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Call Number: Mss 48, Pc 58 (A.80-34, A.82-08, A.82-19, A.83-25)
Title: Pitblado Family fonds.
Dates: 1836-1977.
Extent: 2.9 m of textual records. -- 666 photographs.
Biographical sketch: The Manitoba Pitblado family formed one branch of an extensive North American family of Scottish origin. The immediate forebears came from Fife and settled in Nova Scotia. One of these, Charles Bruce Pitblado (1836-1913), became a Presbyterian minister and, following a tour of the Canadian West, accepted a call in 1881 to the newly-organized St. Andrew's Church in Winnipeg. In 1885, he served as a chaplain with the Canadian forces fighting against Louis Riel. Pitblado accompanied the captured Riel to Regina. In 1893, he became the first pastor of Westminster Church. Isaac Pitblado (1867-1964), the son of Charles Bruce Pitblado, had a long and distinguished legal career. An early graduate of the University of Manitoba, he served as Chairman of the Board of Governors from 1917 to 1924 and, in 1935, served as President of the Canadian Bar Association. He enjoyed lacrosse, curling, and duck-hunting. Edward Bruce Pitblado (1896-1977), Isaac's only son, followed his father as a lawyer and sportsman. He served in both World Wars, was a Rhodes Scholar, played for the 1924 British Olympic hockey team, and served as Secretary of Ducks Unlimited from 1938 to 1974.
Custodial history: The fonds was donated to University of Manitoba Archives & Special Collections in three instalments by Esther Pitblado in 1982 and 1983. The 1980 accession was donated by theWinnipeg Free Press.
Scope and content: The fonds contains personal papers from the three generations of the Manitoba Pitblado family including correspondence, writings, and scrapbooks. The most significant batch of correspondence consists of Edward Pitblado's letters home from Europe during World War I. There are letters from other family members because of Isaac and Edward's interest in reconstructing the Pitblado genealogy. Materials of particular interest in the Charles Bruce Pitblado segment relate to the Canadian Northwest in the 1880s, including the 1885 Riel Rebellion, and to the Presbyterian Church, notably St. Andrew's and Westminster, Winnipeg. The Isaac Pitblado segment contains a number of drafts or notes for addresses, many to legal audiences. Both the Isaac Pitblado and the Edward Pitblado segments preserve source material for the history of Canadian sport.
Restrictions: There are no restrictions on this material.
Accruals: No further accruals are expected.
Finding aid: A printed finding aid is available in the Archives reading room and an on-line finding aid is available at the link below:
MSS 48, PC 58 (A.80-34, A.82-08, A.82-19, A.83-25).
Digitized Material