Beaven, James
Beaven sought a rational basis for belief. His design theory of the universe, emphasizing order in all things, set a trend in Canadian thinking that was continued by his philosophical and literary successors.
Although Daniel Wilson, president of University of Toronto at the time, called him a "dry old stick," Beaven's wit was well known in class. His sensitivity to the environment and concern for native peoples are evident in his travel journal, Recreations of a Long Vacation (1846).