Riley Family fonds: Home

Call Number: Mss 160, Pc 169 (A.03-46)

Title: Riley Family fonds.

Dates: 1891-1928.

Extent: 1.17 m of textual records. -- 6 photographs.

Biographical sketch: Evelyn (Riley) Gyles, the eldest daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Riley, was born June 24, 1894 in Cypress River, Manitoba. She was raised in Winnipeg and convocated with an Arts degree from the University of Manitoba in 1915. After completing teachers training, Evelyn taught in Dominion City and Winnipeg. She married Henry F. Gyles, Q.C., and was an active member of her community for many years. She was involved at St. George's Anglican Church in Winnipeg and served as the President of the Provincial Conservative Women's Association. She was appointed to the National Capital Commission in 1960 and served on the Public Welfare Advisory Committee for the Province of Manitoba for ten years. Evelyn and Henry had two daughters, Shirley and Nora, and one son, Harold. Evelyn died in Winnipeg on November 27, 1992. She is buried at Garry Memorial Park in Winnipeg.

Josephine (Riley) (Argue) Rymal was born in Winnipeg on January 31, 1904. She was the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Riley and a sibling to Evelyn, Harold E. and Arthur C. Riley. She attended Kelvin high school in Winnipeg and convocated from the University of Manitoba with an Arts Degree in 1925. During her time at university, Josephine was a keen participant in campus activities. She later taught school in Elgin, Manitoba and then trained at the Royal Victoria Hospital School of Nursing in Montreal. Josephine subsequently joined the Victorian Order of Nurses and nursed in Montreal, Winnipeg, and Regina, where she was Superintendent, Head of the Royal Victorian Order of Nurses. In 1943, she married widower James Oswald Argue of Elgin. Argue was born in 1888 and was a farmer and a Member of the Legislative Assembly for Deloraine-Glenwood from 1945 to 1955. Josephine continued to live in Elgin for several years after Argue's death in 1955. Sometime after this date, she served as the Public Health Nurse at Souris, Manitoba. After ill health forced her retirement, she moved to Florida. While in Florida, Josephine met Ira Rymal and they married in 1967. Josephine died October 4, 1976 in Mequon, Wisconsin. She is buried at the Brookside Cemetery in Winnipeg.

Custodial history: The fonds was discovered in the home of an individual who is not related to the Riley family. It was donated to University of Manitoba Archives & Special Collections in 2003.

Scope and content: The fonds contains a variety of records that relate to student life at the University of Manitoba. The first series of class notes contains several notebooks and loose notes that belonged to Josephine, Evelyn, and Arthur Riley. The notes are arranged alphabetically according to subject. The second series of evaluations includes official Department of Education and University of Manitoba exam questions, written assignments, and grade summaries. The third series of receipts includes receipts for food, medical and dental fees, utilities and household expenses, and miscellaneous materials. The fourth series of published materials contains various publications which are arranged first by type and then, where applicable, by date or author. Series five, entitled other textual records, contains a miscellaneous assortment of items which could not be logically incorporated into the other series. The sixth series of photographs and oversize items contains photographs of various subjects and oversized items.

Restrictions: Please consult an archivist concerning copyright issues.

Accruals: No further accruals are expected.

Finding aid: An on-line finding aid is available at the link below:

MSS 160, PC 169 (A.03-46).