Heritage: Toronto the Warrior City

Paul Federico, an expert on military history and artifacts, spoke to the Swansea Historical Society in Toronto, Ontario on 3-November-2010

TORONTO, ONTARIO - In the modern era, thinking of Toronto (or even Canada as a whole) as a place of warriors seems rather bizarre. However, in his presentation to the monthly meeting of the Swansea Historical Society last night, Paul Federico made the case that Toronto has long been a city of warriors, dating back to pre-Colombian times.


Uniforms including silver leaf were amongst the artifacts brought by Paul Federico to Swansea Town Hall in Toronto, Ontario on 3-November-2010

That thesis might be a bit of a stretch even in Federico's eyes, but there are definitely some great stories in Toronto military history, and he told quite a number I had never heard before. The term "sedentary militia," for example, refers to those in the era of the war of 1812 that were assigned to stay and defend their local communities instead of being commanded on a campaign. He pointed out some of the ridiculous uniforms worn in that era as well, with ornamentation that actually made it easier for the other side to take aim. He also mentioned that during the Battle of the Plains of Abraham, the "English" troops actually included 1,500 Scots and 900 Irish amongst 4,800 total--and that John Graves Simcoe had been designated to lead the fight against Napoleon until he died prior to taking command. Imagine how that might have changed history, or at least the perception of Ontario's (er, Upper Canada's) first Lieutenant Governor.


Paul Federico held up material used by British troops to make socks in the nineteenth century while speaking to the Swansea Historical Society in Toronto, Ontario on 3-November-2010

Another interesting anecdote was that 350 local Mohawks had been sent to paddle up the Nile during the Mahdist Revolt of 1884, since they knew how to handle themselves on Ontario waterways--but they did not arrive in time to save Charles George Gordon. Probably my favorite story from Federico related to the blue laws that once so defined Toronto. As troops were not allowed to purchase alcohol in the city, they came up with the idea of sending out a dog with a money pouch, who was trained to go a specific store, where he would be outfitted with two kegs of ale and would then return to Fort York. The practice proved controversial, but was ultimately ruled legal since dogs had the "freedom of the city" and were allowed to carry alcohol, and certainly the practice improved troop morale.

Some stories went beyond the troops. After the United States captured Toronto in the War of 1812, they made the captured troops sign a parole document saying they would not fight for the next year before they were released. There were only 300 troops at Fort York at the time--yet 1300 people signed parole documents. It seems potential draftees from all around Toronto came into town to sign the documents in order to avoid being called up to military service for the next year.


A variety of World War I through 1990's artifacts and accouterments provided by Paul Federico were found in Swansea Town Hall on 3-November-2010

The future for military artifacts in Toronto may be quite bright. Currently, there are quite a number of things preserved, but they are located in scattered locations, mostly active or retiree posts of various kinds. However, the Stanley Barracks from "New Fort York," which has most recently been a vacant building on the Canadian National Exhibition grounds, is slated to become a military museum under the care of the 32nd regiment as part of the construction of a new hotel. When that opens, it won't be necessary to find Paul Federico to learn about Toronto as a warrior city.

Photos: Swansea Historical Society Walk

The former Sons of England Benevolent Society Hall on Beresford Street in Swansea had been a private residence since 1971 as seen on 5-June-2010

TORONTO, ONTARIO - This week's update to my photo site features yesterday's Swansea walk. The 25th Anniversary of the Swansea Historical Society was celebrated on its annual walk by passing through the "The Heart of Swansea" on 5-June-2010. Denise Harris led the walk through what is now a neighbourhood of Toronto, Ontario, prepared in cooperation with society president Norm McLeod.

Culture: Crombie on Walking

Member of Provincial Parliament Cheri DiNovo presented a certificate to Swansea Historical Society President Norm McLeod for the 25th anniversary of the organization on 5-May-2010

TORONTO, ONTARIO - The Swansea Historical Society reached a remarkable milestone this week--25 years of existence. The packed room at Swansea Town Hall included about a dozen people who had been with the organization from the very start, including President Norm McLeod. The event drew media figures, politicians, and other notables--Member of Provincial Parliament Cheri DiNovo even presented McLeod with recognition from the province.

The choice for speaker on this historic night was pretty obvious. David Crombie had grown up in what had been an independent village of Swansea (it was not annexed to Toronto until 1967) and went on, amongst other things, to be mayor of Toronto from 1972 to 1978, leading some in Swansea to say that "We took over Toronto; they didn't take over us." Crombie remains immensely popular in his home neighbourhood, and was well-received despite a double-booking that led to his late arrival to anniversary meeting.

