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Municipality :
Community : Bradford
Lot :
Concession :
Description : The town of Bradford came into being in May of 1857, but was not formally inaugurated until January 1st, 1858 - which means that, sometime in the next 12 months, Bradford celebrates its sesquicentennial. Town Council has decided to accept January 1, 2008 as the date of the 150th Anniversary - in part because it gives the municipality more time to get things rolling, and get co-ordinating committees in place. "This is a high priority," says Mayor Doug White of the Planned Sesquicentennial Celebrations. "We want to do this right. We want this to be a celebration the likes of which this Town has never seen before." Not only that, White says, but "we want the entire community to be part of this." The Mayor and several members of Council will sit on a Sesquicentennial Steering committee, headed by Councillor Del Crake; and the BWG Recreation Department will take on a co-ordinating role, in addition to running Town events. But members of the community - churches, schools organizations and associations, clubs, businesses, individuals - are invited to get involved, by sending a representative to sit on an Advisory
Community Group Committee, by planning an event and contacting the Recreation Dept. to have it listed on the Sesquicentennial Calendar, or by volunteering for Town events or fundraising activities. Some of the ideas already under consideration include a New Year's Eve Black Tie Gala, on December 31, 2007, to kick off the Official Town celebration which could culminate in a huge community-wide party and formal proclamation on July 1,2008, at the Canada Day Celebration. "The sky's the limit - we want the community to come up with every idea. Nothing is too minor, and nothing is impossible," says Mayor White. "There's a tremendous amount of pride in the community. We want the participation of everybody," adds Councillor Crake. Interested in getting involved in the 150th Anniversary Celebrations for the town of Bradford? Contact Nick Warman Manager of Recreation. In the Jan. 9 meeting of Council, Councillors Del Crake, Jeanny Salmon, Mark Contois, and James Leduc were appointed to a Sesquicentennial Steering Committee.

Municipality :
Community : Bradford West Gwillimbury
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Concession :
Description : He called water "a much more valuable commodity than oil and gasoline...It's liquid gold." New Tecumseth Mayor Keogh spoke of the vision that led to the development of the water pipeline from Georgian Bay. The signing opens the way for negotiations to being in earnest, for the purchase from Collingwood and New Tecumseth, and the design and construction of the pipe to Bond Head. The route proposed follows a former railway track south of Alliston to the 11th Line New Tecumseth, down the 15th Sideroad to the Beeton Road, and east to County Road 27. Earlier that morning, Bradford West Gwillimbury had met with the Ministry of the Environment, and finally received a new water-taking permit for its main municipal wells - with a warning that the wells will be closely monitored. "There's reason to monitor with great care," Thompson said, noting, "There was no request for additional water (from the wells), and no offer of additional water. We're nearing the limit of what the aquifer can offer. There's significant growth, and there's not a hope that could be accommodated by the aquifer. The town has agreed to growth, through its Official Master plan, he said, but without the Georgian Bay water, "realistically our community is not going to grow." The agreement will ensure not only that the Official Plan can be met, but that the Town will have a secure and reliable source of potable water.

Municipality :
Community : Newmarket
Lot :
Concession :
Description : The first resident of a clearing in the woods that grew into the Town of Newmarket was a Pennsylvania miller named Joseph Hill. He eventually lost all his property here in a court battle and, as war broke out in 1812, left for Pennsylvania rather than swear allegiance to the British Crown. Hill and another Quaker miller, James Kinsey, arrived in the spring of 1801 with Timothy Rogers' first group of settlers. They build a dam and mill where the Holland River and the old Indian trail crossed. Today we call his millpond Fairy lake and a heritage plaque stands close to where the mill was built. There was a small technicality Hill ignored - he didn't own the land on which he built and it was grabbed up 1802 by York mason Joseph McMertrie. But Rogers, who was anxious to see the mill and store in his new settlement survive, came to Hill's aid by buying the property from McMertrie in 1804 and turning it over to Hill. Enter Elisha Beman, a shrewd New York Entrepreneur with good colonial government connections. He bought land and built a mill upstream from Hill. This was the start of a feud which lasted until Hill fled back to the U.S.

Municipality :
Community : Bradford West Gwillimbury
Lot :
Concession :
Description : There comes a time with every project when the decision is made that this is the end. The first chapter of the History of West Gwillimbury - WEGWHIST project - is off to the printer, and we have 2 other chapters almost ready to send. We have other chapters that still need some work, but we will be using only material at hand. This means the end of our research. We thank the many who provided a story and pictures of their families, unfortunately that did not provide us with a story, and thus there will be no mention of them in the families chapter. The West Gwillimbury History project is a volunteer effort, involving a team with a variety of skills and talents who have written, photographed, organized, arrange, edited and prepared the book for the printer.

