Carol's Life

1935 - Carol was born in Oak Park, Illinois to Inez and Robert Warner. Her sister Barbara and brother Robert, (twins) were born in 1933.
1940 - She started school at Nathaniel Hawthorne School in Oak Park.
1943 - She moved to Ralph Waldo Emerson School in Oak Park.
1948 - She entered Oak Park High School.
1953 - She started university at Hanover College, Hanover, Indiana.
1955 - She became an exchange student for one year at University of Exeter, Exeter, England.
1957 - She graduated from Hanover College and married Don Shields. They moved to Vancouver, then Toronto.
1958 - Her son John was born in Toronto.
1959 - Her daughter Anne was born in Toronto.
1960 - The family moved to Manchester, England.
1962 - Catherine is born. Carol publishes her first short stories.
1963 - The family moved back to Toronto.
1964 - Margaret was born. Carol won the CBC Young Writers Competition for poetry.
1968 - Sara was born. The family moved to Ottawa.
1971 - Carol became a Canadian citizen.
1973 - She edited the Canadian Slavonic Papers (Carleton University) until 1975.
1975 - She received her MA (English), University of Ottawa with her thesis on Susanna Moodie’s writing. She spent a year in France and then returned to Ottawa.
1976 - She lectured in the Department of English, Universityof Ottawa for one year.
1977 - She taught Creative Writing at the University of Ottawa until 1978.
1978 - The family moved to Vancouver. She teaches Creative Writing at the University of British Columbia, for one year.

1980 - They moved to Winnipeg. Carol began teaching at the University of Manitoba.
1981- Carol was an Assistant Professor of English, University of Manitoba until 1992.
1983 - “Women Waiting” her radio drama won first prize, CBC annual literary competition.

University of Manitoba
1984 - Her play, Departure and Arrivals premiered at The Black Hole Theatre, University of Manitoba.

1985 - Her short story, “Mrs. Turner Cutting Grass”, won the National Magazine Award. The documentary film Carol Shields was aired on Access Network.
1986 - She was Writer-in-Residence in Kingston, Ontario (short term) and then spent a year in France.
1988 - She was Writer-in-Residence at the University of Winnipeg and at Douglas College, New Westminister, B.C. (short term).
1989 - Room of One’s Own (Vol. 13, Nos. 1 _ 2) devoted a special issue to her work, The Carol Shields Issue. She was Writer-in-Residence at the University of Ottawa.
1990 - She won the Marian Engel Award and the Christian Science Monitor choose The Orange Fish as one of the two best books of short fiction of the year.
1992 - She was an Associate Professor of English, University of Manitoba until 1995.
1993 - Thirteen Hands premiered at Prairie Theatre Exchange in Winnipeg.
1994 - The family spent a sabbatical year in Berkeley, California.
1995 - Fashion Power Guilt and the Charity of Families a play written with her daughter Catherine opened at Prairie Theatre Exchange in Winnipeg. Prairie Fire Magazine published a Carol Shields issue (Vol. 16, No.1, Spring, 1995). She received an honorary degree from the University of Ottawa. She was a Professor of English, University of Manitoba until 1999.
1996 - Carol was named Chancellor of the University of Winnipeg. She received the following honorary degrees: Doctor of Humane Letters, Hanover College; Doctor of Laws, Queen’s University; Doctor of Letters, University of Winnipeg; Doctor of Literature, University of British Columbia;
1998 - She was appointed Officer of the Order of Canada, 1998 (invested in 1999) and became a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada and received the following honorary degrees: Doctor of Letters, University of Toronto; Doctor of Laws, Concordia University; Doctor of Letters, University of Western Ontario.
1999 - She was awarded the Guggenheim Fellowship. The Shields family moved to England for a year. The first Carol Shields Winnipeg Book Award was won by Gordon Sinclair Jr. Carol was made Professor Emerita at the University of Manitoba.

2000 - Carol and Don moved to Victoria. She was appointed Professor Emerita at the University of Winnipeg. She received the following honorary degrees: Doctor of Literature, Carleton University; Doctor of Literature, Wilfrid Laurier University.
2001 - Carol was awarded the Order of Manitoba and was named Winnipeg Citizen of the Year. Her “Life and Times” biography was aired on CBC Television. She received honorary degrees from: Doctor of Letters, Lakehead University; Doctor of Letters, University of Victoria; Doctor of Laws, University of Calgary.
2002 - Carol was elevated to the highest level (Companion) of the Order of Canada in 2002 and received the Queen Elizabeth Golden Jubilee Medal. The Bust of Carol Shields which was sculpted by Eva Stubbs was installed in Assiniboine Park, Winnipeg. Red River College, Winnipeg awarded their first Carol Shields Creative Writing Award co-sponsored by the Manitoba Writers’ Guild.


2003 - She was awarded an honorary Doctor of Letters degree, University of Manitoba.

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