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192 plaques found that match your criteria
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Dr. Henry Norman Bethune 1890-1939
An internationally famed humanitarian, surgeon and revolutionary, Bethune was born in this house. He graduated from the University of Toronto's medical school during the First World War and saw extensive service in that conflict. While at Montreal's Royal Victoria Hospital 1929-1933, he gained widespread recognition as a thoracic surgeon. Increasing concern with social and political issues took him to Spain in 1936, where he organized Canadian medical aid for the Loyalist troops and set up... -
Dr. Robert Hamilton Coats 1874-1960
Born near here, Coats was educated locally and graduated in 1896 from the University of Toronto. In 1902, Mackenzie King, then Deputy Minister of Labour, persuaded Coats to become editor of the Labour Gazette. In this position, he became convinced of the need for reliable government statistics. In 1915, he was appointed Canada's first Dominion Statistician and Controller of the Census. Coats drafted the legislation that established the Dominion Bureau of Statistics three years later... -
Dufferin County Court House
Construction of this imposing brick court house was begun in the spring of 1880. Designed by C.J. Soule, a Guelph architect, it was built by the contracting firm of Dobbie and Grierson. Although the first provisional county council meeting was held here on November 24, 1880, the two-storey rectangular building constructed to house the judicial and administrative office of the newly created county of Dufferin was not completed until early 1881. Its impressive exterior is... -
Duncombe's Uprising 1837
Dr. Charles Duncombe (1791-1867), prominent physician and politician, was leader of the militant reform movement in the London District at the time of the Rebellion of 1837. He rallied the local "Patriots" at the settlement of Scotland, planning to move against Brantford and Hamilton and join forces with William Lyon MacKenzie. On December 13, 1837, word was received of the latter's defeat at Montgomery's Tavern and Col. Allan McNab's approach with a strong Loyalist force. Disheartened, Duncombe's followers dispersed during the night and he fled to the United States. -
Dundas Town Hall
Dundas was incorporated as a town in 1847 by a special Act of the legislature of the Province of Canada. The following year, the town council accepted a tender from a local builder, James Scott, to erect a stone town hall and voted £2,000 to cover the cost. Designed in a version of Roman classic by Francis Hawkins of Dundas, the building was completed by July 1849, and was said to have cost £2,500. Except... -
Founding of Haliburton, The
The Canadian Land and Emigration Company of London, England, was incorporated in 1861 and purchased for settlement purposes in this region nine adjoining wilderness townships comprising some 360,000 acres of land. The town plot of Haliburton was surveyed by 1864, a sawmill erected there that year, and a grist-mill built in 1865. Charles R. Stewart was appointed the first resident land agent, and the community was named in honour of Judge Thomas Chandler Haliburton, chairman... -
Galt City Hall
This attractive public building was designed and built in 1857-58 by H.B. Sinclair, a local resident, as a "Town Hall and Market House." Galt had become an incorporated town on January 1, 1857, and the first mayor, Morris C. Lutz, was elected by the new council that month. On May 13, he laid the cornerstone of this structure. It is classical in general style, and the "Italianate," particularly Tuscan, influence is quite predominant. Various additions were made in later years and, in 1963-64, a thorough rehabilitation of the building was carried out. -
Gananoque Town Hall, The
Built about 1831-32 and designed in the late phase of the neoclassic style, this structure is among the best of its type remaining in Ontario. Constructed as a dwelling for John McDonald, a local landowner, merchant, postmaster and later a member of the Legislative Council of Canada, it remained in the family until 1911. The earliest settlement at the site of Gananoque took place in the late 1790s, and the first major survey of a... -
Government House 1832
Alwington House, which stood on this site, was completed in 1832 by Charles W. Grant, fifth baron of Longueuil. It was enlarged in 1841 to serve as the vice-regal residence during the period when Kingston was the capital of the united Province of Canada. Three governors general, Lord Sydenham, Sir Charles Bagot and Sir Charles Metcalfe, occupied the house. When the capital was removed to Montreal in 1844, Alwington was returned to Baron Longueuil. It... -
Grand River Naval Depot 1815, The
In 1815, the Royal Navy began building a depot on the present site of Port Maitland. Though intended in the event of war to accommodate three frigates and 1,000 men, the base actually supported only the four schooners that then made up the British naval force on Lake Erie. The Rush-Bagot Agreement (1817) between Britain and the United States severely limited naval armament on the Great Lakes, and the depot was thereafter staffed by small... -
Guelph City Hall 1856
This fine example of classical architecture was begun in 1856 following the incorporation of Guelph as a town. It was designed by William Thomas, architect of St. Lawrence Hall, Toronto, and other important buildings throughout the province, and was completed in 1857. Constructed of Guelph stone, it contained a market house, offices and an assembly hall in which many notable persons were entertained, including the Hon. John A. Macdonald, later Canada's first Prime Minister. Alterations... -
Haggarts, The
John Haggart, a Scottish stone mason, came to Canada in the 1820s and worked on the Welland and Rideau canals. In 1832, he purchased this property, which included the Perth settlement's first mill, and established a milling complex. He built this house in 1837, an early hip-roofed regency design in stone. In 1854, the property passed to his son John Graham Haggart. A vigorous politician, the younger Haggart was mayor of Perth before serving some... -
Ontario Human Rights Code
