My Photo Taking Adventures!
April 27, 2004
Armed with my trusty MapArt maps 'Aurora, Newmarket, Keswick, Sutton' and 'Markham, Vaughan, Richmond Hill, Stouffville', I ventured forth into the wilds of York Region (and couldn't resist stopping at a convenience store and buying a delicious York Peppermint Patty chocolate bar!) and attempted to track down and photograph all of York's 26 Ontario Historical Plaques.
I actually didn't have too much trouble locating them. There were, however, three which I just couldn't find! The 'Samuel Lount' plaque should have been located in Anchor Park in Holland Landing. The park gates were locked. A sign near the entrance mentioned that the park had been rebuilt in 2002. Had the plaque been moved or removed? The second missing plaque was somewhere in Wesley Brooks Memorial Park in Newmarket. The guidebook mentioned two plaques in the park. I found one but no sign of the 'Founding of Newmarket' plaque. The missing third one was also apparently in Newmarket. The guidebook said it was located 'Near the Recreation Works Building on Queen Street'. I found Queen Street but no Recreation Works Building or plaque. Later at home, I sent emails to the Newmarket Library and the East Gwillimbury (Holland Landing) town hall.
April 22, 2004
Last time (April 20) I mentioned I was unable to locate a plaque in Confederation Square in Mississauga. Well, I emailed Mississauga Library about it and they got back to me right away and gave me directions to the plaque. It turns out the guidebook should not have mentioned Confederation Square but instead Confederation Parkway! Many thanks to the great people at the Mississauga Library.
Spent a day photographing 14 plaques in the Hamilton area. Three of the plaques are suffering from a kind of discolouration. I've found 18 plaques out of the 162 I've photographed to date that suffer from this discolouration. Here's an example.
I came across a mystery! Back on April 10 (see below) when I was last in Hamilton, I was not able to photograph the 'William Sherring' plaque located, according to the guidebook, 'In the main foyer of the city hall, 71 Main Street West, Hamilton' because it was closed on the Saturday I was there. Today, on York Boulevard, while searching for the plaque 'The Burlington Races' I came across the 'William Sherring' plaque! Has it been moved from city hall or is the guidebook wrong? I'll have to investigate.
The 'Dundas Mills' plaque was, according to the guidebook, located 'On the grounds of the House of Providence...' but no such building was there, just a vacant lot. I assume it was demolished.
The rest of the plaques were just about where the guidebook said they would be and I had no difficulty finding them. By the way, if you look closely at the Founding of Ancaster plaque, you'll see where small raindrops began landing in the fine layer of dust on the plaque just as I took the picture!
April 20, 2004
When I was in Waterloo Region on March 28, I was unable to locate a plaque in Hillside Park. Later I emailed the City of Waterloo inquiring as to its location. The email was answered by Rhonda Fetterly, who works for the city. She not only described how to get to the plaque but took a digital camera, photographed it and attached the photo to the email! I've now posted the page with her photo. Thanks, Rhonda!
I spent a cloudy day in Peel Region yesterday and managed to locate and photograph 12 of the 13 plaques there. I started the day in Bolton, a part of Caledon. The guidebook gave the plaque location as 'Queen Street North'. I've learned to be skeptical of such vague locations and so did a Google search of the net before leaving. I dug up the fact that it's actually in Laurel Hill Cemetery on Queen Street and sure enough, there it was.
I had no problem finding the two plaques in downtown Brampton as a few raindrops fell.
In Mississauga, another vague guidebook location 'On Lakeshore Blvd W just west of Dixie Rd' led me again to a search of the net. Unfortunately I couldn't find anything more precise so I ended up walking along Lakeshore Road (as it's called in Mississauga, not the Lakeshore Blvd mentioned in the guidebook) along the waterfront trail until I eventually came upon it.
The one plaque I couldn't find was apparently located 'In Confederation Square, Dundas Street'. Yes, there's a little street called Confederation Square south off Dundas Street west of Hurontario Street in Mississauga. But all it leads to are parking lots and lots of dumpsters! No plaque in site.
April 10, 2004
I took the GO express bus from Toronto to Hamilton on Saturday and managed to get eleven plaques photographed in the hours I was there. Had four problems altogether. The William Sherring plaque is located in the foyer of the City Hall which, unfortunately for me, was closed! The Co-operative Union of Canada plaque is supposed to be in Gore Park. Well, it's a small park but I was unable to locate it! There was, however, a crowd around due to Easter festivities. Although I got the Allan Studholme plaque, the sun was at such an angle that the raised letters on the plaque caused a shadow making it a little hard to read. Finally the Burlington Glass Works plaque was easy to find but it is almost completely obscured by growing vegetation all around it! All in all a good time in Hamilton.
April 9, 2004
Now here's a list of all the plaques in Toronto I've been unable to find and why.