Though often described as a "red Tory," Crombie was a Progressive Conservative when in Federal politics, so it seems a bit surprising to hear him say things that could have come out of the mouth of present mayor David Miller, who is closely linked with the New Democratic Party (NDP). Crombie pointed out that the things that define the neighbourhood--parks, trails, roads, and buildings like Swansea City Hall--are all public infrastructure, and that we should not lose sight of the government's role in enabling the building of communities that hold everyone together.


David Crombie spoke to the Swansea Historical Society during its 25th anniversary meeting on 5-May-2010

The bulk of Crombie's speech, though, focused on walking. He described how his uncle used to walk a significant distance to work each day (it would take me well over an hour to walk the route), and how the culture of Swansea was walking, since east-west public transit lines ran only at the far south end and north of Swansea proper. It was this background that made the ideas of Jane Jacobs--which Crombie had substantially embraced as mayor--so compatible with Crombie's world view.

Today, Crombie continues to structure his life around walking everywhere he can, taking transit for trips that are too long. When he needs to clear his mind, he will return to Swansea and walk through High Park and Rennie Park. He embraces the legacy of Jane Jacobs by leading a Jane's Walk through Swansea each year. He strongly encouraged everyone in attendance to walk at least two kilometers a day to help maintain their health.

Is it any wonder why I feel so comfortable in Toronto and Swansea? David Crombie made it all very clear with his speech emphasizing the past and present of walking in the neighbourhood of his youth and his city of today.

Heritage: Each One Remembered

Linda Granfield spoke to the Swansea Historical Society in Toronto, Ontario on 7-April-2010

TORONTO, ONTARIO - The announced topic of this month's meeting of the Swansea Historical Society this evening was war brides. Linda Granfield indeed provided a substantial amount of information on how young British women married, left for Canada in secret, entered through Pier 21 in Halifax, and became community leaders across the nation. It truly was another time--a guide book was provided with things that would be overwhelmingly offensive now, such as the statement "Canadian men love pie" followed by three pie recipes--apple, pumpkin, and lemon meringue. It's hard to imagine in modern times how after war rationing that seeing white bread and milk on a trans-Atlantic voyage would be overwhelming. Yet, Granfield has written extensively for school children, and thus history is very much living to her.

Friday is Vimy Ridge Day, the day when Canada celebrates its emergence as a military force on the world stage. Ninety-three years ago, Canadian forces led the capturing of a high ground in France, losing nearly 3600 men in the process. The day has been celebrated as a military coming of age in Canada ever since. This year, after the death in February of John Babcock, the last living of 640,000 Canadian (and Newfoundlander) veterans from World War I, the Government of Canada decided to hold special ceremonies on Vimy Ridge Day in Ottawa.

Yet, outside of the nation's capitol, it would be all too easy to ignore the event, and Linda Granfield felt that should not happen. She started the Each One Remembered campaign in an attempt to get poppies made in honor of each of the 640,000 soldiers. Linked off the web page is a PDF file of a poppy that could be coloured in with a simple crayon. She started to spread the word--in part through her network of war brides.

At last check, the count was only above 12,000, but it included the full geographic range of Canada from coast to coast to coast, and there's still time before Friday. All one has to do is download a poppy and print it out (or draw one!), then follow the link to report the effort. Then, watch the special ceremonies for this Vimy Ridge Day that will air on all broadcasting networks at mid-day on Friday. It's the least we can do to recognize the sacrifice that has led to the country we know today.

Heritage: Bloor West Loblaw

TORONTO, ONTARIO - More by coincidence than design, this year's Swansea Historical Society Calendar (still available at Swansea Town Hall for $8) includes the locations of past locations of the Loblaw grocery stores in what today is called the Bloor West Village neighbourhood of Toronto. A look at the locations today presents an interesting microcosm of the village.


The first location of Loblaw in the Bloor West Village of Toronto is now a variety store on the right side of this building seen on 4-March-2010

The first location of Loblaw was at 2428 Bloor Street West, just east of Jane Street, and appears in the background of the November 2010 calendar page. Labeled as "Loblaw Groceteria," the location likely opened during the large expansion of Loblaw in the early 1930's explained on the Loblaw history page. The location has now become a long-standing variety store on a portion of the block which has been most affected by the recession.


