An informal group, the Circle
started around a dinner table. In 1947, a time
when interest in Canada’s north was increasing
rapidly, Tom and Jackie Manning remarked to their
friends and fellow arctic travellers Graham and
Diana Rowley that their dining room table could no
longer accommodate the growing number of people
who gathered there regularly to talk abut the
north. The Arctic Circle came into being not long
after and has been flourishing ever since,
sustained by its members with no outside
assistance.
The Circle meets monthly to
hear interesting and informative presentations on
everything arctic. Since its first meeting on
December 8th 1947, over five hundred fascinating
presentations have been given by experts on
northern history, natural sciences, society,
exploration, arts, transportation, astronomy,
archaeology, medicine, and much more.
The Arctic Circle meets on the
second Tuesday of every month from October through
April at the RCAF Officers' Mess, 158 Gloucester
Street, Ottawa, at 8:00 pm. The bar opens at 7:30
pm.
Annual dinners are held in
April and feature distinguished guest
speakers. This year the dinner will be held
on April 29, 2021, with guest speaker Pat
Sutherland.
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