Identity area
Type of entity
Person
Authorized form of name
Ellis, J. H. (Joseph Henry)
Parallel form(s) of name
Standardized form(s) of name according to other rules
Other form(s) of name
Identifiers for corporate bodies
Description area
Dates of existence
1890-
History
Born in Coventry, England in 1890, Joseph Henry Ellis immigrated to Canada in 1907. From his arrival until 1914, he worked on a farm at Glenboro, Manitoba, and also at the Brandon Experimental Farm. In 1918 he graduated from Manitoba Agricultural College with a Bachelor of Science degree. He then accepted a position as experimentalist and lecturer in soil management in the Field Husbandry Department. In 1927 he received a MSc from the University of Minnesota and became the first head of the Soils Division at the University of Manitoba, a post he held until 1955. Throughout this period he lectured and participated in soil surveys to map and classify the soils of Manitoba. Elements of his classification system were later incorporated into the Canadian soil classification system. Following his tenure as Head of the Department of Soil Science, Professor Ellis acted as a consultant for the federal government's Department of Mines and Natural Resources and the Manitoba Department of Agriculture.