Bob McCutcheon was born in Bridgeport
Connecticut, on March 30, 1909, to an Irish father and a
Scottish mother, who immigrated to the United States one year
previously.
The family moved to Calgary in
1912,
where his father resumed his occupation as a carpenter. The
McCutcheon family lived, for the most part, on the "North Hill"
where Bob and his younger sister, Florrie, received their
secondary educations at what was then the Balmoral High School
on 16th Avenue North, west of Centre Street (now Crescent
Heights Junior High).
Bob tells of his decision to leave high school in mid-term grade
ten, to seek his fortune. After several weeks spent at various
menial jobs (delivering groceries on a bicycle for example), he
saw the error of his ways and decided to return to school in
time to write the Easter exams to be set for the grade, from
which he departed some months previously.
Bob succeeded in convincing the principal at that time, none
other than Mr. William Aberhardt, that he would be able to
bridge the gap by working day and night to catch up. He not only
succeeded in catching up, but passed all of the examinations
with better than average grades. Bob still maintains the
experience served him well, by proving to himself that results
realized in any endeavour are in direct proportion to the amount
of effort applied.
Soon after graduating from high school, Bob went to work for
Mr. D.T. Townsend, DLS, ALS,
the CPR's surveyor for their Calgary division. Since the
railway owned the areas now occupied by such districts as upper
Mount Royal, Scarborough and Sunalta, Mr. Townsend performed these subdivision surveys. In time,
Bob articled to Mr. Townsend,
receiving his DLS commission in
1939
and, subsequently, his ALS commission on May 13,
1940.
It was during the years when Bob was working toward his
professional status as a land surveyor that he and Margaret
McNeil were married in February of
1934.
He still speaks of the support and encouragement which he
received from Margaret during those months when he was preparing
for his examinations. To Bob's great sorrow, then and still, he
lost Margaret in January
1979.
Bob enlisted in the Royal Canadian Air Force in
1941
and served as a navigation instructor. He was posted overseas in
1942 and received an honorable
discharge in
1945.
Following a brief period of employment with California Standard,
he entered into private practice in
1946.
In 1947,
he began his private practice operating from his home, and then
moved to an upstairs office over what was then a bank on the
north-east corner of 8th Avenue and 1st Street East. Sometime
later, he moved to space above Hall Hardware at 115A 8th Avenue
East (presently the north-west corner of the Convention Centre).
These were the days when office windows could be opened to fresh
air, and the drafting department occupied the two front rooms
facing 8th Avenue with a northern exposure to natural light for
the tables. The old building was a pleasant place to work in, as
I remember, during the few times when Bob would put up with my
laborious drafting. Mr. Arthur Fleet, Bob's senior draftsman,
deserves mention at this point.
An ex CPR man himself, Mr. Fleet's special expertise lay in
subdivision layouts and their attendant calculations, all of
which were done with logarithms. In my opinion, (biased as it
may be), Mr. Fleet's plans represent as fine an example of free-hand drafting as there is to be found in either of the two
Alberta Land Titles Offices.
Bob's last move was to the 300 Block on 7th Avenue West, over
Campbell Floral (now part of the Devonian Gardens). He chose
this location primarily because Alberta Drafting was next door,
and like most survey companies of the day, we did not have plan
reproduction facilities. Other good features of this location
were its proximity to the Land Titles Office, and its ideal
vantage point from which to watch the Stampede Parade!
Bob sold the business in
1965
to five of his employees when he retired for the first time and
the operation moved to new quarters in
1969.
During the years
1947
to 1965,
Bob's clients included the majors in the oil and gas industry,
in the utility companies, and in the land developers. His many
field plans will attest to the variety of surveys he performed,
yet he is perhaps best known for his work in property surveys
within the City of Calgary. These are still recognized as a
reliable base from which lost survey evidence can be replaced,
providing of course, his marks are still in place.
After his "retirement," Bob maintained a keen interest in the
profession, working with several surveyors in Calgary to whom he
would offer assistance if requested.
Since
1967 he had been associated with
Ley Harris, Darryl Tronnes and Ray MacDonald, and had retired a number
of times in the interim.
Bob's record with the Alberta Land Surveyors' Association speaks
for itself. He served as president on two occasions,
1950
and 1952, and during which time was
intrumental, along with Mr. Geoff
Hamilton and Mr. Buck Olsen, in
dissuading the government of the day, and in particular the
Honourable C.E. Gerhart, then the provincial secretary
responsible for the various professional acts, from its
intention to remove, or at least reduce, the statutory powers of
professional associations regarding the admission of new
members. Mr. Gerhart's proposal was to substitute a system of
government licensing which, fortunately for our profession, did
not materialize.
Bob was admitted as a life member of the Alberta Land Surveyors'
Association on May 13,
1975
following thirty-five yeas of active membership.
During the late 40s and early 50s there were only half a dozen
surveyors practicing in Calgary, a far cry from the present day.
The building boom was in its embryonic stages, and Bob became an
acknowledged expert in downtown surveys. He managed to acquire
A.P. Patrick's field notes, which
proved to be of enormous assistance.
His was a general type of practice and the surveyors under his
tutelage were exposed to a wealth of varied experience, from
demanding boundary surveys on 8th Avenue to well sites in Zama
Lake and Fort McMurray.
Bob McCutcheon passed away March 14,
2004
at the age of 94.
