Thomas Head Raddall

Thomas Head Raddall, OC, FRSC (13 November 1903 – 1 April 1994) was a Canadian writer of history and historical fiction.

Raddall was born in Hythe, Kent, England in 1903, the son of an Army officer, also named Thomas Head Raddall, and Ellen (née Gifford) Raddall. In 1913 the family moved to Nova Scotia, where his father had taken a training position with the Canadian Militia. The elder Raddall then saw active service during the First World War and was killed in action at Amiens in August 1918.

Raddall attended Chebucto School in Halifax until 6 December 1917, when the school was converted into a temporary morgue in the wake of the Halifax Explosion. The Raddall family survived the explosion and Raddall wrote about it in his memoirs, In My Time.

Raddall's first job was as a wireless operator on seagoing ships, including the CS Mackay-Bennett, and at isolated wireless posts such as Sable Island. He later took a job as a clerk at a pulp and paper mill in Liverpool, Nova Scotia, where he began his writing career.

Raddall was a prolific, award-winning writer. He received Governor General's Awards for three of his books, The Pied Piper of Dipper Creek (1943), Halifax, Warden of the North (1948) and The Path of Destiny (1957). He was made an Officer of the Order of Canada in 1971.

Raddall is best known for his historical fiction, but he also published numerous non-fictional historical works. His interest in historical research grew when he was stationed at historical locations as a wireless operator, and he received crucial encouragement and assistance from Harry Piers, Curator of the Nova Scotia Museum, who became his mentor. Raddall's early works included studies of privateering, civic and marine history, and Canada during the War of 1812. His history of Halifax, Warden of the North, remains influential.

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