Melville Bell Weekes

(1874.11.28 – 1958.06.04)
Ba. Sc., OLS, DLS, SLS (LM)
Commission #009
(1910.05.09)

Here was a gentleman who dedicated his life to serving the public in his capacity as the Director of Surveys, Department of Highways, Government of Saskatchewan from 1910 until 1940. During the last six years as a civil servant he also held the position as the first Controller of Surveys, Department of Natural Resources, Saskatchewan. Prior to his appointment in 1910 he was a drainage engineer with the Government of Saskatchewan.

Mr. Weekes grew up in Brantford, Ontario and was a graduate from the University of Toronto with a Bachelor of Arts and Science degree in Engineering.

Prior to coming west in 1902 he worked as a drainage Engineer at Winchester Ontario and as a Civil Engineer at the Hellen Iron Mines. At this time he obtained a fellowship in Assaying from the University of Toronto and his commission as a Dominion Land Surveyor in 1903. From 1902 until 1905 he was employed on Dominion Land surveys in Alberta, (North West Territory) and Manitoba. He then returned to Ottawa and was placed with the Topographical survey office until 1908. I assume he received his Ontario Land Surveyors Commission while in Ottawa. Upon his arrival in the west in 1908 he immediately received commission number 9 as a Saskatchewan Land Surveyor.

During his lifetime he was certainly active within and outside the S.L.S. Association. He represented Saskatchewan on the joint Federal-Provincial boundary commission on the Manitoba-Saskatchewan and the Alberta-Saskatchewan boundaries and he was deeply involved in the transfer of natural resources from the Federal Government to the Province in 1930.

Mr. Weekes was one of the original surveyors on the executive in 1914 and became President in 1922, on the Board of Examiners from 1913 until 1923 and was honored as a Life Member in 1944 with good signal service to his credit, more than just putting in his 35 years as a surveyor.

Some of his other accomplishments included Chairman of the Saskatchewan Branch of the Engineering Institute of Canada and Chairman of the Saskatchewan Civil Service when it was inaugurated.

Besides the above he worked with the Red Cross being Chairman of the Provincial Red Cross outpost hospital committee.

Mr. and Mrs. Weekes had three sons. Mrs. Weekes was a well known Regina author and historian in her own right and was honored in an article by Phil S. Long entitled "A great citizen of Saskatchewan".

J. H. Webb, March, 1999