Municipality :
Community : Bradford West Gwillimbury
Lot :
Concession :
Description : In 1818, John Stoddars travelled from County Cavan in Ireland to the Township of West Gwillimbury, and liked what he saw. He returned to Ireland, then came back to Simcoe County with his three sons, William, James and Hugh, and stepson John Faris, to settle on Lot 10, Con. 7 - on the northwest corner of Hwy. 88 and 10 Sideroad, by today's map. In due course, each son would have his own 100 acre farm nearby. The eldest son, William inherited the home farm in 1836 and built the brick house known as "The Oaks" that still stands and is ocupied today. James farmed next door on Lot 9, was a member of West Gwillimbury's first Council in 1850, and donated land for the Anglican Church on his lot. Other family members served on Council in following years. his son Burt built the red brick house across Barrie St. that is still standing today. Another of William's sons, William Davis, built what was later known as the Stoddart-Ritchie house on the south side of 88 - now demolished. Whether the family name was spelled Stoddars,Stodders or Stoddart, members of this family were all significant contributors to the early settlement and governance of Bradford and West Gwillimbury. Most recently a representative of this family has been Canada's Privacy Commissioner. A symbol of the pioneering years is the stately home, built circa 1860, formerly known as The Oaks and now called the Stoddart-Reynolds house. A solid brick, full 2-storey, 3-over-3 bay front, typical of other homes of the period, it was built in the Georgian Vernacular style, with a Regency door case, and bow-roofed verandah. Two end fireplaces still exist on the main floor - the eastern fireplace with the original mantelpiece in place. Some interior design still survives, and the home has been well-cared for over the years. In fact, the pre-confederation house, associated with a prominent pioneer family, displays notable architectural significance - truly a home worth preserving, as part of West Gwillimbury and Bradford's Heritage.

Municipality :
Community : Bradford
Lot :
Concession :
Description : December 31ist marked not only the end of the old year and the Millennium, but the end of an era in Bradford. At the stroke of midnight, Lewis Ambulance Service ceased to exist, Flowing seamlessly into the new Health Trust Pre Hospital Services Inc., land ambulance providers for Simcoe County. Mac Lewis purchased the ambulance service 37 years ago, in 1963, as part of the Lathangue Kilkenny Funeral Home. The single ambulance - a 1954 Pontiac, equipped with 2 stretchers, Oxygen, bandages, and little else - answered 143 calls, staffed by Lewis and a number of part-timers. In 2000, Lewis Ambulance Service answered over 3,300 calls - "still with one vehicle," notes Lewis, but that vehicle is now equipped with a full array of equipment, from backboards to defibrillator, and staffed by employees that include 8 full-time and 10 part-time Level 1 Paramedics. There have many other changes over the last 37-plus years, especially in the attitude of the province towards private ambulance operators. Prior to 1963, there were 425 private operators in the Province. In 1964, they banded together to form the Ontario Ambulance Operators' Association, and began lobbying the government to set standards, for training, ambulances, etc. The government resisted until 1967/68, when it appointed Dr. Norman McNally as the Director of Ambulance Services - and within days, Dr. McNally was telling operators that thy were obsolete, and that the government would be taking over the service within 5 years. By 1975, the Province had purchased or closed all but 71 of the privately-owned ambulance services. Subsequent governments reversed the trend; it seemed that every time the government changed, the policy changed. Lewis not only has praise for Health Trust Pre Hospital Services, but for the direction that the County has decided to take. Simcoe County Council has approved expanding the service, adding 5 new stations and 5 ambulances, and up to 40 paramedics, to improve response times.

Municipality : Toronto
Community : Other - Bradford
Lot :
Concession :
Description : How do you keep six girls on the farm after they've seen T.O.? Well, you couldn't keep the Lee sisters away from Toronto General Hospital School of Nursing from 1947 to 1963. They followed each other through the school's hallowed halls to pursue a training that none of them regrets today. Over the weekend and continuing today, as the school's 1,100-strong alumni association celebrates its 100th anniversary in Toronto, the six have come from Canada and across the United States for a personal and pedagogical reunion. Once the two eldest sisters, Jean Moulding, now 65, and Charlotte Laubach, 63, set the pattern, it was hard for the others to break. But each had her own special reason for leaving the grind of their parent's farm in Bradford about 8 kilometres (5 miles) northwest of Newmarket. The youngest sister Barbara was only 5 when Jean left in 1947 for the bright lights and her three-year training. Like all her sisters, she says she'd do if all over again. For Margaret Evans teaching was her first choice but her mother pushed her to go to school, where she hated being the fifth sister there.