The second location of "Loblaws" in Bloor West was about a block west of the original location, a building that was without a tenant on 4-March-2010

Sometime after World War II, Loblaw moved into a new building west of Jane Street at 2450 Bloor Street West. While the "Loblaws" sign is now gone, the remainder of the facade looks almost exactly as it appears in the background of the March 2010 calendar page. The building is currently vacant, last occupied by a short-lived electronics discount store that closed in 2009.


The third location of Loblaws remains a grocery store, a franchised No Frills location near Kennedy and Bloor observed on 4-March-2010

By the late 1950's, Loblaw had again moved to a larger location. The streamline moderne architecture of the previous location carried over to new location well to the east near Kennedy at 2187 Bloor Street West. That location today remains a grocery retail outlet in the Loblaw family, as it became a No Frills in the late 1970's. It now operates as Nicholson's No Frills after the No Frills locations were sold to franchisees in the 1980's.


The closest Loblaws to Bloor West Village is now the Humbercrest Loblaws on Dundas Street West west of Jane, seen on 11-March-2010

To recapture the upscale customers in the area, Loblaw subsequently opened a new location which is considered to be in Etobicoke at 3671 Dundas Street West, west of Jane Street. The Humbercrest Loblaws remains open to this day, continuing a tradition of serving the Bloor West area which has now extended for three-quarters of a century.

Culture: Sherlock Holmes

Doug Wrigglesworth spoke to the Swansea Historical Society in Toronto, Ontario about Sherlock Holmes on 3-March-2010--note the sticker on his computer

TORONTO, ONTARIO - I can't claim to be all that familiar with Sherlock Holmes. Most of what I know has come from listening to Imagination Theater, a Seattle-based radio show that presents Holmes dramas, many of them newly-written with the permission of the estate of Dame Jean Conan Doyle, on a regular basis as part of its weekly hour-long shows.

Some people know a LOT more than I do. It turns out that there are hundreds of Sherlock Holmes societies across the world, populated by people known as Sherlockians. There are thousands of Sherlockian web sites, including a Who's Who where Doug Wrigglesworth, the speaker at the Swansea Historical Society meeting on Wednesday night, could be found.

Wrigglesworth pointed out that a lot of stereotypes about Holmes have no foundation in the actual "canon," the writings of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. He's never mentioned to have worn a deerstalker hat, prominently carried a magnifying glass, or have stated, "Elementary, my dear Watson!" Instead, these images have Holmes have come from later illustrations and performances. The image of Holmes with a calabash pipe, for example, came from actor William Gillette wanting to use it because its center of gravity made it easier to wear during performances--and placed the tobacco as far as possible from my lungs. Some things do come from the canon, though. The Sherlock Holmes Society of Canada is known as the Bootmakers of Toronto because label on a boot in the Hound of the Baskervilles was labeled as being from Toronto.

While many Sherlockians join the multitude of societies for the love of the character, the storytelling (especially the interaction with Dr. Watson), or just the social aspect of the clubs, Wrigglesworth pointed out that there is an intellectual aspect to the field. Holmes fundamentally used the scientific method in his investigations, and Sherlockians try to do the same in their attempts to understand Conan Doyle's sometimes inconsistent writings. For example, a medical doctor Sherlockian actually wrote a paper explaining how it was possible that Holmes' war injury could have been both a shoulder and a leg wound, as it is referred to as each in different stories. Perhaps most fundamentally, Holmes profiles suspects, and that kind of scientific technique is increasingly finding favor with police forces around the world.

Wrigglesworth hadn't heard John Patrick Lowry's portrayal of Holmes on Imagination Theater, but he heartily endorses the BBC's radio Holmes--how could it a true Sherlockian say anything else?

Heritage: Unbuilt Toronto

Author Mark Osbaldeston prepared to give a talk on his "Unbuilt Toronto" book to the Swansea Historical Society on 3-February-2010

TORONTO, ONTARIO - For some reason, despite all the awards it has received, I had never bothered to read the book "Unbuilt Toronto." Thus, when author Mark Osbaldeston spoke at the Swansea Historical Society last night, the material he presented was all new to me, and made it all the more obvious to me why the book has won such profound praise.

While the book was organized by topic (unbuilt transportation, retail, etc.), in his presentation, Osbaldeston instead took a street segment, Queen Street West from Yonge to University, and chose to highlight all the unbuilt projects related to that area. Being in the core of downtown Toronto, that meant everything from a Queen Street subway for streetcars to a much larger version of the Eaton Centre to a wonderful monument traffic circle that could have been built near Queen and University to hide the jog in University that would have cost just five figures.

