Honorary degree citation - Robert Ferguson Legget*
By: J. Bordan, June 1972
Mr. Chancellor:
I have the honour to present to you Dr. Robert Ferguson Legget, first Director of the Division of Building Research of the National Research Council.
Dr. Legget, a graduate in Civil Engineering of the University of Liverpool, came to Canada in 1929. He taught at Queen's University and the University of Toronto. In 1947 he established the Division of Building Research of National Research Council, and was named its first director, a position he held for 22 years. Dr. Legget not only created an organization which has achieved an outstanding reputation but was directly concerned with the development of our National Building Code. His responsibilities also included for a period the direction of the Canadian Government Specifications Board.
Dr. Legget and his work have received both national and international acclaim. He has been President of the American Society for Testing and Materials. He has been active in the International Society for Soil Mechanics and Foundation Engineering, and arranged for its sixth international conference to be held in Montreal in 1965. He was President of the Conseil International du Batiment pour la Recherche, l’Etude et la Documentation, his three year term culminating in its fourth congress held in Ottawa in 1969. He has received, if my calculations are correct, nine honorary degrees, and numerous other prizes and honours. In 1967, he was awarded the Order of Canada, Medal of Service.
His breadth of interest has been demonstrated in both Dr. Legget's professional work and his publications. He has been a keen student of geology, concerned in particular with the terrain of our northern land. His writings include a widely acclaimed book on Geology and Engineering, and a history of the Rideau Waterway. He has always demonstrated a lively awareness of Canada's resource needs and problems, particularly in such crucial areas as housing and the use of water. And all he has said and done has been informed by his dedication to the development and maintenance of good standards, taking into account the true national interest.
Mr. Chancellor, I am honored to present to you on behalf of the University Council and by the authority of the Board of Governors, Dr. Robert F. Legget, a Canadian Engineer of international achievement and reputation, that you may confer on him the degree of Doctor of Science, honoris causa.
* deceased
