BIS (Waterloo), MA, PhD (Queen's)
Author of three books and numerous articles on Canadian history, Shirley Tillotson has explored, from many angles, the relationship between Canadians and the state in the 20th century. Her work — on topics ranging from telegraphers to charitable fundraisers to tax collectors — has been widely recognized for its excellence. Her book, Give and Take: The Citizen-Taxpayer and the Rise of Canadian Democracy, has been described as, “An outstanding achievement that brings tax history onto a new plane.”
She is retired from undergraduate teaching, but continues to participate in the graduate program in History at Dalhousie. She is a member of the advisory board of the Journal of Royal Nova Scotia Historical Society. She also provides media commentary on current events from a Canadian historical perspective.
Follow her on Bluesky: @stillots1.bsky.social
Research Topics
- Canadian history
- Taxation history
- Charities and philanthropy
- Gender and sexuality
- Social movements
- Nova Scotia
Recent scholarly publications
- “Public Opinion and Economics in the Fight Against Inflation, 1969-72.” In Between the Postwar and the Present: New Essays in Canadian History (working title). Eds. Ben Bradley and Nancy Janovicek (under review, summer 2023)
- “A Life in History: Becoming Useful.” Canadian Historical Review 103, 4 (2022): 590-612.
- “Importing the Plantation: The Greater Caribbean and Loyalist Nova Scotia’s Public Revenue.” Journal of the Royal Nova Scotia Historical Society 25 (2022): 1-26.
- “Community and Expertise in Canadian Democracy since 1920,” in Constant Struggle: Histories of Canadian Democratization. Eds. Julien Mauduit and Jennifer Tunnicliffe. Montreal: McGill-Queen’s University Press, 2021. 355-89.
- “How history helps us think about the politics of tax fairness.” In Who Pays for Canada? Taxes and Fairness. Eds. E.A. Heaman and David Tough. Montreal: McGill-Queen’s University Press, 2020. 129-50.
- “The Canadian Historical Review at One Hundred Years,” Canadian Historical Review, 100, 3 (2019): 315-48.
Selected publications
- Give and Take: The Citizen-Taxpayer and the Rise of Canadian Democracy. Vancouver: UBC Press, 2017
- Contributing Citizens: Modern Charitable Fundraising and the Making of the Welfare State,1920-66. Vancouver: UBC Press, 2008.
- The Public at Play: Gender and the Politics of Recreation in Postwar Ontario. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2000.
- “Human Rights law as prism: women’s organizations, unions, and Ontario’s Female Employees Fair Remuneration Act (1951).” Canadian Historical Review 72, 4 (1991), 532-557
- ”’We may all soon be ‘first-class men”: gender and skill in Canada’s early-twentieth century urban telegraph industry.” Labour/Le Travail 27 (Spring 1991), 97-125
Awards and honours
- The François-Xavier Garneau Medal 2020 for Give and Take: The Citizen-Taxpayer and the Rise of Canadian Democracy.
- Governor General’s History Award for Scholarly Research 2019 for Give and Take: The Citizen-Taxpayer and the Rise of Canadian Democracy.
- Shortlisted for the Sir John A. Macdonald Prize 2008 and Harold Adams Innis Prize 2008-09 for Contributing Citizens: Modern Charitable Fundraising and the Making of the Welfare State, 1920-66.
- Canadian Historical Association, Clio (Ontario) Award for Excellence, 2000 for The Public at Play: Gender and the Politics of Recreation in Postwar Ontario.
