Fred William Mellish was born in Galt on April 11, 1860, the first of the six children of Robert F. and Louisa Mellish.

Fred Mellish received his early education in private schools and at the Galt Collegiate Institute. Possibly given an interest in the building trades by his father who was a painter, Mr. Mellish first trained as a carpenter and a builder with a view to eventually becoming an architect. It is unclear exactly when Mr. Mellish began his practice as an architect but he registered with the Ontario Association of Architects on March 21, 1891 at the age of 30. However, he was active in the profession prior to that date. He opened his offices in Room 23 in the Imperial Block on South Water St. in January 1890 but it is reported that previously he had designed and supervised the construction of quite a number of important buildings including, in 1890, the Scott Block.

The list of Mr. Mellish's buildings erected after 1891, however, is impressive. It includes the Galt Hospital (1891), one of the few buildings he built of stone rather than brick; the Gore Mutual Insurance Company Head Office at Main and Ainslie (1895); the two-storey section of the Galt Market Building (1896); the Galt Fire Hall (1898); and the Galt Carnegie Library (1905). In addition he was responsible for a number of other commercial blocks in Preston and other towns in the area as well as a number of private residences, including a house on Main Street reportedly built for his bride Helen Isabel who sadly died at the age of 24 in May 1886 following the birth of her daughter.

In 1908 Mr. Mellish moved to Vancouver where he was worked as an architect and contractor from 1909 to about 1920. In the west Mr. Mellish worked mainly as a designer of houses during the real estate boom of 1912-1913 but is known to have designed a warehouse and St. Saviour's church and parish hall. Upon retirement, he continued to reside in Vancouver and, in 1919, built a craftsman-style house for himself, his wife Agnes and their daughter Winnifred. He died in Vancouver on April 15, 1928 at the age of 68.

Cambridge Hall of Fame (2023). Available at: https://www.cambridge.ca/en/learn-about/cambridge-hall-of-fame.aspx (Accessed: 27 May 2023).