Obituary of Gilbert Daniel Allardyce

Gilbert Daniel Allardyce died at Frederick Hall, at Shannex Parkland in Fredericton, New Brunswick on May 26, 2025.  He was 93 years old.  He was born in Newton, Massachusetts, on February 5, 1932, the youngest child of Scottish immigrants who came to the United States after the First World War. After graduating from Needham High School in Massachusetts in 1949, he served three years in the U. S. Air Force during the Korean War.

 As a veteran, he was eligible for support under the G. I. Bill.  In 1953, he entered Boston University, becoming the first in his family to receive a college education. After thirteen years of higher education at several universities, he graduated in 1966 from the University of Iowa with a Ph.D. in European History.

 After teaching classes at Eastern Montana College and Stanford University in California, he came to Canada to begin a long career at the University of New Brunswick in Fredericton from 1966 to his retirement in 1995. His scholarly publications include works on European fascism, the Holocaust, and the teaching of European and world history in North American universities. He was popular with his university associates and with his students. 

 He received university and national awards for excellence in teaching. He was named Professor Emeritus in 1997, and he was described as "one of the most outstanding and influential undergraduate teachers who has ever served the University of New Brunswick".

 Over the years, he became one of those Americans who turned Canadian as much in heart as in citizenship.

 Gilbert was predeceased by his first wife, Elizabeth, the loving mother of their two sons, Thomas (Lori) of Palm Springs, California, and Gil Daniel (Won) of Townsend, Massachusetts.

 Gilbert leaves his wife Sandra Houston, and her daughter, Nicola Linton, of Vancouver.  He was predeceased by his step-daughter, Jennifer Linton Ainger of London, England.

 Gilbert loved his three grandchildren: Hanna, the daughter of Gil Daniel and Won; Gemma, the daughter of Nicola; and Charlie, the son of Neil Ainger and Jennifer Ainger.

 A heartfelt thank you to the staff at Frederick Hall for their kindness, compassion and care for Gilbert during his residence there.  At his request there will be no memorial service. 

 We will close with his words, “For Gilbert, being born in a snowstorm at the depth of the Depression wasn't so bad after all”.