduced an honours curriculum for students in English. [7] Tweedie also acted as Dean of Men for a number of years.
Tweedie's thirst for knowledge never ceased. In 1890 he spent the summer at the University of Berlin studying Old English and Gothic. [8] After the 1899 Men's Residence fire destroyed the majority of his belongings, Tweedie took a sabbatical year to further his studies at Harvard University.
In 1912 Tweedie was offered a much more prestigious position on the faculty of the University of British Columbia, but he declined and subsequently assumed the role of registrar at Mount Allison. [9] As registrar, Tweedie had a reputation of knowing each student's performance off the top of his head. [10] During his decades of service, Tweedie was well-liked by his pupils. He was often affectionately called "P.T." (for Professor Tweedie) or "Red-bag Tweedie" (for the little red bag in which he always carried his books, or lunch, or examination papers). [11] He continued to dedicate himself to the university as both professor and registrar until his retirement in 1937. For many years he also held the position of secretary-treasurer for the alumni society and was one of the founding editors of the Mount Allison Record, the University alumni magazine, originally published by the Mount Allison Federated Alumni.
Mount Allison University Archives. Tweedie family fonds, 5201/8/1/17
May only be reproduced with permission of the Mount Allison University Archives.
After having dedicated over half a century to teaching the students of Mount Allison, Tweedie retired in the Spring of 1937. Speaking at the event celebrating his retirement, Tweedie said "Retiring after 50 years seems to be no simple and easy matter. I shall not do it again." [12]
He was honored with a Doctorate of Laws at the 1937 Spring Convocation. While delivering his address, Tweedie reflected on his achievements:
My years in England and Germany were an excellent background for my particular work, and I have endeavoured to avoid getting fixed in a rut by having frequent periods of study and travel abroad ... I have crossed the the Atlantic sixteen or eighteen times, and our own continent twice. Sackville is a small town, but small-town life need not be small; people need not be hemmed in by narrow horizons. [13]
After retirement, Tweedie continued to serve the Mount Allison University Federated Alumni as well as the Board of Regents. He also occasionally resumed teaching and administrative duties when the university was in need. [14]
Mount Allison University Archives. Tweedie family fonds, 5201/8/1/27
May only be reproduced with permission of the Mount Allison University Archives.
Legacy
For generations of Allisonians, Tweedie's name was synonymous with that of Mount Allison. At the 1944 Senior Class supper, Tweedie asked each person to stand, say their name, and tell the room whether their parents had attended Mount Allison as well. He began by saying, "I am W.M. Tweedie. I have been at Mount Allison a long time. My father came as a student to the Academy when it opened its doors in 1843." [15] His devotion to the university and to the students who passed through its halls was outstanding.
Tweedie died in his home in Sackville, New Brunswick, on 16 November 1951. He is buried in the Sackville Rural Cemetery.
After providing for his sister Leora, who survived him by only a month, Tweedie left his entire estate to Mount Allison. This generosity helped Mount Allison in various ways, including funding the Tweedie Annex built onto the Memorial Library in 1960. The annex nearly doubled the library's capacity by providing stack space for approximately 90,000 volumes. [16]
Today his legacy stands in the form of Tweedie Hall in the Wallace McCain Student Centre, which opened as Trueman House in 1946. The Hall was made possible by a bequest from Professor Tweedie's cousin, the Hon. Thomas Mitchell Tweedie, and was named in honour of both Thomas Mitchell and William Morley Tweedie.
Mount Allison University Archives. Picture collection, 2007.07/1771
May only be reproduced with permission of the Mount Allison Archives.
Mount Allison University Archives. Picture collection, 2007.07/2185
May only be reproduced with permission of the Mount Allison Archives.
Mount Allison University Archives. Picture collection, 2007.07/2184
May only be reproduced with permission of the Mount Allison Archives
Mount Allison University Archives. Picture collection, 2007.07/2188
May only be reproduced with permission of the Mount Allison Archives
[1] Letter from A.D. Smith to W.M. Tweedie, September 1882. Mount Allison University Archives. Tweedie family fonds, 5201/3/1/24/9
[2] Letter from J. Burswash to W.M. Tweedie, 21 September 1882. Mount Allison University Archives, Tweedie family fonds, 5201/3/1/24/2
[3] Letter from W.M. Tweedie dated London, 10 January 1883. The Argosy, vol. 9, February 1883, pp. 50-52.
[4] Letter from W.M. Tweedie dated Bingen, Germany, 1 September 1883. The Argosy, vol. 10, October 1883, pp. 8-9.
[5] Letter from W.M. Tweedie dated Bingen, Germany, 1 September 1883. The Argosy, vol. 10, October 1883, pp. 8-9.
[6] Minutes for the Mount Allison Board of Regents, 1 June 1887. Mount Allison University Archives.
[7] John G. Reid. The History of Mount Allison University, 1839-1989. Anchorage Press, 1989, p. 187
[8] John G. Reid. The History of Mount Allison University, p. 188
[9] John G. Reid. The History of Mount Allison University, p. 256
[10] Donald Wells MacLauchlan. Mount Allison So Fair. Sackville, N.B.: Mount Allison University, 1980, p. 14.
[11] Address by W.S.H. Crawford at Alumni dinner honoring the Class of 1974. Mount Allison So Fair, p. 140
[12] Address by W.M. Tweedie, 1937. The Mount Allison Record, vol. xx, no. 3, March-May 1937, p. 83.
[13] Address by W.M. Tweedie, 1937. The Mount Allison Record, vol. xx, no. 3, March-May 1937, p. 90.
[14] John G. Reid. The History of Mount Allison University, pp. 186, 205-206.
[15] “1944 Senior Class Supper.” The Mount Allison Record, 1944.
[16] John G. Reid. The History of Mount Allison University, p. 297.