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» Rev. Father William Maurice fonds

Rev. Father William Maurice fonds

Description
Start Date: 
1930
End Date: 
1970
Date Range: 
[Reproduced 2004-2008 (originally created 1930-1970)]
Physical Description: 

1.5 m of graphic material.

ca.1558 photographs : b&w ; 20.5 x 25 cm

Arrangement: 
Fonds is arranged in two series and thematically by item type within the series.
History Biographical: 

Rev. Father William (Bill) Maurice s.j. was born in 1916 to parents Tansi and Rose Maurice. William had 12 siblings including: John, Peter, George, Joseph, Patrick, Francis, Thomas, Frederick, James, Laura, Mary, and Florence. He was a missionary to the First Nation communities of the Diocese of Thunder Bay and Sault Ste Marie. He was a math teacher, a prefect of studies, and eventually a principal of the Garnier Residential School in Spanish, Ontario. He also ran a photo lab at the Spanish school.

When the Garnier school closed in 1958, William briefly worked in Regina teaching and coaching students. In the 1960s he was a chaplain at the Radar Base for American and Canadian soldiers. He later became responsible for the 12 missions from St. Anne's Parish on the Fort William First Nation.

In 1967, William assisted Indian Affairs with community development. In 1972, he worked as a community and social services worker in Armstrong, Ontario. He was also an assistant band manager for the Fort William First Nation. He briefly served as the chaplain for the Thunder Bay Correction Services and the district jail.

He was asked to become pastor of Wikwemikong Reserve on Manitoulin Island and eventually became the Jesuit Superior for that region. He also coached hockey for the Thunder Birds hockey team on Manitoulin Island.

In 1984 William returned to Thunder Bay to become the Jesuit Superior of the region and the pastor at Beardmore.

His retirement years were spent classifying genealogies from the Northwestern Ontario missions where Jesuits had worked since the 1850s. He created indexes of names which included many Indigenous people from the Northwest. He also collected, transcribed, and translated the journals of the early Jesuit missionaries in the Northwest.

Rev. William Maurice lived at St. Anne's Parish Rectory on the Fort William First Nation from 1991 until he passed away on Monday April 14, 2008 at the Thunder Bay Regional Health Science Center. A tree was planted in Memory of Rev. William Maurice in the Blake Funeral Chapel Memorial Grove.

Scope Content: 

Fonds comprises photographs documenting activities at St. Joseph's Residential School and Garnier Residential School in Spanish Ontario. Fonds also includes photographs from First Nations around Lake Huron and Lake Superior.

Notes: 

The majority of the photographs relating to the Spanish residential schools were taken by the students at the residential schools in Spanish Ontario.

Repository: 
srsc
Admin
Custodial History: 

Originally collected by Father William Maurice. Collection was loaned to Jane E. Mundy. Maurice donated the original collection to the Holy Cross Rectory on Manitoulin Island and later to the Shingwauk Project.

Access Restriction: 

No restrictions on access.

Repro Restriction: 

Reproductions are dependent on the fragility of the originals. Researchers must adhere to applicable copyright law and privacy legislation and permission of the copyright holder is required to publish from the fonds.

Conservation: 

Box 4 contains nitrate glass plate negatives. These plates have been stored separately out of conservation and safety concerns.

Basic conservation performed during processing of fonds.

Description Level: 
Language: 
Geographic Access: