Egerton Ryerson

Egerton Ryerson was a very important person in the history of Canadian education.

He was born on March 24, 1803, in Charlotteville Township, Upper Canada. His father, Joseph Ryerson, was a soldier from New Jersey. Egerton grew up with five brothers in a large family. He joined the Methodist Episcopal Church when he was seventeen years old. This choice caused some trouble with his father, who was Anglican. Later in life, he became a minister and a famous writer. He also worked as an editor for a weekly newspaper.

As a young man, Ryerson worked as a missionary. In 1826, he went to live with the Mississaugas of the Credit River. He felt great joy about this new job. He learned the Ojibwe language to talk with the people. He helped them build a church that was also a school. Ryerson even helped them protest for their right to fish for salmon. During this time, a Chief named Ajetance gave him a new name. The name was Cheehock. He also became friends with a future chief named Peter Jones.

Ryerson spent many years changing how schools worked in Ontario. In 1844, Governor General Sir Charles Metcalfe appointed him Chief Superintendent of Education. He wanted to make sure schools were free for everyone. He helped create school boards to manage learning. He also wanted all schools to use the same textbooks. Ryerson studied how schools worked in other parts of the world. He helped pass the Common School Act of 1846. This law created a General School Board with seven members. He also helped start a special school to train new teachers.

Today, many people have different feelings about Ryerson's work. Some people remember him for building the school system. Others look at his ideas about different groups of children. Ryerson did not believe white children and Indigenous children should learn together. He believed they had different upbringings and civilizations. In 1847, he wrote a letter about a system for Indian industrial schools. Some people argue his ideas helped start the residential school system. Because of these views, he became a very controversial figure.

Because of these disagreements, many things named after him have changed. For a long time, a university in Toronto was called Ryerson University. Students and groups protested to change the name. They wanted the name to reflect a different history. In 2021, a task force recommended removing his name and his statue. The university leaders agreed with this choice. In April 2022, the school became Toronto Metropolitan University. This shows how people still talk about history today.