St. John's College is an Anglican-based independent constituent college of the University of Manitoba, located on the university's Fort Garry campus in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The college is the oldest Anglophone institution of higher learning in western Canada and maintains its strong connection to the Anglican Church of Canada. The University of Manitoba Press has its office in 301 St. John's College. St. John's College, itself, operates a small publisher at the U of M called St. John's College Press. History With a strong Anglican affiliation, St John's College was officially opened by the newly arrived Bishop Robert Machray on 1 November 1866. The roots of the college, however, lie in the early years of the Red River Colony, where it served as a school for the settlers. Background The first Anglican cleric in the Northwest interior of Canada was the Reverend John West who, in 1820, established the first Anglican school in the Red River Colony (or Red River Settlement). In 1849, the growth of the Colony led to the creation of the Diocese of Rupert's Land, for which the first bishop was David Anderson. When Anderson arrived at Red River, he established the first school to bear the name "St. John's". For the school and the proposed theological college that would grow from it, Anderson chose the motto that remains the college motto to this day: "In Thy light we shall see light" (Psalm 36, verse 9). The new school provided both academic and missionary instruction to the people of the settlement and of the North. By 1859, declining enrollment and a lack of qualified teachers forced the bishop to close the school. Establishment In 1865, Robert Machray became the Bishop of Rupert's Land, arriving in the Red River Settlement later that same year. Recognizing the need for an Anglican college, Machray set about finding the necessary funds to reopen St. John's. The buildings from Bishop Anderson's school were renovated, while others were acquired to house the new school's boarders and faculty. The Reverend John Mclean came from London, Ontario, to become the college's first warden. When the school was reopened on 1 November 1866 (All Saints' Day), it had 19 boys attending as either boarders or day students and 3 students enrolled in theology courses. In 1877, St John's College consolidated with St. Boniface College (Roman Catholic) and the Manitoba College (Presbyterian) to become the founding colleges of