Mrs. Reginae Tait

This oral history interview with Mrs. Reginae Tait covers her remarkable life from her birth in 1910 in Watford, Ontario, through her distinguished career in education and legal institutional development. Born into a Methodist family with Conservative political ties, Tait became a teacher during the Great Depression before marrying George Tait in 1938. The couple spent the war years (1941-1944) in Colombia, South America, running a school for diplomats’ children, before returning to Canada where George joined the University of Toronto Faculty of Education.

The interview focuses extensively on Tait’s pivotal role in establishing Canada’s first legal archives and museum at the Law Society of Upper Canada. Working closely with Roy Schaeffer, she championed the transformation of what began as a pilot archives project into a permanent institutional repository for Canadian legal history. Her efforts extended to securing funding, managing complex negotiations, and overseeing the development of stained glass windows for Convocation Hall, culminating in the selection of Canadian artist Christopher Wallis for the project completed in 1987. Throughout her career, Tait served in leadership roles with numerous organizations including as National President of the IODE, demonstrating her commitment to preserving Canadian heritage and legal history.

This description was written by AI and may contain some inaccuracies.