Much of the presentation focused on what would happen on the location that today hosts City Hall and Nathan Philips Square. Originally purchased by the city to create a civic square between (now-Old) City Hall and Osgoode Hall, the property languished for years as different proposals, many of them replacing Old City Hall, came and went. One was even an early version of a Public-Private Partnership, which would have built a new building on the Old City Hall site that would have initially contained retail space catering to downtown workers until the city needed additional space. Most surprising to me were the proposals to create a "Federal Avenue" (later going under other names) that would have run from the center of Union Station directly to the site on Queen. Imagine what it would be like today to look from City Hall or Union Station and see the other building!

Arguably the most visionary project was Buckminster Fuller's proposal for re-connecting Toronto with its waterfront, including an atrium in which University Avenue would have extended south, crossed the railway lands, and reached Lake Ontario. It seems amazing today that more than forty years later, Toronto is still trying to re-connect with Lake Ontario, making progress in fits and starts. This proved to be a major theme of Osbaldeston's presentation, that old ideas come back and are eventually implemented. The current Eglinton light rail designs resemble the original Queen designs, much of Toronto's retail did move north (just to Bloor, not College), and George Brown College is building a waterfront campus.

Yet, the bigger theme appeared to be that Toronto has (almost) always developed pragmatically. The Eaton's plans for a mega-city development did not proceed because there just weren't enough prospective tenants. The monument traffic circle on University wasn't built because the construction of the University extension was funded by a local improvement district that wasn't interested in such niceties. Most amazingly, the parking lot underneath City Hall was built first, to help fund the project, and all proposals for the design had to incorporate the already-existing garage!

Considering this reality, it's amazing that we have the significant buildings we do have in Toronto. Mark Osbaldeston did a great job of putting that in perspective.

Heritage: Faces on Places

Author Terry Murray spoke at the Swansea Historical Society meeting on 4-November-2009

TORONTO, ONTARIO - This week's meeting of the Swansea Historical Society featured as speaker the medical journalist and author of Faces on Places, Terry Murray. While I had attended a Heritage Toronto walk that included many of the places downtown that she featured in the book, I definitely wanted to attend the meeting to find out what faces she had found on places closer to where I live.

I was not disappointed. While a history of some of the installations that had interested her in this topic and some of the adventures she had while documenting sculpture in Toronto made for an entertaining presentation, there was local content. Over the course of the evening she mentioned at least three places within walking distance of my residence where there was sculpture that either I had never noticed before, or never looked at closely.


A montage of the "reading, writing and arithmetic" sculptures on the side of Swansea Public School, sculpted by Murray Brown in 1953, was captured on 7-November-2009

I set out on an unseasonably warm autumn day today to take a look at two of the places she had talked about. The first proved to be right along Windermere Avenue. During an expansion of Swansea Public School in 1953, the sculptor Murray Brown was apparently commissioned to do another version of the "reading, writing and arithmetic" sculptures that were common in Scarborough at the time. (Neither Scarborough nor Swansea was then a part of Toronto.)


Four gargoyles were found on the north face of the tower at Morningside-High Park Presbyterian Church in the Swansea neighbourhood of Toronto, Ontario on 7-November-2009

Terry Murray's real passion is for gargoyles, sculptures that not only decorate a structure but serve the function of draining water away from them. She did find gargoyles in Swansea at the Morningside-High Park Presbyterian Church. As the building is a community icon, opened in 1917 and serving as a polling place amongst other civic uses, I knew how ornate the church was, but had never paid attention to the higher portion of the tower, where the gargoyles are located. I combined the four on the north face of the tower into a montage above.

For more on gargoyles and other building sculptures around Toronto, see Terry Murray's blog or find a copy of her book.

Heritage: Homemade Movies

A projector was prepared to show home movies shot in and around what was then the Village of Swansea now in Toronto, Ontario, at the meeting of the Swansea Historical Society on 7-October-2009

TORONTO, ONTARIO - The Swansea Historical Society opened its 2009-10 season of meetings on 7-October-2009 with a presentation on home movies. In recent years, the historical value of home movies has been realized because of the details that they include in the coverage of everyday life in an era or specific neighbourhood, and because of their durability as a medium.

Groups have sprung up across the world to assist in the preservation of home movies, and the primary group around Toronto is Homemade Movies. Two representatives of that group visited the Swansea Historical Society and came with a variety of movies from around Toronto in the 1950's which were supplemented by those of members.

