The Society’s Records

Don MacKinnon

← People of the Society · on record 1950–1962

Everything the Society’s own records say of Don MacKinnon — the offices held, the standings conferred, and the awards won — gathered on one page. Where the records are silent, so is this one.

In memoriam · reported Summer 1978

A Charter Member of the Society and one of the two men given Honorary Life Fellow Memberships in 1962. His speciality was life-like carved pictures of early Canadian scenes, “authentic pictures of history, all skillfully carved”, exhibited across Canada and the United States, and he taught leathercraft at home, at Central Technical School and Northern Vocational School, and in a summer course at McMaster University — “a patient teacher—his students speak of him with pride.” The tribute in the Summer 1978 newsletter is by Jean Newton, who wrote that he was “a ‘Fun’ man in his well years” whose latter years were sad ones, that listening to him recall the early years of the Society made plain “the great debt of gratitude we owe to the Charter Members”, and that she remembered him as “An Unforgettable Character”. No date of death is given. His widow, Mae MacKinnon, was remembered by the Society in her turn.

From Summer 1978, page 6.

Also recorded as Don McKinnon, Don W. MacKinnon

Standing

Founding Member 1950

Branch

Peterboro · recorded holding office in 1956

Certification

Fellow of the CSCL 1953
Honorary Fellow of the CSCL 1962
Printed as an Honorary Life Fellow Membership. The c. 1985 roll marks him “HL”.

An early teacher of the Society, who with Bob Muma taught Sherle Bottrill in her first years as a member; her notice prints his name as Don McKinnon. He served as the Society's Advertising Manager from 1951, printed there as Don W MacKinnon, and on the 2nd Assembly's Panel of Experts in 1955.

From Summer 1978, page 6; Fall 1993, page 5; September 1951; and Summer 1955.

Served the Society as

Advertising Manager 1951
Executive Council (Toronto Member) 1952
Toronto Representative 1953
Executive Council 1954–1958
2nd Assembly Demonstrator 1955
2nd Assembly Panel of Experts 1955
Executive Council Member 1956–1957
Peterboro Branch Adviser 1956
Council 1960

Honours

Honorary Life Fellow Membership 1962
Presented at the Annual Meeting in an address by Dr. Ralph K. Larmour, who recalled that eight years had passed since the last such honour and that the Executive Council had therefore "selected two of our Fellows to the Honorary Life class" — MacKinnon and Robert Muma. The citation credits him with inspiring many in the field, with promoting the craft and the Society as a teacher, and with an outstanding style of picture carving.

Awards

1st Canadian International Hobby Show Popular Vote 1953
Canadian Handicrafts Guild Competition First Prize 1956
Canadian Handicrafts Guild Competition Honourable Mention 1957
Second CNE Hobby and Homecraft Show Public Preference Poll, Large Articles, 1st place — also polled highest number of votes overall 1954
Second CNE Hobby and Homecraft Show Public Preference Poll, Large Articles, 2nd place 1954
Second CNE Hobby and Homecraft Show Public Preference Poll, Large Articles, 3rd place 1954
Shoe and Leather Fair Public Preference Poll, 1st place 1952
Shoe and Leather Fair Public Preference Poll, 3rd place 1952
Shoe and Leather Fair Public Preference Poll, 6th place 1952

Demonstrations given

Carving 1956
CSCL Exhibition, Ryerson Institute of Technology, Toronto, October 1956
From Autumn 1956, page 12.
Leather carving 1956
Peterboro group meeting, 1956
From Autumn 1956, page 11.
Demonstrating throughout the Exhibition 1957
CSCL Exhibition, 1957
From Autumn 1957, page 5.
Saddle Stitching 1960
10th Annual
From Spring 1960, page 4.
Turned Edges 1961
11th Annual
From Spring 1961, page 3.
Gussets 1962
12th Annual
From Spring 1962, page 2.

Where this comes from

This name in the index of people →