Showing 9254 results

The Walkerville Chicklets were a junior baseball team active ca. 1927-1930, likely sponsored by Windsor businessman Thomas Chick, of the Chick Contracting Company. The Chicklets team recruited top local prospects and developed their skills in preparation for potentially joining Chick's senior team, the semi-professional Walkerville Chicks. The Chicklets played in the Border Cities Junior Baseball League, created in 1927 and presided over by Bruck Chick; for the 1928 season the junior league had four teams: the Chicklets, plus Riverside, Walkerville Brewery, and Ford City Tigers. All players had to be in their teens and were signed to a contract. They played two games a week from late May to the end of July, with the winning team advancing to provincial play-offs. in their heyday both the Chicks and the Chicklets were winning teams that drew crowds of spectators numbering in the thousands. Their exploits were regularly reported in the Border Cities Star newspaper.

Sources: "Jr. O.B.A. League for Border Cities," Border Cities Star, 7 July 1927, p. 17; "Four Squads are Ready in Minor Group," Border Cities Star, 4 May 1928, p. 2; "All Teams to Get in Action," Border Cities Star, 26 May 1928, p. 3; Mary Feldott, "The Walkerville Chicks," Walkerville Times Magazine [n.d.; ca. 1999-2015], walkervilletimes.com/chicks.htm (accessed 28 November 2023).

The present-day County of Essex in southwestern Ontario was established in 1792 as an administrative unit within the British colony of Upper Canada (also known as Canada West, 1841-1867) by Lieutenant-Governor Colonel John Graves Simcoe. It has been governed by several permutations of municipal government. In 1800, the townships of Rochester, Mersea, Gosfield, Maidstone, Sandwich, Malden, and the tracts of land occupied by the Huron and other Indigenous groups living along the Detroit River, together with islands in Lake Erie, St. Clair and the Straits, were designated as the County of Essex and Kent. Together with areas of Upper Canada not included in any other district, the County of Essex and Kent constituted what was known as the Western District. The first meeting of the Western District Council (then composed of representatives from the Counties of Essex, Kent, and Lambton) was held at the Sandwich Court House in February 1842. After a subsequent county reorganization, the first meeting of the Municipal Council of the United Counties of Essex, Kent and Lambton was held January 28, 1850. This was swiftly followed by further reorganization, so that the first meeting of the Municipal Council of the United Counties of Essex and Lambton was held a year later, on January 27, 1851. Population growth and economic development in both of the constituent counties led to a division at the end of the 19th century, and the first meeting of a dedicated Essex County Council was held at the Sandwich Court House on January 26, 1897. Like other county councils, the various permutations of Essex County's municipal government were largely preoccupied with issues related to property, justice, taxation, and infrastructure (roads, bridges, civic buildings, etc.) in its earliest days. Over time this expanded to include planning, emergency medical services, housing with supports for low-income individuals, and a long-term care home.

The region comprises a peninsula surrounded on three sides by Lake Erie, the Detroit River, and Lake St. Clair, and has a deep history of settlement and use by Indigenous peoples, especially the Three Fires Confederacy (Ojibwe, Odawa, and Potawatomi nations) and the Huron-Wendat Confederacy. French explorers, fur traders, and missionaries were present in the area from 1640, with French settlement for farming purposes beginning in 1747. British settlement began after the 1763 Treaty of Paris transferred the region to British hands, and increased during and after the American Revolution (1775-1783) as British military allies and Loyalists from the USA resettled in the region. Fort Malden, in the garrison town of Amherstburg, played an important defensive role during the War of 1812. The 19th century brought thousands of African-American freedom-seekers who followed the Underground Railroad to the region, as well as economic migrants from Ireland, Scotland, and Germany. The construction of railways spurred the growth of industry, trade, travel, and urbanization in the county. Cycles of economic boom and bust marked the region in the 20th century, but the growth of manufacturing in Windsor (especially in the automotive sector) drew a steady influx of immigrants, especially from Italy (after the Second World War) and the former Yugoslavian republics (during the Balkan Wars of the 1990s). The early twenty-first century saw new waves of immigration, especially from the Middle East, Africa, and Asia.

Sources: County of Essex, "Early Settlement History," and "Departments," https://www.countyofessex.ca/ (accessed 19 March 2020).

The Faculty of Education, University of Windsor, was established on July 1, 1970, becoming the seventh faculty in the university. It replaced the Windsor Teachers' College, which had been founded in 1962, after the provincial government accepted the recommendation of the MacLeod Report that teacher education should be placed in the universities. The new Faculty of Education was located in the original Windsor Teachers' College building in South Windsor, with students using the athletics, social, and library facilities on the university's main campus. The long-term plan was to construct a new, purpose-built building for teacher training, but in 1992 the Faculty of Education instead relocated to a main campus building on Sunset Avenue recently vacated by the university's School of Business.