One of the home movies was of the Royal Visit to Toronto in 1959, which compared with official movies of this event that I had seen was a nice reminder of just how perplexing parades can be to the common person trying to stand on the sidewalk and just take in the event. Two major fires in Swansea were shown, dramatically showing the extent of the flames and volunteer firefighters at work. In another film, the grocery store in Bloor West Village, now a No Frills, was shown not only to be a Loblaw's but to have streamline moderne architecture in that era. There was even an appearance of a new Ford Edsel in the movie, backing out of a driveway and heading down Kennedy Avenue in Toronto.


A Keystone Commander projector from the 1950's once owned by Jimmy Nelson was on display at the Swansea Historical Society meeting on 7-October-2009

For those interested in seeing more historical home movies or in preserving their own movies, Homemade Movies and the Revue Cinema in Toronto are putting on a Home Movie Day on Saturday, 17-October-2009. See the flyer link for more information.

Photos: Summer Walks in Toronto

A Heritage Toronto walk through the Fairbank neighbourhood stopped at the former site of the Fairbank Lumber and Coal Company on 5-July-2009

FLINT, MICHIGAN - While I have gone on fewer guided walks (especially those sponsored by Heritage Toronto) this summer, this week I do present two on my photo site--the Swansea Historical Society's 6-June-2009 walk along the western waterfront, and Heritage Toronto's 5-July-2009 walk through the Fairbank neighbourhood of Toronto, Ontario.

Heritage: Swansea Historical Society Annual Walk

Walk leader Denise Harris talked about the Argonauts Rowing Club as Brian Katz held up a picture of their lost 1921-era boathouse during the annual Swansea Historical Society walk on 6 June 2009

TORONTO, ONTARIO - Thousands of people walk along the western beaches of Toronto, Ontario every day, and I've tended to take visitors on walks there myself. Likely few of them are aware of the density of history on this stretch of Lake Ontario, but they would be had they gone on the annual Swansea Historical Society walk, this year entitled "Along the Boardwalk of Humber Bay," on Saturday.


The brick building near the center of this view across Humber Bay from the Humber River was the Argonauts Rowing Club, the starting point for the Swansea Historical Society walk on 6 June 2009

The walk technically began in Parkdale, not Swansea, at the Argonauts Rowing Club, founded originally in 1872. In the first of many revelations of the day, I learned that the Toronto Argonauts of Canadian Football League fame were a spin-off of the rowing club in 1957--and in fact, one of the few things saved in a 1947 fire at the club's boathouse was the Grey Cup.


The Sunnyside Bathing Pavilion still faced Lake Ontario near the former site of the Sunnyside Amusement Park on 6 June 2009

Much of the history centered around the Sunnyside Amusement Park which operated in a location now occupied by roadways near the foot of Ellis Avenue from 1922 to 1955. The amusement park was a focal center of attracting residents to the western beaches, and led to the construction of other nearby buildings that survived the dismantling of the park, including the Bathing Pavilion and the Palais Royale dancing club. Both of those structures are going concerns after various changes over the years and are impressive sights along the waterfront today.


The Joy Oil Station sat in Sunnyside Park in Toronto, Ontario, the last example of its design in Canada on 6 June 2009

While the walk stopped at many locations including the breakwater, the Royal Canadian Legion, the Boulevard Club, Budapest Park, and the Sir Casomir Gzowski memorial, my favorite location was the relocated Joy Oil Station. The distinctive 1937 structure, the only one of 31 still in existence in Canada, had been relocated from Lake Shore and Windermere in 2006 and was under restoration--maybe someday people will again be able to go to the throne (restrooms) in its turret.


A "definitely British" Lion was the focal point of the Queen Elizabeth Way memorial, which had marked the beginning of the QEW at the Humber River until 1971, now located nearby in Toronto's Sunnyside Park on 6 June 2009

The final stop on the walk was the Lion Monument to the Queen Elizabeth Way (QEW). I had no idea that this monument was tucked away near the Boardwalk in Sunnyside Park not that far from the Humber River. From 1940 to 1971, it had marked the eastern end of the QEW nearby. While I knew that the QEW was significant as the first truly limited-access highway in North America, this monument was a surprise--even more so that sculptor Frances Loring had completed the lion on-site herself, and that the crown of the monument had temporarily disappeared after its move.

There's more than a nice walk along Humber Bay through the western beaches of Toronto--there's a lot of history, too. My thanks to the Swansea Historical Society for bringing that history to light.

