Elmar Tampõld

Elmar Tampõld (August 3, 1920 – March 7, 2013) was an Estonian-Canadian architect and founder of an academic base for Estonian studies in Toronto.

Education Tampõld was born and raised in Kärdla on the island of Hiiumaa. He attended the Kärdla Reaalkool, graduating in 1938 and then continued his studies in the capital Tallinn at the Tallinn Teachers’ College. Tampõld graduated in 1941.

After he emigrated to Canada in 1948, Tampõld attended the University of Toronto from 1949 until 1953 and he graduated with a Bachelor of Architecture. During 35 years of practice, Tampõld helped design over 1,000 buildings for public, institutional and private clients.

During his years in Canada, Tampõld was a leader in the Toronto Estonian community and helping to preserve the Estonian language and Estonian culture. In 1949 he established the University of Toronto Estonian Students' Society and was elected the organization's first President. Proceeds from the Society's events and fundraisers helped enable the founding of a scholarship fund for Estonian immigrant students, and students of Estonian heritage. In 1967 Tampõld proposed the concept of a residence hall named Tartu College to the Canadian Estonian community and University of Toronto, and from 1967 to 1970 Tampõld served numerous roles in the implementation, construction and design of Tartu College; from main financier, sponsor and main architect. The student residence hall was named by Tampõld after the Estonian University of Tartu. Completed in 1970, the building is located at Madison Avenue, in Toronto, Ontario, Canada and serves as a residence hall for University of Toronto students as well as a centre for serving the Estonian-Canadian community of the city. Tartu College has a long-standing relationship with Estonia's University of Tartu. In 1974, charges of professional misconduct were filed against the architectural firm, resulting in a rebuke for filing false and misleading certificates for payment.

In 1982, Tampõld proposed the idea of reinvesting Tartu College's surplus revenues for the founding of a Chair of Estonian Studies at the University of Toronto. The university agreed and in 1983, he helped establish the Chair of Estonian Studies Foundation with fellow expatriate Estonian professors, neuroscientist Endel Tulving and chemical engineer Olev Träss. The three men made the initial presentation to the University of Toronto and Tampõld became the chairman of the board of directors for the Chair of Estonian Studies Foundation.

In 1999, Tampõld established the Estonian Scholarships Fund, called the Ilmar Heinsoo Award, from the University of Toronto, the government of the province of Ontario, Tartu College, the Estonian Studies Fund, the Fraternitas Estica, the Estonian National Foundation, and the Estonian Credit Union. The scholarship was created in appreciation of the former Estonian honorary consul.

Tampõld continued to participate in numerous events celebrating and preserving Estonian culture. He has participated at conferences and events for the Estonian Literary Museum, the Estonian Canadian Historical Commission (Kanada Eestlaste Ajaloo Komisjon) and Korporatsioon Sakala.

Tampõld had long planned to found a Museum of Estonia Abroad in Toronto (abbreviated VEMU, for the Estonian Välis-Eesti Muuseum). Tampõld envisioned the museum to become a monument to part of the Estonian immigrant community in the West and serve as a higher educational and cultural institution.

Tampõld resided in Toronto, Ontario with his wife Leida Elfriede Tampõld (née Kallis) until her death in 2011.

Awards Centennial Award Canada Housing Design Council, 1967 Canadian Architect Yearbook Award of Excellence, 1968 Canadian Housing Council Award, 1971 and 1976 North York Award of Excellence, 1990 Order of the White Star, IV Class, 1998 Honorary Fellow of the University of Tartu, 2004