Tag Archives: Preservation

Knox United Church 175th Anniversary Tour

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Join us May 28th, 7 pm for a free tour of Knox United Church, Agincourt . The 175 year old church is located at the corner of Church Street (oops, Midland Avenue) and Main Street (uh oh, Sheppard Avenue), just north of the sawmill (oh no that’s long gone!)

Take this opportunity to discover:

  • the connection of this area with King Henry the V
    • what movie star is buried here
    • a tombstone competition
    • an unusual bank robbery
    • who was John Hill

Picture an area which esentially was fields, forests, streams, rivers and scattered settlements. Together let’s figure out what brought people together to create the Village of Agincourt.

Flyer for SHS tour of Knox United Church

A Century of learning at St. Augustine’s Seminary

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St. Augustine's Seminary in its 100th year, 2013. Photo: Jeremy Hopkin.

St. Augustine’s Seminary reaches the century mark, 2013.   Photo: Jeremy Hopkin.

On August 28, 2013, St. Augustine’s Catholic Seminary enters its 100th year of operation in Scarborough. To highlight this occasion, we look back to a newspaper article written by Rick Schofield, Scarborough’s Archivist.

1913 Catholic Seminary has world influence
St. Augustine’s first institution of higher learning

Richard Schofield: Scarborough’s Heritage
(Originally published in The Toronto Star, July 9, 1979)

“High above Lake Ontario near the edge of the Scarborough Bluffs stands the first institution of higher education to be built in the borough. It is not only historically important but also architecturally significant and thus has been recommended for designation under the terms of the Ontario Heritage Act.

A dedication notice for St. Augustine's Seminary. c/o Toronto Star.

A dedication notice for St. Augustine’s Seminary, 1913. -c/o Toronto Star.

St. Augustine’s Seminary was begun in 1910 and was one of the first reinforced concrete buildings in Toronto. The idea for the seminary for English-speaking Catholics was actually conceived in 1890 but it was not until Eugene O’Keefe gave his financial support that the dream became a reality. His generosity was heralded across the country and when the building was completed in 1913, it was the pride of Catholics across Canada.

Although the building has been open to the public on only three or four occasions in its 70-year history, its influence has been felt around the world. Although most of its graduates have been channeled into Ontario, the United States and around the globe.

 

During its early history, the seminary received the right to confer its own Bachelor of Sacred Theology degree and in 1938 was permitted to enroll some seminarians for arts degrees at the University of Toronto.

The military-style discipline ensures that seminarians act as ecclesiastical students at all times and the courses offered are not likely to appeal to the average university-oriented student. Latin, canon law, dogmatic, ascetic, moral and pastoral theology; scriptures, church history, sacred liturgy, ethics, languages and English literature all form part of the students program. Despite the concentration on studies and prayer, the seminary provides a wide variety of recreational activities and its library is thought to be one of the finest of its type in North America.

Early fundraising advertisement for St. Augustine's. c/o Toronto Star.

Early fundraising advertisement for St. Augustine’s Seminary, which highlights the role that O’Keefe played. – c/o Toronto Star.

Not disturbed by the heavy traffic along nearby Kingston Rd. and the new subdivisions and apartments that have sprung up in the area, St. Augustine’s has maintained its original 130-acre site with only a few minor alterations. Chine Drive Public School, St. Theresa’s Shrine Separate School and the Scarboro’ Foreign Mission Society all occupy small parcels of land adjacent to St. Augustine’s.

The main building was designed by architect A.W. Holmes and has been described as an educational-ecclesiastical building resembling the Ecole des Beaux-Arts style in France with some Italianate detailing. The bold dome, columned portico and beautifully proportioned windows are hallmarks of the classical style. The dome, especially, draws attention to the building and it’s almost impossible to drive along the Kingston Rd. without noticing this impressive building.”

*Editor’s notes:

1. The Seminary was purposely dedicated on August 28 to honour the death date of St. Augustine of Hippo, who lived from November 13, 354 – August 28, 430.
St. Augustine was an early Christian theologian whose writings are considered very influential in the development of Western Christianity and Western philosophy.
He was bishop of Hippo Regius (present-day Annaba, Algeria) located in the Roman province of Africa.

2. As its project to mark the centennial of St. Augustine’s Seminary, the Priests’ Alumni Association was entrusted with the restoration of the Seminary windows, 16 in total. Fundraising for the project began in 2009, restoration work began in July of 2013.
The restoration will not only bring the appearance of the building back to its original state, but will also greatly improve energy efficiency. Deterioration was visible both in the windows themselves and in the frames which enclose them. The original frames and sills, constructed in 1913, were weathered, dry rotted and entombed in sheet metal; a futile attempt to extend the life of the windows.

In the news: The Scarborough Hospital honours its past

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The Scarborough Hospital, April 2012. Photo: Jeremy Hopkin

*From www.insidetoronto.com, Apr. 22, 2012.