More photos from the Swansea Historical Society annual walk will be in a forthcoming update to my photo page

Margin Notes: Detours, P3's, Pile Drivers

A detouring Montreal to Calgary Canadian Pacific train passed underneath the CN Tower in Toronto, Ontario on 7 June 2009

TORONTO, ONTARIO - Because of two derailments, one on the Toronto-Montreal mainline at Oshawa, Ontario on Friday and one on the Ottawa-North Bay mainline at Hodgson, Ontario on Wednesday, the Canadian Pacific has been detouring its priority traffic on the Canadian National between Toronto and Brockville, Ontario this weekend. This means that Canadian Pacific freight trains have been passing through the Union Station Rail Corridor in Toronto for the first time since I moved here. After missing two detours on Saturday, I finally caught what apparently was the next-to-last westbound detour today at Bathurst Street, led by a locomotive in the "Olympic" scheme. The sight will probably not be seen again unless there's another derailment.

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The Canadian Pacific was at the center of what stuck me as the quote of the week from host Kathleen Petty on CBC Radio One's The House yesterday. In a discussion about the possible sale of crown corporations, the Canadian Pacific came up, and Petty responded to the dialog by saying, "That sounds like a P3!" [That's a Public-Private Partnership, for those not up on the latest terminology.] I had never thought of transcontinental railroads as a P3 before, and considering the mess that many of the transcontinental railroads in the United States created from their land grant "P3's" in the gilded age, it certainly doesn't make me feel any better about contemporary P3's.

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Railroads continue to annoy residents of The Junction neighborhood of Toronto as a result of the current project to create a grade separation between the GO Transit Georgetown Line and the Canadian Pacific North Toronto Subdivision to enable expanded GO service on the Georgetown Line. The pile driving on the project is so loud that I can often hear it more than 2.5 kilometers away, and a friend has reported being able to hear it 3 kilometers to the north. I find it very hard to believe that the noise cannot be better mitigated than that.

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The Swansea Historical Society annual walk, "Along the Boardwalk of Humber Bay," stopped on the 1994 Humber Bay Arch Bridge in Toronto, Ontario on 6 June 2009

I don't think the project can be heard on the other side of the Gardiner Expressway, but that was the location of this year's Swansea Historical Society walk. I had no idea how much I didn't know about the shores of Lake Ontario between the Argonaut Rowing Club and the Humber River--from the fact that the Toronto Argonauts Canadian Football League team started as an adjunct to the rowing club to the presence of the Lion Memorial to the Queen Elizabeth Way near the Humber River. More coverage of the walk will be forthcoming in a future entry.

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After all the time I spent earlier this year in California where Spanish speakers represent a significant portion of the population, imagine my surprise this past week when a bank teller at my local branch here in Toronto started speaking to a customer in Spanish. Being used to overhearing--and mostly understanding--such conversations in California, it took me a couple seconds to realize that I was in my own neighborhood in Toronto. There's no denying that Toronto is a thoroughly multi-cultural community.

Heritage: No Generation Gap in Swansea

George Jardine presented to the Swansea Historical Society with musical accompaniment from Flo Thompson on 1-April-2009

TORONTO, ONTARIO - I have to admit that I wasn't especially looking forward to this month's Swansea Historical Society meeting. The newsletter stated that George E. Jardine would be speaking about his book, "Becoming Me: As I Think It Happened, Growing Up in West Toronto in the Mid-Twentieth Century". I figured I might pick up a few historical tidbits, but would likely have a hard time relating to his stories, since I am only a recent arrival in Toronto.

Yet, as Jardine started to read some excerpts from his memoir, I did start to find some things I could relate to. In the first section of his presentation, he spoke of various early experiences, including his time spent listening to the radio for entertainment and of the value of radio drama. When he broke to take comments and solicit the reminiscence of others in the audience, I was surprised to find everyone focus on the radio topic, speaking of their favorite shows and sharing how they still listened to such shows. It is no wonder my favorite Imagination Theater radio show is so popular--just about every person in the room had a favorite radio drama.


George Jardine spoke about his experiences growing up in West Toronto to the Swansea Historical Society on 1-April-2009

During his second section, he spoke of various activities around West Toronto including going to the West Toronto train station and the various places he could go on a day trip from Toronto by train in that era. Again, that was the aspect that the audience latched on to--the various places they had gone by train, the punctuality of the trains of the era, and how they missed that form of public transportation. Clearly, the people in this room thought about the same way I did about the utility of railroads as transportation!

After a break for a sing-a-long of "No Man Is An Island" based on the John Donne poem, Jardine continued into other portions of his life, including some opinions based on his life experiences. None of it drew the kind of audience response that radio dramas and railroad sections had done.


