Author, geographer, woodlot steward
The Battle of Britain began 85 years ago today. Over 100 Canadians took part, flying in Royal Air Force uniform. One of them was William Henry Nelson of Montreal. Willie Nelson had a passion to fly. Unable to afford flying lessons, he decided in 1936, at the age of nineteen, to go to England to…
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This is my uncle Joey Jacobson’s grave in Lichtenvoorde General Cemetery in the Netherlands. The photo was sent to me by a man I know only because he read my book, Joey Jacobson’s War, a few years ago, and who went out of his way last week to visit Joey’s grave. I was deeply moved that he…
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I was pleased to have the opportunity to talk about my new book at our local Waterstones bookshop in Canterbury recently. I was even more pleased that Willie Nelson’s son Bill McAlister and his grandson Dan McAlister came down from London to be part of it.
Sachs Harbour NWT, winter 1967 The Canadian North was the focus of my working life for fifty years. In 1962 I was hired by the Department of Northern Affairs as a field assistant on a resource survey on the Western Arctic coast, and for several summers afterwards continued as assistant and then director. I also…
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Eighty-two years ago today, on 30 March 1942, Britain launched a desperate attempt. to destroy Nazi Germany’s largest battleship, the Tirpitz. The Allies’ fortunes were at a low ebb at that point in the war, and the Tirpitz, anchored near Trondheim, Norway, posed an immediate threat to Murmansk-bound convoys carrying aid to Soviet Russia. The…
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FIFTY YEARS AGO ON THIS DAY – 21 March 2024 Fifty years ago today the Government of Canada established the Mackenzie Valley Pipeline Inquiry. Its purpose was to hold hearings and report on the social, environmental and economic impact of the proposed Mackenzie Valley Gas Pipeline, and to recommend terms and conditions that should govern…
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