preserving the past for the future august 2016 the … · preserving the past for the future august...

PRESERVING THE PAST FOR THE FUTURE AUGUST 2016

YORK PIONEER AND HISTORICAL SOCIETY PAGE 1

On May 12th, YPHS members gathered at the Tudor Revival home of Jane Somerville and Dr. David Caspari in Lawrence Park to celebrate the launch of the 2016 edition of the York Pioneer. The historic residence was a fitting setting, and Alex Grezenbach gave Pioneers a fascinating introduction to the Arts and Craft style that inspired the design of the house in the years before the First World War. Audrey Fox, editor of the York Pioneer, then congratulated the contributing authors and – to match the sophistication of the neighbourhood – Pioneers toasted their success with a glass of champagne. Copies of the 2016 York Pioneer have been mailed to members and are available through the Pioneer’s webpage – www.yorkpioneers.org. The task of recruiting new authors and articles has already begun; contact Audrey if you have an article in mind for next year’s edition. To celebrate Canada’s 150th birthday, members next year will also receive a copy of the unpublished autobiography of Sir William Howland, a former York Pioneer and a Father of Confederation.

Alex Grezenbach gives a fascinating talk

on the origins of the Lawrence Park neighbourhood. Photo: Audrey Fox

Visit Scadding Cabin During the Ex!

Contents

August 19th to Sept. 3rd – See Page 2 for Details Scadding Cabin and the Ex 2 2016 YPHS Annual Dinner 3

Join your Fellow Pioneers at the 2016 YPHS Annual Dinner

More from the Pioneer Launch 4

From the Archives 5

St. John’s, York Mills 6-7

Guest Speaker: Virginia May At the Cabin 8 Promoting the Society 9

5pm, Sept. 25th at Terroni Adelaide, 57 Adelaide St. E. Ontario’s Cultural Strategy 10 See Page 3 for Details Member News 10

THE UPDATE York Pioneer and Historical Society

P.O. Box 45026, 2482 Yonge Street, Toronto, Ont.

416 656-2954 (President David Raymont) www.yorkpioneers.org

[email protected]

Launch of the 2016 York Pioneer

http://www.yorkpioneers.org/

http://www.yorkpioneers.org/

mailto:[email protected]



Visit Scadding Cabin During the CNE

The Canadian National Exhibition is the high point of activity for York Pioneers at the Scadding Cabin

Museum. This year the Exhibition runs from August 19 to September 3.

Here’s a list of special activities planned for Scadding Cabin:

August 20 and 21, 1 – 3 pm: Spinning demonstration

August 23, 1 – 3 pm: re-enactors from the Upper Canada Militia

August 25, 1 – 3 pm: a display of settler artifacts by Ontario archaeologists

August 26, 1 – 3 pm: visit with John and Elizabeth Simcoe – don’t forget your camera!

August 30, 1 – 3pm: First Nations drummers from NaMeRes

September 1, 1 – 3 pm: Toronto’s finest bird carving by Ross Ward

September 2, 1 – 3 pm: Printing demonstration from the Mackenzie House museum

Scadding Cabin is a remarkable place – especially for York Pioneers. Why not visit the Cabin during the CNE and participate in one of the activities?

Last August, York Pioneer Roksana Podolska (far right) and a friend talked with Oliver Dick, Earl Oegema, and Edward Backle – the NaMeRes drummers.



York Pioneers’ Annual Dinner DATE: 5 PM, Sunday 25 September 2016 PLACE: Terroni Adelaide, 57 Adelaide St. East COST: Each attendee will pay his/her own bill. RSVP: By September 9 to Audrey Fox at [email protected] or 416-656-0812. We are permitted a MAXIMUM of 29 people because we chose the separate cheques option.

VENUE: Terroni Adelaide restaurant (right) was once the York County Court House. Designed by the firm of Cumberland and Ridout and built in 1851-1852, the building served as the courthouse from 1852 until 1900, when the courts moved to Toronto City Hall. The building was later home to The Arts and Letters Club of Toronto. In recent years, it housed restaurants and a jazz club. The main courthouse space reopened in December 2007 as a location of Terroni, a small local chain of Southern Italian-style trattorias.

