A native of Broadview, Saskatchewan, John Hall Archer served the province as Legislative Librarian and Provincial Archivist prior to 1964. In that year he was appointed Director of Library Services at McGill University, a position he held until moving to Queen's University in 1967. At Queen's he served as Associate Professor of History and University Archivist, and completed his Ph.D. dissertation, entitled "Administration of Archival Institutions in Canada," in 1969. In October 1969, Dr. Archer was appointed Principal of the University of Saskatchewan, Regina Campus, and when the University of Regina was established on July 1, 1974, he became its first President, serving until the end of 1975. John Archer has written and edited numerous articles and books on Saskatchewan's history, and has been a popular speaker throughout the province and elsewhere. As an archivist and librarian Dr. Archer participated in a number of professional associations, particularly the Canadian Library Association of which he was president (1967). He served on the Saskatchewan Constituency Boundaries Commission (1972-1974), the federal Royal Commission on Government Organization (1961), and participated in a study of Brandon University's financial problems for the Universities Grants Commission of Manitoba.