Robert Wrigley
Under the supervision of biology teacher Leonard Orr, Bob begins a classroom dissection.
Class of 1961
Memory Lane
School Memories
Joining the illustrious band of male students that “got the strap” from Principal E.Y. Templeton.
Learning in gym class how to march properly, and being marked, by strict and stern Miss Powell.
My bravest act – after taking guitar lessons at school for only three years, I agreed to play a solo-guitar
Miss Montgomery kindly allowed me to leave class periodically to check my animal skeletons boiling in the chemistry lab.
Watching in complete awe, along with all my male buddies, as classmate Brita Stolz swayed gracefully down the hall.
My inexcusable transgression was throwing snowballs back (unfortunately into the open door)
of a kid living next door to our Elementary School. ”Well he started it!” didn't work that time either.
performance of music by J.S. Bach (Prelude in C Minor) and lutist John Dowland, for the St. Lambert Woman's Club
in the CCHS Auditorium. I somehow got through it, but it was far-more enjoyable playing with friends' bands
on stage at school events like the Christmas Variety Show.
She had a special place in her heart for all my family.
Almost 50 years later, Brita and I remain the dearest of friends (wishes do come true), although we live far apart in adjacent provinces.
Catching my first fish (a big Largemouth Bass) off the end of the famous concrete St. Lambert Beach,
Sliding along in the fast current on my bum on the polished-shale bottom of the St. Lawrence River,
A truly troubled youth -- flattening pennies on the streetcar tracks along Desaulnier,
Along with my dad and many other locals, watching one of the first television sets in town,
Participating in the new fad – organized yo-yo displays and competitions at Memorial Park.
Joining hundreds of neighbours sitting along Riverside Drive on a warm summer evening
and baking it with potatoes in a camp fire in my back lane with sister Jean (She cleaned it for me.).
barely reaching shore before being carried past the Jacques Cartier Bridge. It is amazing we all survived childhood!
We also tried making a boat, with 10 pounds of window putty to fill the cracks.
The thing floated alright, about one foot below the surface.
With crew rapidly deserting, we last saw it heading for the Gulf of St. Lawrence.
scaring the milkman's horse until he peed (the horse, that is) by placing a rope across the road,
and accidentally starting (and barely containing) a serious grass fire in The Swamp.
during the evening in front of the hardware-store window on Green Street.
My 'cat-in-the-cradle' went to sleep, and my 'walking-the-dog' never came home!
to watch the fireworks over the St. Lawrence River.
Roberto Ernesto Wrigley was born on May 2, 1943 in Buenos Aires, Argentina, the second-oldest of four children of Eva Wrigley (nee Muir) and Ernest Wrigley of Montreal, Quebec. He soon developed a fascination with the natural world from observing creatures in his backyard, and during frequent trips with his mother to the nearby Buenos Aires Zoo. Following the Second World War, economic and social situations began deteriorating in neutral Argentina, so the family headed back to Canada, moving into a new house on the NW corner of Logan Avenue and Maple Street. His father, a chartered accountant (McGill), was Vice-President of Corby Distilleries in Montreal, and an avid golfer at the St. Lambert Golf Club, but sadly he passed away at age 41.
St. Lambert was a great place to spend the early years, within walking distance of the St. Lawrence River and The Swamp (end of Dulwich Street), where he and his friends fine-tuned their hunter-gatherer skills -- shooting home-made bows and arrows (cattail stem with a nail in the end), building forts, fighting off invaders from Longeuil, and of course discovering animal life. Seaway and new housing developments eventually brought to a close these childhood pursuits, in spite of his valiant effort to stop “progress” by removing surveyor's posts at every opportunity. His animal collection at home grew to include an alligator and boa, much to the delight of neighbourhood kids.
Within the well-organized sports program of St. Lambert, he played softball at Logan Park, football and hockey at Lesperance Park, and baseball (hardball) with his francophone friends at Parc St. Denis. He often swam and observed the preening antics of young females at The Beach and Seaway Park Pool. The guys often competed to see how far they could swim underwater (full length and part-way back). Once he acquired 'wheels', he took up skiing in the Eastern Townships. His best buddies during these early years were David and John Milligan, who lived nearby on Oak Street, and they scored many memorable hits, goals and touchdowns together. He recalls why all the hockey players were in such great physical condition in those days – They dressed in full hockey equipment at home, skated on the icy roads to Lesperance Rink, plowed the ice surface, played the game, and then skated home again. No one had to be driven to the outdoor rink in those days.