The audience at the Swansea Historical Society rose to sing along with speaker and author George Jardine on 1-April-2009

There may be a generation gap between many other members of the Swansea Historical Society and me, but there's no generation gap in our attitudes about radio and railroads, and it took George Jardine's presentation to make that clear.

Heritage: Boom Times in Swansea

The cast of Boom Times Cabaret stood after their performance at the Swansea Historical Society on 4-March-2009

TORONTO, ONTARIO - No, Swansea hasn't escaped the worldwide recession. Instead, for one evening during the meeting of the Swansea Historical Society on 4-March-2009, the boom times of the neighbouring onetime city of West Toronto were re-lived through the "Boom Times Cabaret: Heart of the Junction Talk Show" presented by the West Toronto Junction Historical Society (WTJHS).

The show, which has been performed since the celebration of the centennial of West Toronto becoming a city in 2008, features conversations with historical figures from the early 1900's, played by modern residents. Neil Ross plays journalist A.B. Rice as host, and interviews the other cast members, portraying a variety of figures from Chief of Police Josiah Royce to principal Mary Cherry to coroner and mayor G.W. Clendenan. I was especially pleased to see local historian Madeleine McDowell playing the Junction's first librarian, Elizabeth MacCallum--an arm in a sling wasn't enough to keep her away.

The amount of historical information--both large things and small details--that one picks up from events like this always amazes. I actually didn't know the origin of the name of Clendenan Avenue--it turns out it was named after D.W. Clendenan, who had purchased much of the land around the Junction before the boom. It wasn't named after G.W. Clendenan, but I learned that the historical figure in the show had lived at the location on Dundas Street that now features the "Junction Stage" that looks like a train station.

Between McDowell's portrayal of librarian MacCallum and Kristen Buckley's portrayal of Cherry, there was a definite feminist theme to the show. To modern audiences, it is shocking to learn how little MacCallum was paid, but heartening to learn that she was chosen as the first librarian when she believed they would find a man instead. Cherry had to go through a period as "acting" principal since the job was expected to go to a man, but became so locally popular that the woman who held the key to local playgrounds and opened them up for the public was eventually given the job outright.

The performance also included the poem Last Call (Before the Junction Goes Dry), a fitting tribute to an area well known for its historic aversion to alcohol.

For those interested in more historical re-enactments from the same team that prepared Boom Times, there will be a repeat of Amalgamation Night 1909 on its 100th anniversary on Friday, 1-May-2009. Watch the WTJHS web site for further details as the time approaches.

Heritage: Pre-Historic Swansea

During a Swansea Historical Society meeting on 4-February-2009, George Duncan held a fossil he found along the Humber River

TORONTO, ONTARIO - The Swansea Historical Society held its first regular meeting of 2009 on Wednesday, with the George Duncan as the featured speaker. Duncan took his audience back to a much older time than in most meetings--445 million years ago.

How is that? Those who have walked along the Humber River, in particular those areas with cliffs like Bâby Point north of Swansea, may have noted that very distinct layers may be seen in the soil. These formations are layers of sedimentary rock, the kind of formation where one can find fossils, and this presentation was about fossils.


George Duncan held up a shell at the Swansea Historical Society on 4-February-2009, demonstrating the kind of object that most easily fossilizes

Fossils will not form in just any conditions. The dead plant or animal must be isolated from oxygen and normal methods of degradation, usually through burial, and some sort of preservation process must occur, mostly commonly petrification, the slow replacement of cells with minerals. Sedimentary rock combined with some sort of disruption burying the lifeforms is one scenario that can fossil formation. Furthermore, it is the hard portions of the life form, such as a shell or tooth, that tends to last long enough to be fossilized, not the soft portions that decay much more easily.

Appropriate conditions to form fossils were in place in what is now Swansea and greater Toronto 445 million years ago during the Paleozoic era. At that time, the continents were in a completely different position, and this area was only about 20 degrees above the equator and was underwater. Thus, the lifeforms present were the sub-tropical undersea creatures (only a few plants had managed to grow on land in any event), such as trilobites and nautiloids. Small nautiloids are the most common fossils found along the Humber River and Mimico Creek.


George Duncan showed a larger piece of rock containing fossilized tracks of an ancient life form at a Swansea Historical Society Meeting on 4-February-2009

While other epochs are represented in fossils found in other areas of southern Ontario, everyone's favorite kind of fossil--dinosaurs--are not found here. They are found in Canada, though, as some of the most significant dinosaur remains ever found have come from Alberta.