SPEAKER: Virginia May In 2015, Virginia May published her first book: Toronto Through Time - Stories of Toronto's Past (left). The book is a well-illustrated introduction to the people and stories of the Greater Toronto Area, and there is even a chapter about Scadding Cabin! May will have copies of her book for sale. She has submitted the book to this year’s Heritage Toronto Awards. Virginia May is a Canadian artist who has been drawing and painting since she was a child. Born in Windsor, Ontario in 1952, she has lived in and around Toronto since the age of 5 and currently resides in Caledon, just northwest of the city.



More from the Launch of the York Pioneer

Fred Robbins (right) speaks with Lisa Jemison,

member of the Editorial Committee. Photo: Liam P.

(l-r) Irela Grigorevic, Tamara Glogorevic (a new member of the Editorial Committee), David Raymont, and Kayoko Smith. Photo: Liam P.

Treasurer Lili Bozhkova (left) with her predecessor Cindy Evans present Ralph Berrin with his copy of the 2016 York Pioneer. Photo: Liam P.

Jane Summerville (left), our host for the evening, with John Marshall and Kayoko Smith. Photo: Audrey Fox



From the Archives: The 1955 CNE

By John Marshall As this year’s CNE approaches, we look back to September of 1955 when President David McFall wrote a letter to The Globe and Mail regarding historical exhibits at the fair. Apparently overall attendance at the CNE was down that year, but Scadding Cabin saw a large increase. (An astounding 39, 317 visitors!) This led David to suggest that other historical exhibits, such as a replica of Fort Rouille, would be popular. This did not come to pass, but following the archeological dig of 1982 the outline of the fort was marked by concrete paths.

Scadding Cabin in 1955. The old fire reel was eventually moved to Black Creek Pioneer Village.



St. John’s Anglican Church, York Mills By Jeanne Hopkins In September 2016, St. John's Anglican Church York Mills will celebrate its 200th anniversary. The little church in the country had been set up by Seneca Ketchum as a mission of St. James Church in the Town of York that had been established in 1804. The York Mills parish began when Seneca Ketchum was tired of walking down Yonge Street for Sunday morning services at St. James, and began conducting prayer services in his home in North Toronto for friends and neighbours. When these gatherings became too large for his home. Seneca set up Ketchum's Congregation in the nearby Mercer School House. Around 1816, members Joseph and Catherine Shepard donated about three acres of their "high in the hill" for a church and cemetery. Seneca Ketchum donated time and money for the building and a cornerstone was laid on September 17, 1816 by Sir Francis Gore, Lt. Governor of Upper Canada and Rev. John Strachan of St. James Church. Every Saturday, bees were held; men did the construction while women provided food and helped with interior furnishings, like embroidered cushions. The new church was ready for its first service on December 30, 1816. Once a month Rev. Okill Stuart or John Strachan came north to conduct services, while divinity students like Derwyn Trevor Owen read prayers and sermons, written by Rev. Strachan on other Sundays. Over the years, the community and church grew and the idea of a larger, more permanent brick church was discussed at many vestry meetings. Then, on Easter Sunday morning in 1840, with men gathered around the stove, a floor board and the stove-pipe was dislodged causing a small fire. Luckily, it was soon extinguished and after fires at St. James and some other small churches, members realized they needed a more permanent church building. Adjacent land had been donated by William and Dinah Marsh and architect John George Howard of High Park was hired. Howard designed two churches of a similar design – St. John’s at York Mills and Christ Church at Holland Landing on Lake Simcoe. On May 30, 1843, St. John's cornerstone had been laid by Rt. Rev. Strachan, assisted by then Rev. Alexander Sanson and the "little church on the hill" was officially named St. John’s York Mills. After a year of construction, St. John’s York Mills was opened on June 11, 1844. While Rev. Sanson was at St. John’s, he was active in overseeing the construction of his new church, visiting the site every day. He visited Toronto ironmonger Thomas D. Harris to order a bell for the tower,