1) Archives of Ontario - inaccessible at the Archives offices due to construction
2) Canada West's Fathers of Confederation - removed from the Ontario Legislature (Queen's Park) for unknown reasons
3) Charles Trick Currelly - removed due to construction at the Royal Ontario Museum
4) William Arthur Parks 1868-1936 - removed due to construction at the Royal Ontario Museum
5) Honourable Herbert Alexander Bruce, M.D. 1868-1963 - removed due to construction at the site of the former Wellesley Hospital
6) Toronto General Hospital - removed due to construction at the hospital site
7) Canada's First Air Mail Flight 1918 - missing from 970 Eglinton Avenue East for unknown reasons
8) Sir John Lefroy 1817-1890 - removed due to recent landscaping at the University of Toronto
9) Home of George Brown - missing from his former home for unknown reasons
10) William Lyon Mackenzie 1795-1861 - missing from Toronto City Hall for unknown reasons
11) Woodbine Race Course - missing due to redevelopment of the Greenwood Race Track area
12) The Honourable William McDougall 1822-1905 - Apparently somewhere in Lawrence Park but I'm unable to locate it
13) Scarborough Bluffs - Apparently somewhere in Scarborough Bluffs Park but I'm unable to locate it
14) Jean Baptiste Rousseaux 1758-1812 - Apparently somewhere in Etienne Brûlé Park but I'm unable to locate it
15) York University - Apparently somewhere on the university grounds but I'm unable to locate it
Anyone having any information on the whereabouts of these plaques is urged to
I'll give you credit on this site for any information leading to the capture (on digital camera) of any of these missing plaques!
April 8, 2004
With the exception of the 5 plaques on Toronto Island, I have now completed a visit to all the other 102 plaques (or where the plaques should be!) in Toronto.
Over the last 3 days, I have had the usual ups and downs looking for plaques. It took a while to find the Queen Street Mental Health Centre as it's a sprawling place and the guidebooks directions where not that clear! Another large area to cover was the search for the First Jewish Congregation in Canada West plaque at Holy Blossom Temple. I was about to surrender when there it was! Unfortunately, it's one of the English/French wall plaques. Instead of mounting two plaques together (one in French, the other in English) as they have done in the pass, this is a single plaque with both languages on it making the print small. It also makes it much harder to read in a photo! The Loring-Wyle Studio plaque is the only one so far embedded in a concrete angled slab on the ground.
A comment on plaques in general. There doesn't seem to be any standard as to the height of a plaque. I'm a short guy (5' 3") and some plaques are at my eye level but for a lot of them I have to bend my neck up to read them. This also makes it more difficult to photograph. I find I have to stand back a fair bit and use the camera's zoom to get a straight on photo!
By the way, I hope to get to Toronto Island when the ferries start their Spring schedule.
March 28, 2004
Travelled to Kitchener today where I met my brother Dave. Together we drove in his car, me navigating, to all 21 plaque sites in Waterloo Region. The day started cloudy but soon became full of sunshine. Sometimes a bright sunny day, however, is not preferable to a cloudy one. At times, I'll find a plaque with one side in English and the other in French (most have both sides in English) and when photographing it, the bright sun is behind the plaque which is not the best.
Before our trip today, I had plotted a route on a map of the region and we followed it from plaque to plaque. We came across four problems. Two of the plaques we could not find, however we searched the sites described in the guidebook (A Guide to Provincial Plaques in Ontario). The other two, Founders of Galt and Honourable James Young, had the base and post but the plaque itself was missing. All in all Dave and I had a great time. Thanks Dave for your help. By the way, on returning to Toronto, I've emailed the site's owner's about the problems we encountered.
March 27, 2004
Another overcast day. Travelled to far distant (for me) points in Toronto. All the way to Scarborough! The Scarborough Bluffs plaque was supposed to be located in Scarborough Bluffs Park but I found no sign of it. That's the third city park I've come across where a plaque seems to be missing. The other two are Lawrence Park and Etienne Brûlé Park. I'm going to contact the Toronto Parks and Recreation and see if they know anything about it.
I heard back from the Royal Ontario Museum regarding the email I sent them about the two plaques missing due to construction. They told me they were in storage and they had no plans to re-install them when construction is complete!
March 25, 2004
An overcast gloomy day today. Spent a couple of hours in and around Exhibition Place in Toronto (also know as the CNE grounds). I found all 8 plaques there without much trouble. The most difficult task was finding a place to park for free! I finally found two spots then walked around from those two locations.
On the way home, I stopped off at High Park and got the Colborne Lodge plaque. Then on to David Hornell School in Mimico where a tree had grown a branch over the years so that it partly obscured the Flight Lieutenant David Ernest Hornell plaque. The photo turned out readable but I'll contact the school next week about having it trimmed back.
March 23, 2004
A partly sunny cold windy day! Will spring never come? I had two objectives today. Replace some photos that had turned out poorly and add new sites. Also starting today, I decided to add photos of missing plaques, or at least where they would have been if not missing! All in all, a successful day.