The Scarborough Hospital honours its past
Longtime doctor joins archive committee to preserve hospitals’ past.

Article By Danielle Milley

A lot has happened in the more than 50 years since The Scarborough Hospital opened and now there’s a group of people who’ve stepped up to document those five decades of history.

The hospital recently formed an archive committee to preserve the past of the 56-year-old general campus and the 27-year-old Birchmount site. Dr. Barney Giblon is one of the three co-chairs of the committee. The retired family physician has always been interested in preserving history and with his long history at the general site, he wanted to be a part of the committee. “I’m almost the longest serving physician on staff and I’ve always been interested in archives so when this ad appeared I thought ‘won’t this be a wonderful thing to do,'” he said. The hospital has a lot of information, but it’s also missing a lot so Giblon is glad the committee came about to preserve the history, photos and documents before they were lost.

With the general site being Scarborough’s first hospital, Giblon believes archiving TSH’s history isn’t just important for those associated with the hospital. “It is a really wonderful thing, not just for the people who worked at the hospital or who work there now, but for the whole community of Scarborough because it’s part of the history,” he said.

23-I-6.1 Scarborough General Hospital

The Scarborough General Hospital, circa 1961.

The archive committee is made up of volunteers, many of them former staff members such as Giblon. The goal is to collect, catalogue and preserve hospital memorabilia, including publications, photographs and documents from both campuses. The committee is reaching out to staff, physicians, volunteers and the community for any items that would be historically significant to the hospital in an effort to build the collection of hospital archives.

The committee has already been the recipient of a large donation of items from the family of Marion Goodchild, the hospital’s first medical laboratory technician and a member of the first group of 13 staff members to join the hospital in 1956. The donation included newspaper articles; programs from milestone events such as the hospital’s expansion in 1958 and its 25th anniversary celebration; copies of “The Pulse,” the hospital’s first newsletter, and a booklet developed in 1972 to commemorate the departure of the Sisters of Misericorde, the founders of TSH.

Goodchild was also an avid photographer and her collection of photo albums documented a variety of events at the hospital. “We are so grateful to Ms. Goodchild’s family for providing us with such a remarkable piece of our past,” said Anne Marie Males, the vice president of patient experience at TSH and the champion behind the creation of the archives committee. “Our hospitals have a rich heritage and we need to recognize and celebrate those individuals who helped build these hospitals and our community.”

Giblon is asking anyone else with documents, photos or stories to share them with the committee. “If people have memorabilia from the hospital we’d love to be able to access it, see it or copy it,” he said.

In the news: Annis house continues to welcome guests on Kingston Road

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16-D-4.2 Jeremiah Annis house

Jeremiah Annis house, c.1890

*From www.insidetoronto.com, Feb. 3, 2012.
Also published in the Scarborough Mirror, Feb. 3, 2012

Looking Back – By Rick Schofield

Early in 1975, the Scarborough Historical Society took steps to study the historic buildings still existing in Scarborough and to approach council to have them declared historic sites for preservation under the Ontario Heritage Act. Scarborough Council was most sympathetic at that time and was of great assistance.

The Jeremiah Annis house on Kingston Road, at Scarborough Golf Club Road, is one example of a designated historic site. Built in 1867 for the Annis family, the walls are a beautiful example of the stone work the early settlers of Scarborough were capable of creating. The fancy hand-made, wooden trim around the roof and verandah reflect how the builder took great pride in his work 100 years ago. That trim was recently restored by Douglas Roberts, a modern day heritage restoration carpenter.

The fieldstone house, with its gothic centre gable, was home to Jeremiah Annis, eleventh child of Levi Annis and Rhoda Conant.

Annis was a descendant of early Puritan settlers of Massachusetts, who came to Canada from the United States in 1793, and opened one of the first inns in 1808 for pioneer travellers along the Kingston Road. Jeremiah Annis and two of his sons long played leading parts in Scarborough’s municipal life as councillors, he in 1873, Levi E. 1889-1892, and William D. 1902-1907. William D. Annis also served as Township Reeve 1908-1912.

The stone house is a picturesque example of Upper Canadian vernacular architecture, with careful consideration given to the stone work. The former dwelling has since undergone several renovations to serve the commercial needs of today’s Kingston Road traveller.

Although the interior has been gutted, the exterior of the house has retained much of its 19th century charm. A large verandah, similar to the original, was added to replace a somewhat hideous addition built in the 1960s (before the general public had any control over such matters). While earlier renovations were not kind to the building, the recent changes have been a great improvement.

Unfortunately, the widening of Kingston Road and the change in land use did little to help retain its earlier “country home” environment.

In the 19th century Jeremiah Annis often welcomed guests who passed by on their way to or from Kingston on the stage coach line. Today, the stone house still welcomes those who pass by. Perhaps this was not what Annis had in mind when he built the house in 1867, but at least it has been saved from demolition and remains viable today as The Olde Stone Cottage Pub, one of Scarborough’s designated heritage properties.