John Alexander MacAulay, (May 29, 1892 – November 6, 1978) was a

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

lawyer, businessman, and community volunteer from

Winnipeg, Manitoba Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Manitoba. It is centred on the confluence of the Red River of the North, Red and Assiniboine River, Assiniboine rivers. , Winnipeg h ...

. He was a member of the

Canadian Red Cross Society The Canadian Red Cross Society ()International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement The organized International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is a Humanitarianism, humanitarian movement with approximately 16million volunteering, volunteers, members, and staff worldwide. It was founded to protect human life and health, to ...

, eventually serving as the chairman of the Board of Governors of the International League of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies. He was also involved with the

Canadian Bar Association The Canadian Bar Association (CBA), or Association du barreau canadien (ABC) in French, represents over 37,000 lawyers, judges, notaries, law teachers, and law students from across Canada. History The Association's first Annual Meeting was ...

, and served a one-year term as the national president of the CBA. He was also Honorary Colonel of the Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders of Canada.

Early life

MacAulay was born in

Morden, Manitoba Morden is a city located in the Pembina Valley region of southern Manitoba, Canada near the United States border. It is about west of the neighbouring city of Winkler, Manitoba, Winkler and they are often referred to as Manitoba's Twin Cities. Mo ...

, one of the seven children of Finlay MacAulay (1842-1918) and Margaret MacDonald (1860-1930). He obtained his LL.B. from the

University of Manitoba The University of Manitoba (U of M, UManitoba, or UM) is a public research university in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Founded in 1877, it is the first university of Western Canada. Both by total student enrolment and campus area, the University of ...

in 1918 while serving in the Canadian Medical Corps.

Legal practice and business activities

Upon being called to the bar, MacAulay joined the Winnipeg law firm of Aikins, MacAulay & Thorvaldson. He eventually became partner in the firm, specializing in tax law. In 1931, his status in the profession was recognized by his appointment as

King's Counsel A King's Counsel (Post-nominal letters, post-nominal initials KC) is a senior lawyer appointed by the monarch (or their Viceroy, viceregal representative) of some Commonwealth realms as a "Counsel learned in the law". When the reigning monarc ...

by the Manitoba government. MacAulay was also a businessman. He was a vice-president and director of the

Bank of Montreal The Bank of Montreal (, ), abbreviated as BMO (pronounced ), is a Canadian multinational Investment banking, investment bank and financial services company. The bank was founded in Montreal, Quebec, in 1817 as Montreal Bank, making it Canada ...

, and is credited with bringing the Safeway grocery chain to Canada. He was a vice-president of Safeway until his death.

President of the Canadian Bar Association

MacAulay was active in the

. In 1953-54, he served as national president of the CBA. He was the third lawyer from Aikins MacAulay & Thovaldson to serve as national president, the previous two being Sir James Aikins (1914-1927) and Gordon Harold Aikins (1942-1943). A fourth lawyer from Aikins MacAulay & Thorvaldson,

A. Lorne Campbell Andrew Lorne Campbell (known as A. Lorne Campbell), Order of Canada, O.C., Canadian Forces' Decoration, C.D., Bachelor of Laws#Canada, LL.B., Doctor of Law#Canada, LL.D., Doctor of Canon Law, D.C.L., Queen's Counsel, Q.C. (September 18, 1920 � ...

, would also be president (1970-1971).

Red Cross work

MacAulay was a long-time volunteer with the Red Cross. During the Second World War, he was president of the Manitoba Red Cross, and from 1950 to 1951 he was president of the Canadian Red Cross Association. In 1952, he chaired the 18th International Conference of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies in Toronto, when tensions over the Korean War threatened to shatter the international association. His diplomatic handling of the situation, and response to the positions of opposing factions within the association, helped to preserve the unity of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement. From 1959 to 1965, he was chairman of the Board of Governors of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies. During his tenure, the number of national societies rose from 88 to 106. He was chairman when the International Red Cross Committee and the League of Red Cross Societies received the

Nobel Peace Prize The Nobel Peace Prize (Swedish language, Swedish and ) is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the Will and testament, will of Sweden, Swedish industrialist, inventor, and armaments manufacturer Alfred Nobel, along with the prizes in Nobe ...

in 1963.

Personal interests

MacAulay was a member of Westminster United Church in Winnipeg. During the 1930s and 1940s, he taught one of the largest adult Bible classes in Canada. An avid art collector, he was active with the Winnipeg Art Gallery (1950-1953) and the National Art Gallery of Canada (1955-1957). Part of his collection is now housed in the

Winnipeg Art Gallery The Winnipeg Art Gallery (WAG) is an art museum in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Its permanent collection includes over 24,000 works from Canadian, Indigenous Canadian, and international artists. The museum also holds the world's largest collect ...

Honours

* 1931 - appointed King's Counsel by the Manitoba government * 1953 - awarded an honorary doctorate by the

* 1967 - appointed a Companion of the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada () is a Canadian state order, national order and the second-highest Award, honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the Canadian Centennial, ce ...

, the highest Canadian civilian honour, for his services to the Red Cross at home and abroad. * 1970 - awarded the Centennial Medal of Honour by the Manitoba Historical Society * 1970 - awarded an honorary doctorate by the

University of Winnipeg The University of Winnipeg (UWinnipeg, UW, or U of W) is a public research university in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. It offers undergraduate programs in art, business, economics, education, science and applied health as well as graduate progra ...

* 1971 - appointed an Honorary Patron of the Canadian Foundation of the International College of Surgeons * 1973 - awarded the

Henry Dunant Medal The Henry Dunant Medal is the highest award of the Red Cross Movement. It is named after Henry Dunant, the founder of the Red Cross Movement. The medal is presented every two years by the Standing Commission of the Red Cross and Red Crescent. Th ...

, the highest honor the Red Cross can award, at the 22nd International Conference in Tehran. He was the first Canadian to receive this medal. * Honorary life member of the St. Andrew's Society of Winnipeg.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Macaulay, John 1892 births 1978 deaths Lawyers in Manitoba Canadian King's Counsel Canadian Bar Association presidents Companions of the Order of Canada Red Cross personnel Presidents of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies People from Morden, Manitoba