OCTOBER 24, 1932 – JUNE 14, 1934

Lt.-Col. William Blight Megloughlin

A veteran officer of World War 1, Lt.-Col. William Blight Megloughlin, OBE, MC, VD, was the Commanding Officer of the 43rd Regiment, Cameron Highlanders of Ottawa from 1927 - 1932.

On October 24, 1932, he came to Kingston Penitentiary as Warden. His task: regaining control and restoring discipline of the institution in the wake of serious prisoner rioting.

Warden Megloughlin held his position during two difficult years: changes to prison rules, public criticism, low staff morale, and prisoner strikes and protests. A few months after a serious fire was set by prisoners in May 1934, he was dismissed.

It was during Megloughlin’s tenure that Cedarhedge stopped serving as the official Warden’s residence. Megloughlin slept on a cot in another building for several months, and only moved into Cedarhedge in January 1933. He advocated turning Cedarhedge into administration offices to relieve congestion at the prison. In November, 1933, his offices were moved into Cedarhedge, or “building A-1.”

Megloughlin became an ardent advocate of penal reform after his dismissal. He trained penitentiary officers in 1938-1939, and during World War 2, he became head of the Canadian army’s Small Arms Training School in 1940. He died in 1956.