Robert joined the school gymnastics team, in spite of having to wear the embarrassing white uniform consisting of a brief muscle shirt, the tightest of tights, and dainty slippers. He remembers swinging upside down over the audience on the rings apparatus in the gym. Robert's older sister Jean was a famous figure skater, winning the Eastern Canadian Championship before turning professional as a soloist with the Ice Follies. She has taught competitive skating and dancing for 40 years, mainly in Connecticut. Younger brother John was an activist CCHS Student Council President (not too popular with some teachers), and became a lawyer in Barrie, Ontario, after highly successful years as goalie for the University of Toronto hockey team, playing the Czech National Team and being invited to try-out with the new Los Angeles Kings. Younger sister Mary excelled in art and floral arranging, which she still enjoys today.
Robert's summer jobs included labourer/street painter with the City of St. Lambert work crew, recreation leader at Logan Park, lab technician at Ogilvy Flour Mills and a Montreal chemical company, field technician with the Quebec Wildlife Service in Parc des Laurentides, and two summers with the National Museum in Ottawa – one curating the mammal collections, and the other traveling by float plane and helicopter to collect specimens in remote regions of the western Arctic.
Robert attended all three schools located along Green Street (Elementary Annex, old High School, and CCHS), graduating with the class of 1961. His favourite subjects were biology, chemistry and music, and he remembers most fondly, among all the dedicated teachers, Mr. Leonard Orr and Miss Montgomery. He entered McGill University, planning to become a surgeon, but eventually pursued his main love of zoology. He and his high-school companion Bruce Lauer (who could belt out a tune on the United Church organ) commuted from St. Lambert and took many courses together. He graduated with a Bachelor of Science Degree in 1965 and a Master's Degree in Zoology in 1967, writing a thesis on the ecology and distribution of mammals of southwestern Quebec. He then studied for three years at the University of Illinois, graduating with a PhD in 1970 with a thesis on the ecology, taxonomy, genetics and anatomy of mammals. Looking forward to returning to Canada, he began an 10-year career as a research and exhibit Curator at the new Manitoba Museum of Man and Nature in Winnipeg, and became the Museum Director (staff of 80) in 1980. He enjoyed giving tours of the galleries to a number of VIPs, such as the royal families of Japan and Monaco, the Shah of Iran's brother, and the glamorous Zsa Zsa Gabor who, living up to her reputation, would not let go of his arm.
Robert was awarded a British Council grant in 1988 to continue his studies of museums, art galleries, zoos and botanical gardens in the United Kingdom. The highlight was seeing the famous biological collections of Charles Darwin at Cambridge. In 1990 he became the Director of the new Oak Hammock Marsh Interpretive Centre (at Stonewall, north of Winnipeg) – a joint project of the Manitoba Government and Ducks Unlimited Canada. He was responsible for the building design, recruiting staff, and developing interpretive programs. In 1996, he joined the City of Winnipeg's Assiniboine Park Zoo (Canada's oldest, at 104 years) as Curator, a position he plans to hold for 15 years until retirement in 2010. Supervising a staff of 50, he oversees the collection of 2000 animals of 380 species. As the senior scientist, he works on conservation, breeding and research programs (especially with endangered species), interpretive signs, and deals with the media. He has lectured and published articles linking human overpopulation, poverty, wildlife extinction, environmental degradation, and climate change.
Robert has served on a number of boards, such as the Manitoba Museum, Zoological Society of Manitoba, and the Nature Conservatory of Canada (Manitoba Region), and is a member of the Manitoba Government Endangered Species Committee and Ecological Reserves Committee. He also lectures at the University of Manitoba and sits on graduate-student advisory committees. He makes a special effort to share information about animals, biodiversity, and wildlife conservation, and has conducted over 2000 media interviews and produced over 80 popular and technical publications, including 17 books. He was a senior author of The Encyclopedia of Manitoba (2007), and has been the editor of a number of journals (e.g., The Canadian Field-Naturalist) and magazines (Manitoba Nature). One of his animal books for children won a Canadian Golden Award of Excellence.
