166 years ago, a steam locomotive, painted in dark green with polished brass fittings, and pulling several passenger cars full of VIPs – railway officials, financiers, and other assorted dignitaries – travelled merrily along the newly laid Great Western Railway near Clarkson. The date was December 3, 1855, and the opening of the sparkling new…
We have to stretch back a bit into the fogs of history for this one, and there remains a bit of uncertainty. Lot 7, Concession 2, SDS was granted by The Crown to James Glennon in 1810, who promptly sold the 200-acre property to Oliver Grace. Oliver Grace (the elder) was a retired British Naval…
Victor Alexander Vignale was born in Trinidad, in the British West Indies, in 1894. His father, Raphael Vignale, was a successful cocoa planter. The Vignales were a large family, with Raphael and his wife Adelaide having 10 children. Part of the family came to Canada in 1913, including parents Raphael and Adelaide, together with children…
During these days of COVID, and in observing Remembrance Day, I found myself re-reading some of our earlier submissions in this series relating to the Spanish Flu pandemic of 1918-20 and what happened locally for Armistice Day gatherings back then. While the Spanish Flu arrived on Canadian shores in the spring on 1918, it was…
Join us on October 10, 2020 at 10:00 a.m. for our Saturday Matinee: “My Villages of Mississauga” presented in 1996 by Verna Mae Weeks. This week we continue our exploration of the lost villages of Mississauga and the history of how they came together to form the city of Mississauga. Verna Mae Weeks (1919 –…
In 1992, the Government of Canada designated October as Women’s History Month, marking the beginning of an annual month-long celebration of the outstanding achievements of women throughout Canada’s history. Women’s History Month in 2020 includes the International Day of the Girl (October 11) and Persons Day (October 18). For Women’s History Month we will be…
Welcome to our twelfth installment of “Ask a Historian”. Every week Heritage Mississauga will be taking questions about the history and heritage of Mississauga which our Historian, Matthew Wilkinson, will answer on Thursday afternoons. #ApartTogether, Heritage Mississauga is the source for inquiries and curiosity about our beautiful city as we continue our mandate to research,…
Back in 1919 Henry Ardagh had a plan to develop a small residential community on the north side of Lakeshore Road and east of Dixie Road, near to the Etobicoke Creek. Ardagh had purchased 15 acres from the Duck family of Lakeview. Ardagh laid out roads and lots as part of his “Ardmore Plan”. The…
An area of Lakeview in southwest Mississauga carries a series of street names that harken back to a time when a schemer scammed hundreds of people out of their life savings and almost ruined a community. Local farmer Robert Duck passed away in 1922, and within days of his funeral, a Toronto realtor named Harold…