March 19, 2004
A sunny but cold day here in Toronto. Took 10 plaque pics. I also retook the pics for McMaster Hall as I was not pleased with the originals. As usual in these trips, the unexpected happened. The Archives of Ontario plaque on Grenville Ave. was visible but it was behind construction netting. I made a note to try again in a month or two. The Honourable Herbert Alexander Bruce, M.D. plaque in front of The Wellesley Hospital has vanished due to construction. After taking the pics of the Toronto Horticultural Society in front of the Allan Gardens Conservatory, I went into the conservatory greenhouses and spent an enjoyable time warming up! Managed to take the pics of the two plaques in front of Ryerson University just as students flooded out! At the George Brown house on Beverley Street, there were plaques by the Government of Canada and Parks Canada but no Ontario plaque! The place was closed so I make a note to inquire later. The same thing at St. Stephen's Church on College Street; no plaque and no one to ask about it.
I added the 'About Me' page today as well as changing from a white background to a light blue on all the pages to reflect the blue of the plaques. By the way, if you have suggestions for better web page design for this site (or anything else), I'm always glad to hear about it. There are email links at the bottom of the Homepage and the About me page.
March 15, 2004
Had a fun day with eleven plaque pics taken! Always surprises! The Toronto General Hospital plaque on the north side of College St. east of University Ave. has vanished due to construction. Same with the Sir John Lefroy plaque at 10 King's College Road at the UofT. New landscaping at the front has resulted in the plaque vanishing.
Three plaques are listed in the 'Guide to Provincial Plaques in Ontario' book as being in the Provincial Legislature Building (also known as Queen's Park). I introduced myself to the woman at the info desk. She was kind enough to walk with me to the plaques (you are not allowed to roam at will in the building). The guidebook has one listed on the second floor when it's actually on the first and one of the three, it turns out, was removed a few years ago. I had to use the flash even though it produced some glare because it was so dark in the halls!
Finally, the Pontifical Institute of Mediæval Studies plaque on Queen's Park Crescent East is rather unique. Instead of having the inscription in English on one side and French on the other (as most of the other plaques do) it has it in French and English on one side and in Latin of the other! Later at home, I realized the French/English side photo I took is hard to read. The print is smaller than normal on that plaque (to fit in both languages) so I'll revisit it again soon and get closer! I've also emailed the Ontario Heritage Foundation about all the vanishings to date!
March 13, 2004
Went on the web yesterday to see if I could find the location of the Birthplace of Standard Time plaque. Sure enough I discovered that it is not on Richmond St. It's on Berti Street just around the corner. My 'Guide to Provincial Plaques in Ontario' is not always accurate I'm finding out!
Took four plaque pics today. The one of Lionel Conacher at Davenport and Yonge was swarming with pigeons as you'll notice in the pic.
March 10, 2004
Took nine plaque pics today. I ran into a few problems. There are 2 plaques at the corner of Queen St and University Ave. The one on the west side in front of the Campbell house has a homeless man sleeping in front of it. I made a note to return at a later date. The other one is in the median of University Avenue at the South African war memorial. It was partly obscured by mud and road debris. Made a note to email the Ontario Heritage Foundation about it (their web site asks people to let them know of any damaged plaques). Discovered that the plaque of William Lyon Mackenzie that is suppose to be at the west side of the Toronto city hall is nowhere to be seen. I inquired at the info desk inside but they didn't know where it was.
Searched the front of 60 Richmond St. E. but unable to locate the Birthplace of Standard Time plaque. The building at that location is rather derelict. Otherwise no trouble locating the plaques. Great sunny weather.
March 9, 2004
I know where three plaques are just from seeing them in the past, so while I'm downtown shopping, I decide to run a test and take some shots of the three plaques. The first is 'McMaster Hall' in front of the The Royal Conservatory of Music building on Bloor Street just west of the Royal Ontario Museum. I take three shots of the plaque and three of the building behind it.
I then walk east to the ROM and realize that the plaque in front of the ROM on the Bloor Street side is not there due to the ROM's construction! I then head over to the Bay department store on the NE corner of Bloor and Yonge Streets. I remember a plaque inside the building near the elevators. Sure enough it's there on the wall. The 'Moulton College' plaque. I again take three shots of it. The flash goes off but there's too much refection off the plaque. I turn off the flash and the pictures great. I then take three shots of the Bay store from across the street.
Back home, I upload the pictures into my Dell PC and make the decision then and there to go ahead and make a website!
A Little Background Info
First, I should introduce myself. I'm Alan L. Brown, a 58 year old retired (since June 2002) school librarian. For 28 years I was the librarian at Havenwood Public School in Mississauga run by the Peel District School Board. I've lived for the last 23 years in central Etobicoke. Since 1997 I've been running a website for kids called 'Just For Kids Who Love Books'.
My interest in plaques all stated in mid-February 2004 when, just browsing the stacks at the Eatonville branch of the Toronto Public Library in the Ontario travel section, a came across the book 'A Guide to Provincial Plaques in Ontario'. As I looked through it, I realized I had seen a lot of these plaques around and decided to borrow the book. After reading a bit of it, I got out my map of Ontario and began marking many of the plaques' locations. Then I did the same on my Toronto map. That's when the idea came into my mind to start a project of photographing the plaques and maybe put together a website. Tracking down all the plaques would give me an excuse to explore the city and province and learn a bit of history at the same time!
I did a Google search for Ontario plaques and ended up at the Ontario Heritage Foundation website. From there I went to their office on Adelaide Street in Toronto and bought the book and the appendix.
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