Murton Adams Seymour

Murton Adams Seymour, O.B.E., B.A., K.C., was born in St. Catharines, Ontario, on July 6, 1892, and moved to Vancouver, British Columbia, the following year. He attended the University of Toronto, where he received his B.A. with Honours in Political Science in 1915, and Osgoode Hall Law School in Toronto. He returned to Vancouver and as a student of law he articled with the firm of Gwillim, Crisp and McKay in that city.

With several other aviation enthusiasts, he purchased a Curtiss Pusher aircraft and formed what became known as the Aero Club of British Columbia. He learned to fly at the racetrack in Vancouver, on land now occupied by the International Airport. In 1916 the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) commissioned him in the Special Reserve to attend the School of Aeronautics at Oxford University in England, from which he graduated as a pilot.

A posting to No. 41 Squadron, RFC, followed and he flew fighter aircraft from an advanced base in Belgium. After several months he was medically restricted to low level flying because of an intolerance to oxygen-limited air. He was posted to administration duties and finally ordered to Camp Borden, Ontario, in 1917, to assist in setting up RFC flying training squadrons. As a Captain he was given the responsibility of designing pilot training facilities at Fort Worth, Texas for the RFC winter training programs. In 1918 he was promoted to Major and named to the headquarters staff of the RFC, which later became the Royal Air Force (RAF), in Canada. At war's end he was placed in charge of demobilizing Canadian officers serving with the RAF in Canada.

Prior to leaving the service, Seymour was admitted to the Bars of both Ontario and British Columbia as Barrister and Solicitor. He then joined the firm of Ingersoll and Kingstone at St. Catharines, Ontario. He started his own law practice in 1933, and in 1934 he became a King's Counsel (K.C.)

The Flying Clubs of Canada came into existence in 1927-28 under a subsidy policy established by the Civil Aviation Branch of the Department of National Defence. The objectives were to establish aerodromes throughout Canada, as at that time there were practically no airports, to create air consciousness among Canadians, and to create a reserve of partially trained pilots for defence of the country in the event of war. In 1928 Seymour incorporated the St. Catharines Flying Club, preparing its constitution and by-laws, and served as its first President until 1936. He was a founding member and Director of the Canadian Flying Clubs Association (CFCA), serving as President from 1939 to 1944.

Early in 1939, Seymour discussed the situation concerning the defence of the country with the Civil Aviation Branch, and the possibility of flying clubs undertaking the elementary flying training instruction of a number of provisional pilot officers for the RCAF. By the fall of 1939 an agreement was in place, and this formed the basis for the civil Elementary Flying Training Schools of the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan (BCATP).

In recognition of his personal endeavours in negotiating an agreement between the flying clubs of Canada and the Department of National Defence for the training of military pilots during wartime, he was awarded the Trans-Canada (McKee) Trophy for 1939 and the Gold Medal of the CFCA. In 1943 he was named a Member of the Order of the British Empire (O.B.E.) for his contributions. In 1951 he was elected a Life Bencher of the Upper Canada Law Society, having been named a Bencher in 1936. He was appointed Honorary Counsel to the Royal Canadian Flying Clubs Association. Seymour died in St. Catharines on December 27, 1976.

Murton Seymour trained in 1915 in an OX-powered Curtiss pusher built about 1912. He gained his initial instruction by sitting on the leading edge of the lower wing and watching the actions of his instructor, William M. Stark, during demonstration flights. Then he practiced taxiing on the ground, with his instructor sitting on the wing beside him shouting his instructions. Stark placed a block under the foot throttle to control the amount of power generated by the engine. As Seymour became more proficient at taxiing, his foot throttle block was shaved down progressively, until finally he had enough power to make hops at anywhere up to three or four feet off the ground. After that accomplishment, he was on his own.

Murton Adams Seymour was inducted as a Member of Canada's Aviation Hall of Fame in 1974 at a ceremony held in Edmonton, Alberta.