Ryerson Memorial Volume

Hodgins, J. George (John George), 1821-1912Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

2.8

Word count: 590K words
Chapters: 59

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.Ryerson Memorial Volume by J. George HodginsAuthor: Hodgins, J. George (John George), 1821-1912,Language: English, Class: LA: Education: History of education, Release Date: Feb 8, 2015

Editor's review

Compiled by J. George Hodgins, this memorial volume commemorates the Canadian educator Egerton Ryerson and stands at the intersection of educational history and biography; it is a source-text collection issued free by Project Gutenberg. Ryerson was a key founder of the education system in Upper Canada, and this volume gathers memorial writings on his life and public career, giving it primary-source value for the study of nineteenth-century Canadian education, colonial public policy, and the related networks of figures. The prose carries the commemorative style of the Victorian era, emphasizing public contribution and moral assessment rather than modern critical biography. Reading it requires a reasonable command of English and some historical background; it is suitable as supplementary material for research in educational history and Canadian history, or for readers interested in nineteenth-century public education reform to consult as needed. As a public-domain e-book it is textually complete and readily accessible, but it offers no modern scholarly annotation or introduction, so readers must supply their own background.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Scholars and graduate students researching Canadian educational history and public policy
History enthusiasts interested in nineteenth-century colonial reformers
Writers in educational history seeking primary commemorative sources
Readers with English proficiency who prefer original historical sources

Not a good fit for

General readers seeking a popular biographical narrative
Beginners lacking background in nineteenth-century North American history
Researchers hoping for modern critical scholarly annotation

Reading tips

First review a brief background on Ryerson's life and Upper Canada's education reform, then proceed to the main text.
Read the commemorative writings alongside other contemporary sources, noting their eulogistic tendency.
Excerpt passages on educational institutions and public policy by theme for later reference.
Read the English original slowly with reference works, focusing on period-specific proper nouns and institution names.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

Is this book written by Ryerson himself?

No. It was compiled by J. George Hodgins and is a memorial collection centered on Ryerson—a commemorative work compiled by others, not Ryerson's own writings. Readers should distinguish the compiler's standpoint from the subject's words and deeds.

Can I understand it without a background in Canadian history?

You can read it, but understanding will be limited. The text presupposes familiarity with the educational and social context of nineteenth-century Upper Canada and contains many period-specific personal and institutional names. It is advisable to first supplement background material, or to focus on consulting specific chapters rather than reading straight through.

As a public-domain e-book, what use restrictions does it have?

This book is distributed free by Project Gutenberg as a public-domain resource and may be used for reading and scholarly citation. However, it contains no modern editorial notes, bibliography, or introduction, so citations require independent verification of facts and supplementation with secondary research literature.

Comments

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About the author

Hodgins, J. George (John George), 1821-1912 Author · Canadian · 1821–1912

J. George (John George) Hodgins (1821–1912) was a Canadian educator and writer who long served in Ontario's education department, where he took part in educational administration and in compiling and editing historical materials on education. His surviving output is limited, with only one work held in this catalogue, the Ryerson Memorial Volume. Centred on the life and educational work of the Canadian education pioneer Egerton Ryerson, the book is a commemorative volume that combines compiled source materials with a retrospective account, offering insight into the development of public education in nineteenth-century Ontario. On the available evidence, Hodgins's writing focuses on recording and preserving the facts of educational history, in a plain style of narration and documentation rather than theoretical argument. Public information is limited, so the details of his life and scholarly standing cannot be described at length; nonetheless, his service and editorial work preserved reference materials for later study of Canadian educational history.