![[Whalley Room Dedication]](https://www.queensu.ca/gazette/sites/default/files/assets/slideshow/2015-07/Whalley%20intro.jpg "Shelley King, head of the Department of English at Queen's, speaks during the dedication of the George Whalley Lounge as benefactors Harley Smyth and Carolyn McIntyre Smyth look on.")
Shelley King, head of the Department of English at Queen's, speaks during the dedication of the George Whalley Lounge as benefactors Harley Smyth and Carolyn McIntyre Smyth look on.![[Whalley Room Dedication]](https://www.queensu.ca/gazette/ "Benefactors Harley Smyth and Carolyn McIntyre Smyth unveil a plaque during the dedication of the George Whalley Lounge in Watson Hall.")
Benefactors Harley Smyth and Carolyn McIntyre Smyth unveil a plaque during the dedication of the George Whalley Lounge in Watson Hall.- Gordon Smith, Vice Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Science, left, and benefactors Carolyn McIntyre Smyth and Harley Smyth pose for a photo with members of George Whalley's family.
- Adorning the walls of the George Whalley Lounge are a number of images, including maps of the battle of the German battleship Bismarck in which Dr. Whalley took part.
- The George Whalley Lounge, Room 440 of Watson Hall, was dedicated on Friday, July 24, the opening day of conference highlighting the life and work of the former Queen's University professor.
![[Whalley Room Dedication]](https://www.queensu.ca/gazette/sites/default/files/assets/slideshow/2015-07/Whalley%20Unveiling.jpg "Benefactors Harley Smyth and Carolyn McIntyre Smyth unveil a plaque during the dedication of the George Whalley Lounge in Watson Hall.")
![[Whalley Room Dedication]](https://www.queensu.ca/gazette/sites/default/files/assets/slideshow/2015-07/Whalley%20Group.jpg "Gordon Smith, Vice Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Science, left, and benefactors Carolyn McIntyre Smyth and Harley Smyth pose for a photo with members of George Whalley's family.")
![[Whalley Room Dedication]](https://www.queensu.ca/gazette/sites/default/files/assets/slideshow/2015-07/Whalley%20Bismarck.jpg "Adorning the walls of the George Whalley Lounge are a number of images, including maps of the battle of the German battleship Bismarck in which Dr. Whalley took part.")
![[Whalley Room Dedication]](https://www.queensu.ca/gazette/sites/default/files/assets/slideshow/2015-07/Whalley%20Frames.jpg "The George Whalley Lounge, Room 440 of Watson Hall, was dedicated on Friday, July 24, the opening day of conference highlighting the life and work of the former Queen's University professor.")
A three-day conference recognizing the life and work of former Queen’s University professor George Whalley opened Friday, and included the dedication of the George Whalley Lounge in Watson Hall.
Attending the event was a number of faculty, staff and students as well as family members who traveled from as far away as England. Helping dedicate the new room were benefactors Harley Smyth and Carolyn McIntyre Smyth.
The Centenary Conference in Honour of the Birth of George Whalley is more than an academic conference and will address various facets of his life.
During his time at Queen's Dr. Whalley served two terms as head of the English Department and wrote multiple books of poetry and literary criticism but he also was a war hero who took part in the sinking of the Bismarck during the Second World War, an inventor of a naval navigation beacon and helped found the Kingston Symphony.