then also ordered two stoves and ninety-six lengths of stove-pipe for his new church. The bell and stoves were hauled up Yonge Street by a team of oxen for delivery. Over the years, St. John’s has been served by clergy, some of whom stayed for over twenty years - Rev. Henry Bath Osler (1874-1900), Rev. Richard Ashcroft (1900-1926), Rev. Arthur Glendinning McCollum (1926-1960), Rev. Lewis Garnsworthy (1960-1969), Rev. James O'Neill (1969-1989), Rev. Hollis Hiscock (1990-2007) and now Rev. Drew MacDonald (2008- ). A couple went on to become Bishops of Toronto - Rev. Derwyn Trevor Owen who was studying under Rev. Osler liked St. John’s so much that he asked to be buried in the cemetery rather than St. James Cemetery and Rev. Lewis Garnsworthy who became Bishop of Toronto in 1990. Two women who served as Sunday School superintendents are also well remembered. After every class, Mrs. Kathleen Sladen would drive down Yonge Street to conduct more classes and comfort the children at the Hospital for Sick Children. When she retired, Miss Margery Pezzack took over the role while studying for a ministry. She served as a deacon and assistant minister until she was ordained a priest on May 22, 1977. Many other women of St. John’s served the church and community - Mrs. Marion Catto was a founding member of the North Branch of the Canadian Red Cross, ably assisted Ethel Ashcroft. Their biggest accomplishment was the organization of the Willowdale Flax Festival held on August 18, 1918 on the farm of William Wallace to raise money to aid the British and Canadian Red Cross war effort. Flax, grown on various North York farms, was used for the building of airplane wings. St. John’s Cemetery is the resting place of many pioneer families of York Mills and members of St. John’s – the Thomas Mercer, Christopher Harrison, Thomas Humberstone, Joseph Shepard, William Marsh, Duncan Cameron families and over six generations of the Van Nostrand family. The first to be buried in St. John’s Cemetery is young George Van Nostrand who died on November 18, 1806 at the age of seven and Lt. Col. Arthur Jabez Van Nostrand added one-fifth of an acre to his family plot in the cemetery. Many who are buried in St. John’s were active in different wars - the Valliere family who escaped during the French Revolution, Duncan Cameron and Cornelius Van Nostrand of the British Army during the American Revolution, Thomas Humber-Stone and Christopher Harrison served in the War of 1812 and the Shepard family who served in the War of 1812 and the Upper Canada Rebellion of 1837. Many are remembered for their services during the South African and World Wars One and Two. Others buried in St. John’s lost their lives in the cholera epidemic of 1847 and the smallpox epidemic of 1851. In the churchyard were other memorials - elm trees planted by the Van Nostrand and Harrison families were destroyed during the outbreak of Dutch Elm Disease of 1956. Another well-known landmark in the cemetery grounds was the Comer house that has since been sold. John Comer had immigrated to Upper Canada in 1814 and lived with Susan Sibbald at Eildon Hall on Lake Simcoe. When the Sibbald family built St. George's Anglican Church as a memento to their mother, Rev. John Gibson was the first rector at St. Georges Church; after John Frederick Comer of Jackson's Point married Constance Gibson, the daughter of Rev. Leonard Baird Gibson of Cooke's Presbyterian Church in Toronto. They moved into a house on the grounds of St. John's York Mills cemetery. After Constance Comer died on January 17, 1980, the house stood vacant until it was used as a private home. A few years, the Comer House was sold and it is now a private home. After over two years of extensive renovations and upgrades, St. John’s Anglican Church York Mills will be holding a year of celebrations, including publications, culminating in a special service of Thanksgiving to be held on Sunday, September 18, 2016 with special guest Rt. Rev. Colin Johnson, Archbishop of the Diocese of Toronto, the present rector Rev. Drew MacDonald officiating with other special guests.



At the Cabin

Bruce Corley is making detailed measurements of Scadding Cabin as part of his research of older buildings in southern Ontario. His work is raising questions about how the cabin was built and when certain features, such as the second floor and roof, were added to the building. Bruce will donate his research on Scadding Cabin to the York Pioneers. Photo: David Raymont

Visitors to the Scadding Cabin will see that York Pioneers are working to keep the building in good shape. This year, a new front door step and the entire exterior of the cabin has been painted with a preservative to keep the logs in good shape. Your executive is following a list of recommendations prepared by ERA, a company experienced in the restoration and preservation of heritage buildings.