Municipality :
Community : Bradford
Lot :
Concession :
Description : Some historians pore over dusty tomes and draw all their knowledge from archival materials. Joe Saint knows the history books, but he is also a repository of oral tradition, a collector of tales and reminiscences. He can put a family name and a face to practically every historic building in Bradford. Joe Saint is 81, a timespan that encompasses a lot of changes, a lot of experience. Taking a driving tour with Saint is like getting a glimpse into the rich tapestry of Bradford West Gwillimbury's past. The Village Inn has a history. Built in 1910 by W.D. Watson, as a grocery store, it remained a grocery store until the mid 1930s. Then Jack Pong transformed it into a Chinese Restaurant, and in 1937, bought a liquor licence. All of Ontario was "dry" by 1916, but in the 1930s, Mitch Hepburn lifted Prohibition and introduced "local option." Some communities stayed dry, some brought in the alcohol - Bradford was the only community between North York and Barrie that had a beer licence. Aurora, Richmond Hill, Newmarket, all stayed "dry" by local option. "There were just too many church people, and too many bootleggers," says Saint. "Bootlegging in those days was an honest profession" - considered to be better than going on welfare. The owner of The Queen's Hotel didn't have the funds to buy a licence. A group of potential customers, tired of dealing with the bootleggers, reportedly chipped in to help pay the fees. Several of the homes on John Street East, including numbers 28, 34 and 49, were "floated" across the river to their present location, when the mill in Amsterdam closed. Actually, the homes were transported in winter, when it was easier to haul them across the frozen surface, Saint says. "There's a lot of history in this town. Some of it's good, and some of it's not... I didn't tell you the juicy stuff," says Saint.

Municipality :
Community : Innisfil
Lot :
Concession :
Description : At Churchill was the Episopalian Church. Although, I was baptized in that church, or rather in the old plastered church, in my early days I didn't know much about it. Jennie (or Jimie) Mathers was the choir leader and was an exceptionally good singer. There used to be preaching in James Sloan's wagon shop on a Sunday evening. For seats they used wagon hubs set on end, with planks on top, and a small table for a pulpit. About two miles to the south, we had Zion Church, where the cemetery now is. The ministers came from Bradford. They never seemed to get a grip of the people as they should have, Bethel Towse was the leading factor at this place. The Presbyterian Church at Cherry Creek held services at half past ten in the forenoon. A large crowd of people came here to worship God. A man called Alex Johnson led the singing. There was no musical instrument in use. Some good preachers came here. The folk came mostly from the north, some in double buggies and some in wagons. There was no Presbyterian church was built at Churchill, the Cherry Creek appointment was soon closed. The Church was moved a little to the south and is now (1932) used for a restaurant and service station. Across the road and a little to the north, we come to the Methodist Church, a frame structure with clapboard and three windows on each side. The top of the windows were fan-Shaped before the church was built, they had services in the school house.

Municipality :
Community : Bradford
Lot :
Concession :
Description : The latest crop statistics show that the total onion acreage in the Bradford and District Marshes was down, as was the potato acreage while the area of carrots and lettuce increase. The number of muck vegetable growers continue the steady downward trend of the last twenty years These statistics are compiled each year by the staff of the O.M.A.F. Dairy, Fruit and Vegetable Industries Inspection Branch in Bradford (commonly known as the Bradford Inspection Office). Judy Sturgeon and Barry Roberts would like to thank all of the growers for their cooperation. The onion acreage in Bradford was over 200 acres lower than in 1992, but there were 67 more acres of transplanted onions. This is not surprising, considering the disappointing onion year we had last year and the predictions that 1993 would be more the same. The area devoted to potatoes on muck soil was down by more than 200 acres as well. The carrot and lettuce acreage increased about 80 acres each to make up for some of the difference. The onion and carrot acreages have gone up and down during the past 8-10 years, but there are a few trends in some of the other crops that are revealed by the statistics. The celery acreage has dropped steadily since 1987 and there have been increases in oriental vegetables. There were approximately 228 acres of oriental vegetables in 1990; now the figure is 480 acres. The average farm size this year was 58 acres, but two thirds of the growers operated farms that were 50 acres or less.