As of 2022, the Faculty of Education provides pre-service and undergraduate programs (both consecutive and concurrent) for teacher candidates, and graduate and continuing education for postgraduates and qualified teachers. Its mission statement explains that the Faculty "promotes the professional and scholarly growth of teachers at all levels as reflective, caring, competent and innovative educators," adding that its "undertakings are informed and shaped by a commitment to equity and social justice."

Sources: Contents of fonds; "Mission and History," Faculty of Education, University of Windsor, https://www.uwindsor.ca/education/about (accessed 30 November 2022).

The Canadian Abortion Rights Action League (CARAL) was a feminist group formed in 1974 (as The Canadian Association for Repeal of the Abortion Law) that focused on reproductive rights for women in Canada. Founded in protest of the incarceration of Dr. Henry Morgentaler (jailed for providing medically-supervised, safe abortions), its stated goal was to legalize abortion in Canada. It provided financial support for Morgentaler's challenge of the 1969 Abortion Law, lobbied for improved access to birth control and abortion services, and raised awareness of abortion-related issues. Provincial and local chapters were formed across Canada during the 1980s, and in 1982 it established a research arm known as Childbirth by Choice. In 2003 CARAL published a major study on abortion access in Canada; in 2004 it closed its operations. Its functions were taken up by two other groups in 2005: the Abortion Rights Coalition of Canada/Coalition pour le Droit a l'avortement au Canada (ARCC-CDAC) and a reproductive health resource group, Canadians for Choice (CFC).

The City of Windsor, Canada's southernmost city, occupies the northwest corner of Essex County along the shores of the Detroit River and Lake St. Clair. Incorporated in 1892, its roots stretch back much further. Indigenous people of the Three Fires Confederacy (Ojibwe, Odawa, and Potawatomi nations) knew this area as Wawiiatanong, and, along with peoples of the Huron-Wendat Confederacy and the Attawandaron (Neutral) nation, inhabited the area for countless generations before and after the arrival of Europeans. The French presence began with exploration and fur trade activity from 1640; Jesuit missionaries established a mission here in 1728; the first French settler families received land grants in 1749. The area came under British rule in 1763. In 1797 the village of Sandwich was established as the legislative seat of Upper Canada's Western District and an influx of British settlers followed. The village became a significant stop on the Underground Railroad after 1833 saw slavery abolished in the British Empire, and many African-American freedom seekers settled there. Sandwich prospered and achieved town status in 1858, but over the second half of the 19th century it lost ground to the small settlement further east (initially known as The Ferry, Richmond, or South Detroit) that named itself Windsor in 1836. Windsor benefitted from being made the western terminus of the Great Western Railway in 1854, gained town status in 1858, and was incorporated in 1892. A little further east, the company town of Walkerville took root in 1858 around the Hiram Walker & Sons distillery; further east again, the village of Ford City (home to the Ford Motor Company of Canada and many of its workers) was created in 1913 and became the City of East Windsor in 1929. Further east still, the primarily residential Town of Riverside was established in 1921. Collectively, these small communities spaced out along the river were informally known as the Border Cities, and shared a newspaper, the Border Cities Star.

In 1935 the Ontario government amalgamated Sandwich, Windsor, Walkerville and East Windsor into a larger City of Windsor, in order to save money on municipal governments. In 1966 Riverside, the planned-but-not-completed community of Ojibway, and parts of the townships of Sandwich East, Sandwich West, and Sandwich South were annexed to Windsor in order to expand the city's land and tax base. In 2003 a portion of the neighbouring Town of Tecumseh directly south of Windsor was annexed as well, creating the city's boundaries as they exist in 2020. Over the course of the 20th century the City of Windsor grew to become Canada's fifth-largest manufacturing centre, often led by the automotive sector. It continues to serve its historic role as a transportation hub for travel and trade within the Great Lakes system, and is frequently cited as the busiest crossing point between Canada and the United States.

The Esquesing Historical Society was founded on 1 January, 1975 in Georgetown, Ontario, to collect, preserve, research, publish, educate and disseminate information about the history of the geographical township of Esquesing in Halton Region. The Esquesing Historical Society Archives were established in 1982 in cooperation with the Georgetown Branch of the Halton Hills Libraries at 9 Church Street, Georgetown.

We collect, preserve and publicize the history of Esquesing Township, Halton County, Ontario. We also have items from neighbouring townships of Trafalgar, Chinguacousy, Caledon, Erin, Eramosa and Nassageweya. Sometimes items related to an Esquesing citizen is from further afield. The communities we cover are Stewarttown, Georgetown, Acton, the Scotch Block, which included the villages of Mansewood, Peru and Speyside. Norval was known as McNabsville. Limehouse, Ashgrove, Terra Cotta, Glen Williams, Ballinafad, Milton Heights, Dublin, Churchill, Glen Lawson, Dolly Varden, Silver Creek, Hornby east and west, Whaley.