Ann Lambert shows York Pioneer archivist John Marshall, Gerry Lee and new member Bob Prznica how to work the small spinning wheel. The York Pioneers thank Ann for donating repairs to ensure that the small spinning wheel can continue to provide a living demonstration of settler skills. Photo: David Raymont

Thanks to the Toronto Historical Society, Andrew Jones is creating virtual tours of Toronto-area museums. His tour of the Scadding Cabin was posted on Google the end of July. Andrew believes there should be online tours of all of Ontario’s heritage spots and museums. Photo: David Raymont



Your YPHS Executive meets at Scadding Cabin on May 1st after opening the Cabin for the summer. (l-r) David Duncan, David Raymont, Lili Bozhkova, Liam P., Fred Robbins, Kayoko Smith, Adrian De Souza, and Wesley Ferris. Photo: Audrey Fox

Promoting the Society

York Pioneer Arlis Barclay came to July 1 celebrations in Wells Hill Park to promote activities at Scadding Cabin during this year’s CNE. Arlis has written articles for the York Pioneer about historian Matilda Ridout Edgar, who was President of the Women’s Historical Society of Canada. Thank you Arlis for your support of the York Pioneer and Historical Society! Photo: David Raymont

Anukul Sharma (left) and David Raymont at the Bloor Street Family Festival. Photo: Liam P.



Member News

York Pioneers have 500+ Followers!

That isn’t our paid membership, but it is the number of people who now follow our Society on twitter. Many thanks to Recording Secretary Liam Peppiatt for keeping our twitter feed and facebook posts lively and informative. You can follow York Pioneer social media at: https://www.facebook.com/yorkpioneers and https://twitter.com/YorkPioneers. Tell your friends and make more followers for York Pioneer social media.

In Memoriam

Long-time York Pioneer Frances Hay passed away on May 27th. Born in Alberta, she moved to Toronto and spent 34 years as a Secretary for the Ontario Ministry of Education. In her spare time she pursued her many interests, including painting, folk dancing, bird-watching, canoeing and travelling, and in retirement she travelled and kept in touch with family and friends. She is survived by 7 nieces and nephews and 21 great-nieces and nephews. The YPHS extends condolences to long-time Life Member Carol Moore-Ede on the death of her husband, David Morris Clark, April 20, 2016. Carol and David were our gracious hosts for the 2011 York Pioneer launch in their historic home, The Daniel Lamb House in Cabbagetown.

Kayoko Smith and John Marshall visit long-time member and volunteer Edna Rigby at her new home, a seniors’ residence in Markham. Last year’s executive made Edna a Honourary Life Member for her years organizing volunteers for the Scadding Cabin during the CNE. Photo: David Raymont

Ontario’s Cultural Strategy

At our annual meeting in January, speakers voiced concern about the Ontario government's goals for its new cultural strategy. The strategy has now been released, and its text does show input from heritage advocates, such as the Architectural Conservancy of Ontario and the Ontario Archaeological Society. The Ontario Historical Society has been told that the Heritage Development Grant, which the York Pioneers use to help fund its activities, will not be touched. The focus of the strategy is to encourage more participation in the celebration of our province's culture and heritage, and greater use of online technology by museums and other cultural institutions and groups. You can read the strategy here: https://www.ontario.ca/page/ontario-culture-strategy-telling-our-stories-growing-our-economy. Thank you for your emails of support for heritage, and for the position taken by the York Pioneer & Historical Society during the shaping of the province's strategy.

If you have not yet received your 2016 York Pioneer journal, then your membership has lapsed; please renew online or by mailing a cheque to the address on the front of The Update.

The YPHS gratefully acknowledges the financial support of the Government of

Ontario through the Ministry of Tourism, Culture, and Sport.

https://www.facebook.com/yorkpioneers

https://twitter.com/YorkPioneers

https://www.ontario.ca/page/ontario-culture-strategy-telling-our-stories-growing-our-economy

https://www.ontario.ca/page/ontario-culture-strategy-telling-our-stories-growing-our-economy

preserving the past for the future august 2016 the … · preserving the past for the future august...

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