Walking his collie along Oak Street one day in 1964, Robert met and immediately fell in love with a charming young school teacher named Gail Trueman. Their courtship blossomed at her cabin at South Bolton in the Eastern Townships, where Robert also carried on field research for his degree. They married in 1967 at the St. Lambert United Church and after the honeymoon in Florida they drove to Champaign-Urbana, Illinois, where he attended the University of Illinois. After graduating, they moved to Winnipeg in 1970, where they had two sons -- Mark (now a chef and cafe owner in Tofino, BC) and Rob (a Winnipeg teacher).
His sweetheart Gail died in 1984. Lonely and wishing to find a new partner, he re-entered the challenging dating scene. While attending a Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra pops concert with a new date, he observed through his binoculars (from the first balcony) a captivating cellist whom he soon found out was Ms Arlene Dahl. Assuming she was single (no apparent ring), he promptly sent her exotic flowers. They dated a week later, he proposed at three weeks, and they were married in five months -- not bad for a guy that was shy with girls back in high school. By age 43, he knew what he liked, so why waste precious time with a lengthy courtship? They just celebrated their 21st wedding anniversary. Robert now has two grandsons, Luc and Aidan (parents Bobbie-Jo Leclair and Rob), who help keep grandpa in shape with frequent wrestling matches and races.
Robert's hobbies include writing, collecting way-too-many books, travel, entomology (studying and collecting insects), woodcarving, music (orchestral and bluegrass), and hopefully nature painting on retirement.
Bob is seen in this 1982 family photo with wife Gail and sons Rob and Mark. Photo was used in his 360-page book, "Mammals in North America", copy of which can be seen in the St. Lambert Library.
"Manitoba's Big Cat" is one of Bob's favorite books authored by him. One of his animal books for children won a Canadian Golden Award of Excellence.
"Mammals in North America" was one of Bob's earliest publications, and one he says "is the book I wished I had as a youngster".
"Polar Bear Encounters" is the end result of several trips traveling by float plane and helicopter into remote regions of the western Arctic. Bob recalls sometimes feeling getting "too close for comfort" with these beautiful animals.
A few of the (17 books, and 80 technical publications) books authored by Robert "Bob" Wrigley.
Bob pictured prior to one of his graduation ceremonies: BSc. McGill University - 1965, MZoo. McGill University - 1967, PhD. University of Illinois - 1970.
1980 - Bob during research project along Lake Winnipeg.
2002 - Arlene and Bob during Caribbean Cruise.
2003 - On location with T.V. host Jack Hanna during filming of series "Jack Hanna's Animal Adventures".
2007 - Bob with his favorite zoo animal, Dmitri, a 21-year old snow leopard.
More St. Lambert Memories
Chasing by bike, with all my friends, the loud-speaker car which drove around St. Lambert
Feeling adventurous, my friends and I occasionally drove our bikes across the Jacques Cartier Bridge
Our St. Lambert 8-man football squad was selected to play another team at intermission during a Montreal Allouettes game
My favourite stores were Jazzar's for goldfish, Rainbow Market for ice-cream sandwiches,
Definitely Dangerous: Repeatedly looking into the live x-ray booth to view one's feet (to check the fit of a new pair of shoes) 
announcing upcoming events, all the while blasting out marching music. I can still whistle all the tunes.
to St. Helens Island to swim in the huge outdoor pools.
in Molson Stadium. Quarterback John Milligan, who had the most-amazing arm, threw me a long pass and I managed to hold
onto the ball as I was creamed by two defensive players. I think the crowd roared in approval; or did I just imagine that?
Ahern's for black liquorice pipes and blackballs, and Romeo's for the best-tasting hotdogs and fries.
Amazing we did not lose all our teeth; and the dentist on Victoria Avenue did not administer a pain killer before drilling.
at Hughes Shoes on Victoria Avenue, and mixing asbestos powder into wet cement to apply on the roof of a bird house
– a shop project in Mr. Dirkson's class at the Old High School.