The Toronto Ornithological Club (TOC) was established by Toronto area birders in order to facilitate cooperation and communication concerning ornithological studies within the Toronto area and between Toronto and other ornithological centres. The club maintained records of bird sightings each year in Toronto and adjoining areas until 2011. Present records by members are now submitted to E-Bird. Meetings generally include a short paper on an ornithological topic by one of the members or a guest speaker.

The formation of the TOC was first proposed in the fall of 1933 by Jim Baillie, Ott Devitt, Stu Downing, Bill Emery, Hubert Richardson, and R. Art Smith, who met to discuss the purpose of such a club, its proposed constitution, and to draw up a list of possible members. The first meeting was held on January 5, 1934; in addition to the founders, the meeting was attended by Albert Allin, Ed Deacon, John Edmonds, J.H. Fleming, Paul Harrington, Cliff Hope, Bob Lindsay, Thomas McIlwraith, Ross Rutter, Terry Shortt, Lester Snyder, Herb Southam, Murray Speirs, and Stuart Thompson. The charter members immediately voted to make J.H. Fleming an honorary member.

The TOC was managed by an Executive Council, with the secretary-treasurer responsible for collecting membership dues, paying bills, attending to correspondence, reading the roll-call at meetings, and appointing a chairman for each meeting. Women were not permitted as members until 1980, when Phyllis E. Mackay joined the Club. The TOC did not have a president until Hugh Currie’s appointment in 1991. It was at this time that Currie rewrote the by-laws creating and defining the post, as well as setting out the roles for the rest of the executive. Currie served until January 2000. He was followed by Marcel Gabhauer (2000-2002), Don Burton (2002-2005), Bob
Carswell (2005-September 2007), Margaret Kelch (acting President, 2007-2008), Kevin Seymour (2008-2013), Anne-Marie Leger (2014-2016), John Nishikawa (2016-2019), Justin Peter (2019-2020), and Emily Rondel (2020-present).

The Toronto Ornithological Club was incorporated by Ontario letters of patent of incorporation on November 23, 1987 and holds Ontario Corporation Number 741676. The original letters patent were amended by supplementary letters patent dated July 28, 2004, giving the organization charitable status so that it could receive donations and issue tax receipts to donors.

In 1934, the TOC ran its first ‘Fall Field Day’, during which the members went birding in different areas of York County. By 1944, the Fall Field Day was being held in the Durham region. The Field Day traditionally ended with a social gathering; from 1944-1979, the ‘round-up’ was held at Alf Bunker’s home in Ajax.

In 1958, the TOC took over the management of the Christmas Bird Count (CBC) from the Brodie Club. The purpose of the CBC was to count as many birds as possible within a 30-mile radius of the Royal Ontario Museum. In 1989, the area was reduced to 7.5 miles, centred on the ROM.

The first Reporting Guidelines were issued by the Bird Records Committee in 1989-1990, establishing the format for sending in monthly bird sightings to the editor of the Newsletter. Early attempts to start a TOC journal had been unsuccessful, but in 1990 the first TOC newsletter was issued, with George Fairfield as editor. It published the monthly bird records as well as other articles.

The first Bird Checklist for the GTA to be published by the TOC was issued in 1996. In 2000, the checklist and reporting guidelines for bird sightings were updated by Glenn Coady & Roy Smith, and published as the Greater Toronto Area Checklist and Reporting Guidelines.

A short-lived journal, Toronto Birds, was produced by the Bird Records Committee from January 2007-February 2011, and incorporated the ‘Greater Toronto Area Bird Report’ that had formerly been included in the Newsletter. The journal also included more scientific articles on bird sightings and populations.

The TOC held its 700th meeting in November 2002, and on January 5, 2009, celebrated its 75th
anniversary.

The TOC Historical Membership List, 1934-2008, compiled by Joan Winearls and Barbara Kalthoff, was issued in electronic form for that anniversary.

The 800th meeting of the Club was celebrated on November 12, 2012

It is believed that the Guelph Fountain Committee operated in the early to mid 1980s. Originally referred to as the Guelph Italian Fountain Committee, the group was charged with raising money for a fountain and statue called the family located today at St. George’s Square in Guelph. The Guelph Fountain Committee was believed to have been headquartered on Victoria Road. There pledge cards, publicity kits, and receipt forms were distributed. The Guelph Fountain Committee was a registered charity. It is believed the committee ceased operations once its fundraising goals were met.

Lumber firm Graham, Horne & Co. began operations in the Thunder Bay District in 1883 under John Thomas Horne and G.A. Graham. Their Fort William sawmill, on the Kaministiquia River, was one of the first in the region. The company was later bought out by Pigeon River Lumber Co. near the end of the 1890s. Both men held extensive interests in lumbering, mining, and railways. Both were also involved in real estate in Fort William and Port Arthur and elsewhere, especially as part of the Fort William City Investment Company.