Victor A. Endersby

Victor A. Endersby

Second Lieutenant, 1918

Victor A. Endersby (1891-1987) was an American Theosophist. He served as editor of Theosophical Notes and contributed many articles to Theosophy. With Henry Geiger, he founded the magazine Manas in 1948 in a weekly format. He and his wife Frances were members of the U. L. T.'s Dzyan Esoteric School, and he was also involved with the Theosophy School.

The Canadian Theosophist published this obituary of Mr. Endersby:

Born in what he described as "a small cow-town" in Montana, his cattle-ranching family moved across the Canadian border in 1895 and settled in an area which is now the southern region of the Province of Alberta, but which was then part of the North West Territories.

A major influence in the life of the young Victor was a colourful individual who lived just a few miles from the Endersbys. This was John "Kootenai" Brown, an early Canadian Theosophist who was to become the first Superintendent of the nearby Waterton Lakes National Park. He allowed the boy to borrow books from what eighty years later the man remembered was a "remarkable library". Victor's uncle, Ted Endersby, was also a member of the Theosophical Society at that time.

Victor Endersby pursued a successful career in engineering. His crowning achievement was as Chief Engineer for the eastern half of the San Francisco Bay Bridge. As an expert in road and bridge construction, he eventually settled into engineering research.

From an early age, he was a deeply serious student of Theosophy, and active in its cause. In 1950 he launched his own journal, Theosophical Notes, which he wrote and published privately until 1978. At this stage he was independent of Theosophical organizations, though generally respected by all, and his journal helped forge links with others of like mind in several countries; he especially enjoyed the friendship and support of several prominent Canadian Theosophists in the 1950s and 1960s. Among his other publications worthy of note is The Hall of Magic Mirrors (1969), a defence of Madame Blavatsky.

Personal life

Victor Arthur Endersby was born on December 19, 1891 in a ranch house in Augusta, Montana. Alvadus Oden Endersby, his father, was a cattle rancher married to Mary Elizabeth Cook, a school teacher. In addition to Victor, they had two younger sons. His family moved north in 1895, and settled in an area of southern Alberta, Canada that was then part of the North West Territories.

On June 3, 1925, Victor married Frances Holman.

Mr. Endersby died on November 8, 1988 in Napa, California at the age of 96. His ashes were scattered in the Pacific Ocean.

Theosophical writings

The Union Index of Theosophical Periodicals lists over 900 articles by Victor Endersby. He also wrote these books:

• Basic Theosophy. 1969.
• Battle royal of Hodgson versus Hartmann versus Waterman refereed by the Editor of Theosophical Notes. 1964.
• The Hall of Magic Mirrors. Carlton Press, 1969. A biography of H. P. Blavatsky.
• "On the Work and Teachings of Alice Bailey" in BlavatskyTheosophy.com website. This first appeared in Theosophical Notes, September 1963. It was written by Victor Endersby as part of his "A Study of the Arcane School of Alice A. Bailey."

Fiction writings

Mr. Endersby wrote some short stories.

• "Disowned."
• "Neighbors." This story is available at this website.

Additional resources

• Correspondence and other archival materials are held at Alexandria West Library.