Fleming College

Peterborough ON – (July 22, 2015) – On the 100th anniversary of his death, Sir Sandford Fleming’s life and legacy were celebrated with a ceremony and the unveiling of a portrait of historic significance and a dry stone sundial, this afternoon at the Sutherland Campus.

Fleming College President Dr. Tony Tilly gratefully accepted a portrait of Fleming, on long-term loan by the Royal Canadian Institute For the Advancement of Science (RCI) – the oldest scientific society in Canada and one that Fleming and a small group of civil engineers, architects and surveyors founded in 1849.

Fleming’s great-great-grandson, Jock Fleming, Councillor of the RCI, and Helle Tosine, President of the RCI, presented the portrait to Dr. Tilly.

“We are so very honoured to have Jock and Helle with us today, and thank them for the portrait. We look very forward to housing this precious piece here at the college, and to exhibiting it so that our community members can truly appreciate its intricacy and historic significance,” said Dr. Tilly.

The portrait was painted in the early 1890s by J.W.L. Forster, the leading Canadian portrait artist of the late 1800s and early 1900s.

Fleming’s Cultural Heritage and Conservation Management students have contributed to its preservation. The students, under the direction of program co-ordinator and professor Gayle McIntyre, completed condition reports, cleaned off the surface of the portrait and the frame, and stabilized the back – all as validation of their learning.

Dr. Tilly also officially unveiled Fleming’s dry stone sundial, the product of a unique collaboration among students from the UK and Canada, and the brainchild of Fleming professor and stone craftsman John Shaw-Rimmington, of Port Hope. A teacher and six of his students from Peterborough Regional College, near Cambridge, England, joined five Canadian students in a five-day dry stone workshop – the first of its kind in the country. The functioning sundial is positioned prominently at the Sutherland Campus. It features a naturally-formed 15-foot-long limestone gnomon, and the shadow it casts moves as the sun crosses the sky.

“It is to be noted that the people who built this dry stone sundial…were not scientists or engineers or professional masons. They were merely enthusiastic students under the direction of a stone craftsman whose vision is to see people rediscovering the timelessness of stone and
the creativity and satisfaction that can be discovered in working together with natural materials,” stated Shaw-Rimmington.

Fleming invented standard time, and in keeping with the theme of tracking time, the sundial serves to highlight his legacy. Fleming was also the chief engineer of the Canadian Pacific Railway – he surveyed the first rail route across Canada, designed Canada’s first postage stamp, and successfully championed the Trans-Pacific telegraph cable.

“There is so much about Sir Sandford Fleming’s life and legacy that inspires us as a college community and today, thanks to our partners, we had the opportunity to truly honour our namesake,” said Dr. Tilly.

“In the true spirit of Fleming, we encourage our students, staff and faculty members to create learning communities; be inventive; and enjoy the journey.”

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Royal Canadian Institute For the Advancement of Science (RCI)

RCI is Canada’s oldest scientific society. It envisions a scientifically literate and well informed Canadian public which embraces science as part of its culture and decision-making contributing to civil society. We work to enhance public awareness and understanding of science and to create an environment in which science can flourish, be appreciated, and contribute to all aspects of Canadian life and society. For further information, visit rciscience.ca

For further information please contact: Alicia Doris, marketing co-ordinator, alicia.doris@flemingcollege.ca, or 705-749-5530 ext. 1085.