Of course, considering the average age of a historical society member, the most common joke of the night was whether there were any fossils in the audience. After being educated in the formation of fossils by George Duncan, we could rest assured that there were no fossils observing his presentation.

Heritage: Remembrance Day at Swansea Library

A portion of the mural outside Swansea Memorial Library in Toronto unveiled on Remembrance Day 2008

TORONTO, ONTARIO - Shortly before the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month, people gather together in various places across the world in ceremonies originally intended to celebrate the armistice that ended the Great War on at 11:00 on 11-November-1918. The Great War is now called World War I, the day now celebrates sacrifice in all wars, and the day is now called Remembrance Day in Canada and Veteran's Day in the United States.

While larger ceremonies take place in Ottawa for the nation, at Queen's Park for the province, and at the cenotaph outside Old City Hall for Toronto, the neighborhood of Swansea still holds its own event. It was this event that I chose to attend, and I was far from alone--more than one hundred people gathered for the event.


Toronto city councilperson Bill Saundercook spoke at the 2008 Swansea Remembrance Day ceremony

Amongst those laying wreaths at the ceremony were newly-elected Member of Parliament Gerard Kennedy, Member of Provincial Parliament Cheri DiNovo, and city councilperson Bill Saundercook, as well as representatives of the Canadian Legion, Swansea Town Hall, and--my favorite--the Memorial Library itself. Saundercook gave the most memorable speech, briefly touching on three of his previous Remembrance Day experiences and noting that there was always more to learn about the experience of those who had served their country.

Rather than creating a physical memorial after the Great War, the then-independent Village of Swansea chose to create a Memorial Library, located since 1959 in the present Town Hall Building. Thus, the library is always a part of Remembrance Day in Swansea, but this year was something special.

The Swansea Historical Society had been working on a mural to make it more clear what had led to the establishment of the Memorial Library. After the completion of the traditional Remembrance Day ceremony outside, most attendees crowded into the lobby of the Town Hall to watch the unveiling of the mural.


The new mural outside the Swansea Memorial Library was revealed on Remembrance Day 2008

At the top of the mural, twenty-two crosses pay tribute to the twenty-two Swansea residents whose lives were lost during World War I. Below that are scenes from the war, including photos with some of the 150 men that served and did return to the village. Below that are painted scenes of the Village of Swansea as it existed in that era. On hand for the unveiling were the some of the descendants of those who had fallen. The always-energetic former mayor of Toronto, David Crombie, stood next to me as the cross bearing the name of George Crombie was revealed.

Remembrance Day 2008 was truly something special in the Toronto neighborhood of Swansea.

Heritage: Tennison on Krieghoff

A sign from a Krieghoff exhibition to which Bill Tennison had contributed

TORONTO, ONTARIO - While born in Amsterdam, painter Cornelius David Krieghoff spent most of his 19th-century life in Canada and thus is regarded as a premier Canadian artist, and he is particularly beloved here for his focus on Canadian winter landscapes. Among those especially appreciative of his work is Swansea Historical Society member Bill Tennison, who spoke about Krieghoff and shared some of his extensive collection during the society's meeting at Swansea Town Hall on 5-November-2008.

Tennison has collected Krieghoff works for much of his life, and his common interest in Krieghoff fostered a friendship with the late newspaper mogul Ken Thompson. Between the two of them, Tennison and Thompson provided the resources to complete special exhibitions on the artist in Canada and to help historians determine the status of many purported Krieghoff works--including one that proved to be completed on one half by Krieghoff and one half by another artist.


Bill Tennison held a print of Krieghoff's "Bilking the Toll"

Of the 1100 to 1300 Krieghoff paintings ("we're still finding them," Tennison notes), probably the most famous are the 33 (known, anyway) variations of "Bilking the Toll" in which a horse-drawn sleigh runs through a toll booth in the snow. Tennison noted that 30 of them have the sleigh going from right to left, while only 3 have them going from left to right.

Like many artists, Krieghoff was not fully appreciated during his lifetime, and while he did not die starving poor, neither did he die as wealthy as the sums that his works command today would imply.


Bill Tennison answering an audience question

The holiday season is when Krieghoff is most noted today. His many works on early Canadian scenes tended to depict the winter, and hence make excellent Christmas cards and other winter holiday fare. The overview of Cornelius Krieghoff's career from Bill Tennison served as an appropriate signal that the holiday season--and winter--is just around the corner.