Physician.
Born at Buchanan, Saskatchewan on 13 October 1918, one of nine children of Luke Murphy and Clara Myrfield, he grew up on a mixed farm. During the Second World War, he served overseas in Canadian military forces. When he returned to Canada, he enrolled at the University of Manitoba, eventually receiving a medical degree. Much of his medical career was spent at the Misericordia Hospital and St. Boniface Hospital. He was instrumental in founding the Department of Family Practice and residency program at the latter.
He served as President of the Manitoba College of Family Physicians (1967-1968) and the College of Family Physicians of Canada (1972-1973). He also served with the Canadian Armed Forces Reserve Force for many years, with the Winnipeg Grenadiers and Royal Canadian Army Service Corps, attaining the rank of Colonel.
In 1948, he married Winnifred “Peggy” Coyston (1919-2005) and they had five children, including Kathleen Claire "Kate" Murphy (1949-2015) and Maureen Margaret Murphy. In recognition of his community service, he received a Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal (1977) and a Order of Military Merit (1979).
He died at Selkirk on 16 April 2020.
Obituary [Peggy Murphy], Winnipeg Free Press, 30 December 2005.
Obituary [Kathleen Claire Murphy], Winnipeg Free Press, 25 April 2015.
Obituary, Winnipeg Free Press, 25 April 2020, page 53.
This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough.
Page revised: 30 March 2024
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