Western Ontario Meredith was instrumental in the founding of The University of Western Ontario, at his hometown of London. He served as the first Chancellor (1912–1916) of the university and was Chairman of the Board of Governors between 1908 and 1914. He established the R.M. Meredith Society, still in operation today, to help fund under-privileged students. Personality He retired from the Bench at the age of 83, and moved back from Toronto to the home where he was born, on Talbot Street, London, Ontario. "A noted athlete in his youth, he preserved in his erect bearing and brisk step, great physical vigour and athletic energy, even after he had reached an advanced age." Like many of his brothers he had a great love of flowers and floriculture, and was at his happiest whiling away the hours in his extensive gardens on the Meredith's London estate. His obituary read, Chief Justice Meredith had a certain self-assurance and impatience with intellects less able than his own that sometimes brought him into sharp conflict with judicial colleagues, but he had a profound knowledge of law, and his ability and fairness earned him the respect of the Ontario Bar... (Out of court) his disposition was very kindly and friendly, and he was at all times a gentleman. In court he required the most rigorous etiquette, but his strict fairness and careful attention to details made him respected by all members of the Bar. In his earlier days he was a well-known figure in Toronto society, but on returning to London he lived in almost complete retirement. In 1901, he presented a chime of ten bells, cast in England, and the clock on the clocktower to St. Paul's Cathedral (London, Ontario) in memory of his parents. He was the best man at the wedding of his brother, Sir Vincent Meredith in 1888. He was unmarried, and died at the home his father had built in the early 1840s, and where he was born. He is buried at the Meredith plot in Woodland Cemetery, London. He left an estate of $235,598, having given much away to charitable causes during his lifetime. His portrait, and that of his brother Sir William Ralph Meredith, hangs in Osgoode Hall, Toronto. Arms External links R.M. Meredith, Western Libraries Meredith's letter for the foundation of the University of Western Ontario See also Meredith Resigns as Chief Justice - Montreal Gazette, 30