The Ontario Human Rights Code came into effect on June 15, 1962 and established equal rights and freedom from discrimination as primary elements of provincial law. The first legislation of its kind in Canada, the Code was designed to affirm and uphold the "inherent dignity and the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family" by providing a legal mechanism to combat discrimination. The Code was inspired by principles of individual liberty... -
Ontario's First Parliament Buildings
In 1793, it was decided to move the capital of Upper Canada from Niagara to York (now Toronto). Two single-storey brick parliament buildings were constructed near this site. Opened in June 1798, the buildings were used for court proceedings and religious services in addition to parliamentary sessions. During their occupation of York, April 27 to May 2, 1813, American troops set fire to the parliament buildings. By 1820, they had been repaired and a connecting... -
Parry Sound District Court House
The court house for the Territorial District of Parry Sound, established in 1870, was the first of a series of early northern court houses built under the direction of Ontario's Department of Public Works and its chief architect, Kivas Tully. Erected in 1871, the modest frame building contained a second-floor court room and main-floor jail and registry office. Increased settlement soon imposed greater demands on the court house and in 1889, an addition housing a... -
Pauline McGibbon 1910-2001
The first woman to hold a vice-regal office in Canada, Pauline Emily Mills, was born in Sarnia, Ontario in 1910. After local schooling and a degree at Victoria College, University of Toronto, she married Donald Walker McGibbon in 1935. A life-long volunteer and supporter of the arts, Mrs. McGibbon became president of the Dominion Drama Festival in 1948 and national president of the Imperial Order of the Daughters of the Empire in 1963. She was... -
Peel County Court House
This court house building, together with the adjacent jail and registry office, served as the judicial and administrative centre for the County of Peel for more than a century. Its prominent location on a rise of land and its stately appearance reflect the growing civic pride and affluence of 19th-century Ontario communities. Designed in the Italianate style by Toronto architect William Kauffmann, the court house was built by the contracting firm of Kesteven & Story... -
Peter Matthews c.1789-1838
Peter Matthews farmed the lands immediately northeast of here in the early nineteenth century. On December 2, 1837, neighbours asked him to lead men from the area to join an uprising against the government in Toronto planned by William Lyon Mackenzie. Matthews supported democratic reforms, was popular in his community, and had served in the War of 1812. He agreed to the request and played a leading role in the confused events of the Rebellion... -
Queen's Park, Toronto
Officially opened by the Prince of Wales (later King Edward VII) during the Royal Tour of 1860, Queen's Park is an early example of the public park movement in Canada. Landscaped according to a picturesque design, its sweeping drives curved past maple, oak, elm and white pine, while Taddle Creek ravine and McCaul's Pond formed the park's western boundary. Located to the northwest of the city, visitors gained access to the park through two gated... -
Right Honourable Lester Bowles Pearson 1897-1972, The
Born in the Newtonbrook Methodist parsonage, which stood nearby, Pearson was educated at Toronto and Oxford Universities. He served overseas from 1915 to 1918 and, in 1928, joined the Department of External Affairs. During a brilliant diplomatic career, he was Canadian Ambassador to the United States and later Under-Secretary of State for External Affairs. Appointed to the cabinet in 1948, he was elected to Parliament for Algoma East. In 1958, he became leader of the... -
Rivers and Streams Act of 1884
In the 1870s, Boyd Caldwell and Peter McLaren both owned timber rights on the upper Mississippi River. McLaren built a dam and timber slide at High Falls and refused to let Caldwell use the slide. Caldwell appealed to the Liberal provincial government of Oliver Mowat, which passed the Rivers and Streams Act in 1881. This made it legal to use private improvements on a watercourse if compensation was paid to the owner. McLaren appealed to... -
Robert F. Gourlay 1778-1863
Gourlay was a radical Scot who crusaded for social reform in Britain in the early nineteenth century. His activities in Upper Canada sent shock waves through the province. He arrived in 1817 to examine property he owned just east of here and became interested in promoting settlement. To encourage immigration, Gourlay began compiling his "Statistical Account of Upper Canada" (1822). He soon decided that government favouritism and mismanagement were stifling growth. Gourlay challenged the authorities... -
Robert Nichol, c. 1774-1824
Born in Scotland, Robert Nichol moved to Upper Canada in 1792 and settled in Port Dover in 1808, where he established milling, brewing, and distilling businesses. During the War of 1812 Nichol served as quartermaster-general of the Upper Canadian militia, worked closely with Isaac Brock and was frequently engaged in action against American forces. He endured crippling personal losses when enemy troops burned his mills and home near this site in 1814. Nichol held several... -
Royal Tour of 1939, The
The Royal Tour of 1939 was the first visit to Canada by a reigning British monarch. Between May 15 and June 15, King George VI and Queen Elizabeth travelled by train across the country. They arrived at the North Toronto Station on May 22 and, at Queen's Park, Lieutenant Governor Albert Matthews and Premier Mitchell Hepburn officially welcomed Their Majesties to the provincial capital. Throughout their visit, the King and Queen were greeted with brilliant... -
Senator George T. Fulford 1852-1905
Born and raised in Brockville, George Taylor Fulford apprenticed at his brother's drugstore and took charge of it himself at age 22. Five years later, he was elected to the first of 12 terms as alderman. Fulford entered the patent-medicine trade in 1886, and in 1890 acquired the rights to his most famous product, "Dr. Williams' Pink Pills for Pale People." His use of large-scale newspaper testimonial advertising helped expand his business internationally. His headquarters...