Charles William Jefferys

The recorded working language is English. The field of work recorded is painting and illustration. Employment is recorded with University of Toronto, The Globe and New York Herald. Work by Charles William Jefferys is recorded in the collections of National Gallery of Canada, Canadian War Museum and Library and Archives Canada. Distinctions recorded are Member of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts, Associate Member of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts, Honorary doctorate from Queen's University and Person of National Historic Significance.

• Name — Charles William Jefferys • Born — 25 August 1869 • Birthplace — Rochester, Kent • Died — 8 October 1951 • Place of death — Toronto, Ontario • Relatives — Harold Gordon Stacey (son-in-law)

Jefferys was born in Rochester, Kent, to Charles Thomas Jefferys and Ellen Kennard. He moved with his family first to Philadelphia in 1875, then to Hamilton, Ontario, in 1878, and finally to Toronto around 1880. There, he attended school and was apprenticed with the York Lithography Company from 1885 to 1890.

From 1889 to 1892, Jefferys worked for the Toronto Globe as an illustrator and artist. He produced artwork for several printing companies. From 1893 to 1901, he worked for the New York Herald. Returning to Toronto, he became a newspaper, magazine and book illustrator, appearing in numerous publications, including Hardware Merchandising. Jefferys created a series of illustrations and essays for the Toronto Star Weekly, which in 1920 were published as Dramatic Episodes in Canada's Story. The following year, he was chosen by the Ontario government to illustrate a textbook, Ontario Public School History of Canada, written by George Wrong. Along with Ivor Lewis and other artists, Jefferys co-founded the Graphic Arts Club (later named the Canadian Society of Graphic Art), which by the 1940s became one of the primary artists' groups in Canada. As well, from 1912 to 1939, he taught painting and drawing in the Department of Architecture at the University of Toronto. During World War I, he was commissioned by the Canadian War Records department to paint soldiers training at Camp Petawawa and Niagara. Jefferys had an interest in history, and he produced accurate and meticulous portrayals of early Canadian life. The best known collection of his historical sketches is the three volume The Picture Gallery of Canadian History (c. 1942–1960). In 1926, he was made a member of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts. He also was a member of the Ontario Society of Artists and the Canadian Society of Painters in Water Colour. Jefferys was a founding member of the Arts and Letters Club of Toronto and was its president from 1923 to 1924.

• Illustration — Founding of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Father Le Loutre's War • Illustration — Simon-François Daumont de Saint-Lusson • Illustration — Arrival of Pierre-Esprit Radisson in an American Indian camp in 1660. Dessin par Charles William Jefferys. • Illustration — Montcalm at the head of their troops on the Plains of Abraham. Watercolour by Charles William Jefferys. • Illustration — Frontenac with the American Indians. Watercolour by Charles William Jefferys. • Illustration — Henry Kelsey in the company of American Indians observing bison on the plains. Lithograph.