1
Elsie at work in Torontocirca 1940
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Credits:Museum of Ontario Archaeology
2
Mary Alice McLeod Murray (1910-1993) signed her given name as Mary Alice on legal documents, but she called herself and was known to everyone as "Elsie". Her parents were David Cameron Murray (1873-1938) and Lucy L. Robinson; they were of Scottish and Irish ancestry and they had settled outside of Millbank in Mornington Township, Perth County. Elsie's father was educated at Queen's University and the University of Toronto as a medical doctor, and he established a practice in Cargill, Bruce County, before eventually moving to Toronto.Elsie graduated from Toronto's Riverdale Collegiate Institute in 1927 and obtained her undergraduate degree in History and English from the University of Toronto in 1933. She then attended Columbia University in New York and graduated with a Masters of Arts (History) in 1935. Her thesis dealt with the Scottish settlers, including her own ancestors, in Perth County, Ontario.3
Elsie's graduation photo from Toronto's Riverside Collegiate Institute1933
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Credits:Museum of Ontario Archaeology
4
Elsie returned to Toronto to work for the Toronto Public Libraries and to receive a further degree in Library Science from the University of Toronto in 1938. Her first publications in 1940 and 1942 were based on research she completed at and for the Toronto Public Libraries. These included articles in Ontario Library Review that were edited by her superior, George Brown. She later submitted biographies of certain 17th century Huron Indians for the Dictionary of Canadian Biography edited by Brown.5
Elsie at the University of Western Ontariocirca 1940s
London, Ontario, Canada
Credits:Museum of Ontario Archaeology
6
Elsie was an active member of the Ontario Historical Society, and it was through this organization that she met Fred Landon of the University of Western Ontario. He convinced her to move to London in August 1942 to take the position of researcher in Western's library, under his direction. She undertook research on historical archives and newspapers at Western and authored several articles that were published in Ontario Library Review, Library Journal, School, Food For Thought and two different publications of the Ontario Historical Society. Throughout this period, Elsie continued her active involvement in the Ontario Historical Society, meeting and interacting with numerous people who shared a similar penchant for Ontario's history. She delivered many talks on historical subjects at the meetings of the Ontario Historical Society, the Ontario Library Association and other organizations.7
Elsie in Kilworthcirca 1950
London, Ontario, Canada
Credits:Museum of Ontario Archaeology
8
It was also during this period that Elsie met Wilf. Wilf's personal diaries mention several chaperoned "dates" throughout 1944 and over the next three years. Other records indicate thay travelled seperately to mmetings and historical conferences. Elsie officially assisted Wilf as an historical researcher on the Fairfield project and other projects before they were married in 1948. One of those other projects was Sainte-Marie I (initiated in 1947) and WIlf and Elsie's honeymoon was a "bus man's holiday" to Quebec City, Montreal and Ottawa where, in addition to sight-seeing, they jointly undertook historical research.9
Elsie with a glass cruet found at Sainte-Marie Icirca 1940s
Midland, Ontario, Canada
Credits:Museum of Ontario Archaeology
10
Elsie at the Forget site1954-1963
Midland, Ontario, Canada
Credits:Museum of Ontario Archaeology
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