George Keith was born on December 29, 1779, in Netherthird, Scotland, and died on January 22, 1859, in Aberdeen, Scotland. His parents were James Keith and Isabella Bruce. With his younger brother James, Keith travelled to North America in 1799 as an apprentice for Forsyth, Richardson and Company, a partner in the New North West Company (sometimes called the XY Company). Keith married an Indigenous woman named Nanette, the daughter of James Sutherland, a clerk for the North West Company. Between 1807 and 1838, they had six daughters and three sons, and in 1844, before sailing for Scotland, he formalized his marriage by Christian rite to protect the interests of his family. He served in the Athabasca country until 1806, where he joined the North West Company after its merge with the New North West Company. From 1806 to 1815, Keith was stationed in the Mackenzie River department, where he worked under John George McTavish and then under Simon McTavish, becoming a partner in the North West Company in 1813. In letters addressed to Roderick McKenzie (1761-1844, fur trader), Keith described in detail the geography around his post on the Liard River, and after 1810, the geography of the west end of Great Bear Lake and the Mackenzie River. He also recorded his observations on the Athapaskan peoples. From 1816 to 1821, Keith served at Fort Chipewyan, Alberta, on Lake Athabasca, assuming charge of the Athabasca department in 1817. Following the coalition between the North West Company and the Hudson’s Bay Company in 1821, Keith was named chief factor and given charge of the English (upper Churchill) River district, based in Île-à-la-Crosse (Saskatchewan). After his leave of absence in 1826 and 1827, he was placed in command of the Lake Superior district, based in Michipicoten (now known as Michipicoten River, Ontario). Except for another furlough in 1832 to 1833, he remained at his post until 1835, when he was transferred to Moose Factory (Ontario). Keith returned to Michipicoten for a period between 1839 and 1843, before taking a two-year leave of absence and then retiring to Scotland in 1845.

Born in Montreal in 1878, William Willoughby Francis was named after his mother's cousin, Sir William Osler. As Osler's namesake, and also his godson, Francis decided to pursue a medical degree and graduated in 1902 from Johns Hopkins University. After interning at the Royal Victoria Hospital and spending time in Europe to pursue post-graduate studies, Francis started his own practice in Montreal in 1906. He was also appointed Demonstrator in Pathology at McGill University under the direction of Dr. Maude Abbott. For some time, Francis served as Secretary-Treasurer and Assistant Editor of the Canadian Medical Association Journal. His career was briefly interrupted when he fell ill with pulmonary tuberculosis, and he was admitted to St. Agathe Sanatorium where he regained his health in 1911. During World War One, Francis went overseas with No.3 Canadian General Hospital. After the war, Francis remained in Europe and took a position in Geneva as Assistant Editor – eventually Editor – of the International Journal of Public Health. Upon the death Sir William Osler in 1919, Francis relocated to Oxford where he began cataloguing Osler's extensive collection of books that had been bequeathed to McGill University. Francis was the principal editor of the Bibliotheca Osleriana with the help of co-editors Archibald Malloch and Reginald Hill. The Osler Library of the History of Medicine opened its doors at McGill University in 1929 and Francis served as the library's dedicated librarian until his death in 1959.

In 1921, W. W. Francis married Hilda Colley and they had one daughter who was born in Oxford, Marian Francis Kelen (1922-2014). The family spent nearly seven years living in England while Francis catalogued Osler's bequest. Upon completion of the work, the family returned to Montreal with eighty-six large packing cases of books. Marian Francis pursued a medical degree and graduated from McGill in 1945 with an M.D.C.M. It was at McGill where she met her husband, and fellow medical student, Andrew Kelen. Upon graduation, Andrew, who was part of the ROTC (Regular Officers' Training Corps), was stationed in London and elsewhere in western Europe with the Royal Canadian Army Medical Corps until the end of the Second World War (1944-1945). After Andrew was discharged from the RCAMC and returned home, Marian and Andrew were married (1946) and pursued residencies at the Montreal General Hospital, Royal Victoria Hospital, and the former Montreal Homeopathic Hospital (later Queen Elizabeth Hospital of Montreal) before practicing medicine at the Ormstown Medical Centre in southern Quebec. Marian and Andrew Kelen had five children together: Michael (born 1948), Sari, Steve, Susan, and Wendy. Marian Kelen stopped practicing medicine for 18 years while raising the growing family.

Marian Grace Francis Kelen was born on January 10, 1922, in Oxford, England, the daughter of William Willoughby Francis, M.D. (1878-1959) and Hilda Francis ( -1963).

She was a Canadian physician. She grew up in Oxford, England, where her physician father catalogued the immense collection of historical medical books that his famous cousin, Sir William Osler, had bequeathed to McGill University. Popsie, as known to close friends and family, an only child, spent her first years at the grand home of the Oslers and grew up immersed in the lore, teachings, and spirit of Sir William Osler. When she was six, her family moved to Montreal, where she spent her early days roller-skating around the McGill campus while her father established the school's Osler Library of the History of Medicine. Following in her father's footsteps, Popsie studied medicine at McGill, one of the few women in her class. She also joined the McGill Outing Club, where she met Andrew Kelen (1918–2007), a medical student who would become her beloved husband of 60 years. Andy and Popsie did their residency together at Montreal's Royal Victoria Hospital. They moved to the rural community of Ormstown, Quebec, where there was a group practice of physicians who offered affordable health care before the days of Medicare. While Andy worked as a general practitioner and internist, Popsie stayed home to raise their five children: Michael, Sari, Steve, Susan, and Wendy. When her youngest child was ten, Popsie returned to work as a GP specializing in women's health. Her patients loved and appreciated her not only for her medical skills but also because she sincerely cared about them and took the time needed to attend to them. She thrived in the company of friends and family and loved hosting dinner parties around the old oak table. She was also a poet, inspired to write on special occasions such as the birth of a grandchild or the departure of a family member to Africa. Until a few weeks before her death, she was an omnivorous reader. She had an encyclopedic memory of medical knowledge and was known for her many quotations ranging from A. A. Milne to Shakespeare. In 2003, after 55 years of village life, Popsie and Andy moved to Ottawa. Happy to be closer to two of their children and one of their nine grandchildren, they enjoyed a busy life that included skiing in the Gatineau Hills and swimming. Andy passed away three years later. After coming to terms with the loss of her beloved, Popsie continued, always cheerful. In 2007, she suffered a stroke but persevered in her seniors' residence.

She died on January 29, 2014, in Ottawa, Ontario.