Dossier f22 - Pierce, Lorne

Lorne Albert Pierce was born on August 3, 1890 in Delta, Ontario. Both his parents were third generation Canadians of Irish descent. He was educated at Athens High .School, Queen's University (B.A.1913), Victoria College (Toronto), United Theological College (McGill), Union Theological Seminary (New York) and New York University.
While attending Queen's he taught school in Western Canada in the summers , and after graduation he went West as a probationary minister. He was orgained in 1916 and became Associa,te Minister of St. James Methodist Church, Ottawa. In 1917 he enlisted as a private in the Queen's Field Ambulance Service, and as an NCO did personnel and administrativE work at Ongwanada Military Hospital, Kingston. After the war he completed his doctorate 1n theology at United College, McGill University.
From 1920 to 1960 Dr. Pierce was editor of Ryerson Press where he made many innovations. A large number of Ryerson publications were textbooks. These he made attractive with the help of Canadian artists and illustrators. As a result the texts were adopted by departments of education across the country. Ryerson also published the works of a great number of Canadian writers, biographical and critical studies of Canadian writers, and a number "of notable books in Canadian historical studies. Dr. Pierce himself contributed to Canadian writing. His two most important books are "Marjorie Pickthall: a Book of Remembrance" (1925) and "William Kirby: the Portrait of a Tory Loyalist" (1929). His ideas on Canada and Canadian nationalism are found in "Toward The Bonne Entente" (1929), "New History for Old" (1931), "Armoury in Our Halls" (1941), "A Canadian People" (1945), and "A Canadian Nation" (1960).
Besides his work as an editor and writer, Lorne Pierce devoted himself to a number of community and national associations. Among them were the Canadian Authors' Association, the Canadian Writers' Foundation the Bibliographical Society of Canada, the Art Gallery of Toronto, the Queen's Art Foundation, the National Association of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, the Arts and Letters Club, the Champlain Society, the Alliance Canadienne, and the Metropolitan Arts Council. He donated the Lorne Pierce Medal annually awarded by the Royal Society of Canada for literary achievement by a Canadian Author. Dr. Pierce always maintained a lifelong interest in Queents University, contributing literary material to the Douglas Library throughout his long career.
In 1916, Lorne Pierce married Edith Chown, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Charles D. Chown of Kingston. The Plerce's had two children, Elizabeth (Mrs. Jack Robinson) and Lorne Bruce.
Dr. Pierce died November 2, 1961.