Born in Victoria Square, Ontario, Leonard Klinck developed an early love of the land. He completed his first degree at the Ontario Agricultural College in 1903 and continued his studies at Iowa State College (M.S.A.,1905). Klinck then assumed responsibility for the cereal husbandry department at Macdonald College in Quebec. He first visited Vancouver in 1914 to consult with University of British Columbia President Wesbrook in planning the future UBC and was forthwith invited to become Dean of the Faculty of Agriculture. In accepting the position, Klinck became the first appointment to the UBC faculty. Following the sudden death of Wesbrook in 1919, he became UBC's second president. From this time until his retirement in 1944, Klinck supervised the physical building of the university through the Fairview campus days, the war-delayed move to Point Grey, the controversies of the 1930s and the trying times of World War II.
From the description of Leonard Klinck fonds. 1889-1969. (University of British Columbia Library). WorldCat record id: 606455907
