History-G. Fred McNally
Posted by Russ Mann
G. Fred McNally, was born on a farm near Fredericton New Brunswick. In 1906 he came to Alberta to teach school. Later he was an inspector then taught at the Calgary and Camrose Normal Schools. In 1918 he went to the Department of Education and was Deputy Minister from 1935 to his retirement in 1946. He had a vital role in shaping curriculum, teacher training, vocational training and establishing large school divisions. At the national level he was a leading member of the Canadian Education Association for some 40 years, including three as President. In 1946 he was one of five delegates from Canada to the first UNESCO meeting in Paris. The same year he was elected Chancellor of the University of Alberta. Among his innumerable public services was his chairmanship of a Royal Commission in 1954 to make recommendations for enlarging the boundaries of Edmonton and Calgary.
Joining the Rotary Club of Edmonton in 1921 he was elected President four years later, and District Governor four years after that. In 1952 he was made an honorary member of the club. In the volume of reminiscences which he put on tape in 1964 he said " I have been a member of the Rotary Club of Edmonton for over forty years and regard the membership as the most potent influence in my life, next to that of the church".
Among the many honors he received were honourary degrees from the University of New Brunswick and the University of Alberta. The McNally Composite High School is named after him as is the library at the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology.