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Manitobans Who Made a Difference

(Courtesy of the Archives of Manitoba)

Thomas James Harrison, a graduate and instructor of the Manitoba Agricultural College, was instrumental in developing new breeds of barley for malting purposes, and became internationally recognized for his work with the Malting Barley Institute.

Harrison was born in Graysville, Manitoba. He was the first student to enroll in the Manitoba Agricultural College in Tuxedo (now part of Winnipeg) when it opened in 1906. After his graduation, Harrison taught field husbandry at the College until 1913, when he became superintendent of the Dominion Experimental Farm in Indian Head, Saskatchewan. In 1915, Harrison returned to the College where he was appointed Professor of Field Husbandry. He was the first researcher to conduct soil and crop management studies using experimental plots. These projects led him, in 1924, to organize the first experimental malting equipment in Canada. Harrison conducted research on crossbreeding and high-yield barley, which was important for the malting industry. In 1920, he helped found the Manitoba Agronomists' Conference.

Harrison left the Manitoba Agricultural College to become assistant commissioner for Manitoba with the Board of Grain Commissioners in 1925. He was very active in the agricultural community and was chairman of the National Barley and Linseed Flax Committee, the Manitoba Corn Committee, the Fibre Flax Committee, the Manitoba Seed Committee, and the Grain Research Committee. Harrison also served as president of the Canadian Seed Growers' Association and was instrumental in forming the Barley Improvement Institute, which helped to distribute Montcalm Barley and aided plant breeders working on the development of barley. In 1947, he travelled to Poland as Canada's representative to the United Nations Food and Drug Organization in order to assist in the reconstruction of agriculture in the war-ravaged country.

In 1948, Harrison left the Board of Grain Commissioners. He became the director of the Malting Barley Institute, an organization of the Barley Improvement Institute. Harrison was the recipient of an honourary Doctor of Laws (LL.D.) from the University of Manitoba in recognition of his work in agriculture, and in particular the cultivation of malt barley. He was elected to the Agricultural Institute of Canada and the Royal Academy, and is a member of the Manitoba Agricultural Hall of Fame.