Nila Reynolds

Nila Reynolds (born 1928) was a Canadian author, Haliburton Echo columnist, and historian of Haliburton County.

Nila Reynolds
Born1928
West Guilford, Ontario, Canada
OccupationHistorian, author, columnist
EducationHaliburton School of Fine Arts
SubjectHaliburton County history
Years active1968-1980
Notable worksIn Quest of Yesterday

She is the author of In Quest of Yesterday, a history book of the County, published three times.

Family life and education

Nila was born as Nila Morrison in West Guilford in 1928. Her father was a local politician[1] and she grew up on a farm.[2]

Reynolds received writing training from Sylvia Fraser, Scott Young and Austin Chesterfield Clarke at the Haliburton School of Fine Arts.[2]

She married Leslie Bronte Reynolds (of the Brontë family)[2] of Minden Hills.[1]

The Leslie and Nila Reynolds Memorial Bursary is a $200 award given to post-secondary-education students of Haliburton Highlands Secondary School.[3][4]

Career

Her book Dream of Excellence documents the 1967 events that led to the founding of the Haliburton School of Fine Arts. The school was formed by a non-profit organization established by Ronald McCaw, Elizabeth Hobden, Carole Finn, Harold O'Neill, Dixie and Jan Augusteijn, and Rea Stinson.[5]

Her 1979 book Bancroft: A Bonanza of Memories (published by the Bancroft Centennial Committee) documentary the history of Bancroft, noting that the name of the town is a result of the influence of senator Billa Flint.[6] The book was recommended to history fans by journalist and publisher Barry Penhale. Penhale also described Reynold's book In Quest of Yesterday as "critically acclaimed."[7] The book was originally published as series of columns in the Haliburton Echo newspaper before being developed into a manuscript. Reynolds undertook 170 extensive interviews as research for the publication.[1] Kate Butler, director of the Haliburton Highlands Museum, described Reynold's approach to writing as unusual for her time due to the inclusion of human details in her historical archiving.[1] The book was partly funded by the Haliburton Chamber of Commerce and the County of Haliburton. Leslie Frost (the former Premier of Ontario) wrote the forward to the book, which was reprinted three times.[1] The book's contents included details the West Guilford racehorse Guilford Boy, trained by Jimmy Powell,[8] and the ruins of Gull Lake and Newnham.[9]

Publications
  • Nila Reynolds, In Quest of Yesterday, County of Haliburton, 1968
  • Nila Reynolds, Dream of Excellence, Haliburton Highlands Guild of Fine Arts, 1976
  • Nila Reynolds, Carlow Township: Before the Memories Fade, Senior Citizens of Carlow Township, 1977[10]
  • Nila Reynolds, Bancroft, A Bonanza of Memories, Bancroft Centennial Committee, 1979[11]
  • Ed H. Devitt and Nila Reynolds, "Echoes of the Past" Resounding in the Present: A Brief Illustrated General History of a Central Region in Southern Ontario formed by Two Muskoka and Ten Haliburton Townships, Aljon Print-Craft Ltd, 1980[12]

References
  1. Paul Vorvis (1 April 2022). "Local History Writer Nila Reynolds plus Brief History of Slavery in Canada Pt 2". Time Warp (Podcast). Canoe FM.
  2. Reynolds, Nila (1979). Bancroft. A Bonanza of Memories. The Bancroft Centennial Committee. pp. dust jacket bio. OCLC 8091686. Archived from the original on 9 July 2023. Retrieved 9 July 2023.
  3. "Scholarship Fund Directory - Bursary Program" (PDF). Trillium Lakelands District School Board. Haliburton Highlands Secondary School. 2018.
  4. "Awards - Donors - Recipients" (PDF). The Highlander. 2 May 2019. p. 19.
  5. Himel, Susan; Lambert, Elaine (6 August 1981). "Craft classes held in Haliburton ART IN CRAFT". The Globe and Mail. p. T.7. ProQuest 386812552.
  6. Barry Penhale, Old Bush Days: Billa Flint a Heavyweight of Hastings County, Country Road (magazine) Quote: "Yet another source of interesting background to Flint may be found in the writings of Nila Reynolds. In “Bancroft: A Bonanza of Memories”, she informs readers of how the community of York River, with a post office since May 1, 1861, became officially known as Bancroft solely due to the enormous political clout of one Billa Flint — Senator Flint, if you please"
  7. Penhale, Barry (2018). "The Bunkhouse Buck". Country Roads. p. 12-13.
  8. Tiffin, Sue (2019-06-27). "150 years of West Guilford". Haliburton Echo. Retrieved 2023-07-17.
  9. Colombo, John Robert (1999). Mysteries of Ontario. Dundurn Press. ISBN 9781459725089.
  10. Before the memories fade : Carlow Township. Toronto Public Library.
  11. "Genealogy 101: Links to Resources". Ontario Genealogical Society.
  12. Stevens, Peter A. (15 November 2019). "Cars and Cottages: The Automotive Transformation of Ontario's Summer Home Tradition". Ontario History. 100 (1): 26–56. doi:10.7202/1065726ar.
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