Born in 1903 in London, England, Frank Cyril James attended the London School of Economics and the University of Pennsylvania, where he obtained his PhD in 1926 and pursued a career as an economist, professor of finance and author.
Invited to McGill in 1939 to reorganize the School of Commerce, he was appointed Principal and Vice-Chancellor when L. Douglas returned to the U.S. shortly after war was declared. While Principal of McGill, he also kept active in his field and participated in the work of many organizations in both Canada and the United States. Chairman of the Canadian Advisory Committee on Reconstruction from 1941 to 1943, he was also a member of the American Committee on Financial Research of the National Bureau of Economic Research from 1935 to 1945. Member of the Executive Committee of the National Conference of Canadian Universities from 1940 to 1952, he was its vice-president, 1946-1948, and president, 1948-1950. His involvement in wider university affairs was constant; he was member of the executive of the Association of Universities of the British Commonwealth, 1948-51, 1960-62; Chairman, 1949, of the Canadian Universities Foundation, Vice-Chairman, 1959-62, and President of the International Association of Universities, 1960-65. Recipient of many awards, he also lent his support to various social and charitable organizations. He resigned as Principal in 1962. He died in England in 1973.
F. Cyril James' term as Principal of McGill coincided with the retirement of Sir Edward Beatty as Chancellor and opened an era of greater control by his office over all aspects of the administration of the University. His principalship was marked by the expansion of the University's commitment in a number of traditional fields as well as its involvement in new ones: the Faculty of Divinity was created in 1948; the departments of Geography and Chemical Engineering, the Foster Radiation Laboratory, the Institute of Islamic Studies and the Bellairs Research Institute were all established during this period. The Principal's records reflect the involvement of James in all aspects of the life of the University. Records documenting James' work for various external organizations, such as the International Association of Universities, will be found in his private papers, M.G. 1017.