Benjamin deForest Bayly

Benjamin deForest "Pat" Bayly (born June 20, 1903-1994[1]) was a Canadian electrical engineer and a professor at the University of Toronto. During World War II he invented a cypher machine called the Rockex[2] and handled communications at the secret intelligence base Camp X. [3] He later ran an engineering company in Ajax, Ontario, and was the first mayor of that town. A street there is named after him.

Early life and education

Bayly was born in London, Ontario, son of Benjamin Moore Bayly and Alice Seaborn.[4] He grew up in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan,[5] where his father worked as a medical health officer.[6] He studied electrical engineering at the University of Toronto, and lectured there on radio communications before graduation.[6][7] He graduated in 1930 with a BA in Science.

Career

After graduation Bayly was hired as an assistant professor in the University of Toronto's Department of Electrical Engineering, lecturing on radio communication, and later became a professor there.[6]

During World War II, Bayly enlisted as a lieutenant-colonel in the British Army. He set up the telecommunications centre at Canada's secret intelligence installation, Camp X, near Whitby, Ontario.[8] He set up a wireless station called HYDRA which was a coordination point for Allied radio signals from around the world.[9] Encryption using existing equipment was very slow, so Bayly invented a much faster machine for the purpose, labelled the Rockex.[5]

After the war, Bayley returned to work as a professor at the University of Toronto until 1950, when he set up his own company, Bayly Engineering Works,[6] in the newly formed town of Ajax, Ontario.[4] Soon after, Bayly served as the first Mayor of the town.[10] As well as having a street in the town named after him, in 2016 a statue commemorating his life was commissioned by the town. [11]

Bayly later sold his company and retired in California.[6] A book about his life, Benjamin de Forest (Pat) Bayly the Unknown Canadian, has been written by Bill Parish.[11]

References

  1. ↑ William A. Parish (2010). The life and times of Benjamin de Forest (Pat) Bayly 1903-1994: The unknown Canadian.
  2. ↑ Vendeville, Geoffrey. Keeper of World War secrets tells all". Toronto Star, May 16, 2016, page GT2.
  3. ↑ Kurt F. Jensen (1 January 2009). Cautious Beginnings: Canadian Foreign Intelligence, 1939-51. UBC Press. pp. 121–. ISBN 978-0-7748-5845-8.
  4. 1 2 Charles Whately Parker; Barnet M. Greene (1956). Who's who in Canada. International Press Limited. p. 36.
  5. 1 2 William Irish (2 December 2014). Canadians: a narration of events. FriesenPress. pp. 202–. ISBN 978-1-4602-5015-0.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 Stafford, David. Camp X, Lester, Orpen & Dennys, Toronto. p. 158-160.
  7. ↑ University of Toronto Monthly. 1930. p. 252.
  8. ↑ Timothy Wilford (12 September 2011). Canada's Road to the Pacific War: Intelligence, Strategy, and the Far East Crisis. UBC Press. pp. 40–. ISBN 978-0-7748-2124-7.
  9. ↑ John Ferris (7 May 2007). Intelligence and Strategy: Selected Essays. Routledge. pp. 171–. ISBN 978-1-134-23334-2.
  10. ↑ Mike Filey (1994). Toronto Sketches 3: The Way We Were. Dundurn. pp. 136–. ISBN 978-1-55002-227-8.
  11. 1 2 " Ajax unveils statue of town’s first mayor Pat Bayly". Pickering News Advertiser, April 10 2016 By Sean Heeger
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