The Ward
The Life and Loss of Toronto's First Immigrant Neighbourhood
Will be published approx. on 9. July 2015
Book
Paperback/Softback
320 pages
978-1-55245-311-7 (ISBN)
Description
From the 1840s until the Second World War, waves of newcomers who migrated to Toronto -- Irish, Jewish, Italian, African American and Chinese, among others -- landed in 'The Ward.' Crammed with rundown housing and immigrant-owned businesses, this area, bordered by College and Queen, University and Yonge streets, was home to bootleggers, Chinese bachelors, workers from the nearby Eaton's garment factories and hard-working peddlers. But the City considered it a slum, and bulldozed the area in the late 1950s to make way for a new civic square. The Ward finally tells the diverse stories of this extraordinary and resilient neighbourhood through archival photos and contributions from a wide array of voices, including historians, politicians, architects, story--tellers, journalists and descendants of Ward residents. Their perspectives on playgrounds, tuberculosis, sex workers, newsies and even bathing bring The Ward to life and, in the process, raise important questions about how contemporary cities handle immigration, poverty and the geography of difference.
Reviews / Votes
'The Ward shines a light on one of Toronto's most historically significant and most forgotten neighbourhoods. Instead of a straight history, the book's editors opted to present the Ward through multiple short essays, each with its own unique point of view. The result is a fascinating and varied look at an area that once concurrently defined the city and acted as its biggest shame. As a result of the Ward's eventual razing, there are few artifacts left to teach newer generations about this important part of Toronto's history. This book helps correct that.' -- 2016 Toronto Book Awards Jury CitationMore details
Language
English
Place of publication
Toronto
Canada
Product notice
Paperback (trade)
Illustrations
100 B&W photographs
Dimensions
Height: 226 mm
Width: 151 mm
Thickness: 25 mm
Weight
660 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-55245-311-7 (9781552453117)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Persons
John Lorinc is an award-winning journalist who has contributed to Toronto Life, The Globe and Mail, National Post, Saturday Night, Report on Business, and Quill & Quire, among other publications. He has written extensively on amalgamation, education, sprawl, and other city issues. He is the recipient of two National Magazine Awards for his coverage of urban affairs. His first book, Opportunity Knocks: The Truth About Canada's Franchise Industry (1995), was shortlisted for the National Business Book Award. He lives in Toronto. Michael McClelland, OAA, FRAIC, is a registered architect with over twenty years of experience. He is actively involved in the promotion of Canada's architectural heritage and is a founding member of the Canadian Association of Professional Heritage Consultants (CAPHC). Prior to establishing E.R.A. Architects with Edwin Rowse in 1990, McClelland worked for the Toronto Historical Board. He is the recipient of a certificate of recognition from the Ontario Association of Architects and the Toronto Society of Architects for his outstanding contributions to architecture and a Fellow of the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada. Ellen Scheinberg is a historian, writer and the president of Heritage Professionals, which specializes in archival, museum and information management initiatives. She lives in Toronto. Tatum Taylor is a writer and heritage specialist at ERA Architects. She holds a master's degree in historic preservation from Columbia University, where she worked on the editorial team for the Future Anterior Journal. She is actively involved with ICOMOS Canada and the Architectural Conservancy of Ontario's Executive Committee. Her interests include the interpretation of under-documented community histories and the connections between place, memory and language.
Content
Contents & Contributors Introduction -- John Lorinc Searching for the Old Ward -- Shawn Micallef No Place Like Home -- Howard Akler Before the Ward: Macaulaytown - Stephen A. Otto My Grandmother the Bootlegger - Howard Moscoe Against All Odds: The Chinese Laundry -- Arlene Chan V-J Day -- Arlene Chan Merle Foster's Studio: 'A Spot Of Enchantment' - Terry Murray Missionary Work: The Fight for Jewish Souls -- Ellen Scheinberg King of the Ward -- Myer Siemiatycki Where the Rich Went for Vice -- Michael Redhill A Fresh Start: Black Toronto in the 19th Century -- Karolyn Smardz Frost Policing the Lord's Day -- Mariana Valverde 'The Maniac Chinaman' - Edward Keenan Elsie's Story -- Patte Rosebank Lawren Harris's Ward Period - Jim Burant 'Fool's Paradise': Hastings' Anti-Slum Crusade -- John Lorinc Strange Brew: The Underground Economy of Blind Pigs -- Ellen Scheinberg The Italian Consulate -- Andrea Addario Excerpt: The Italians in Toronto -- Emily P. Weaver Arthur Goss: Documenting Hardship -- Stephen Bulger Fresh Air: The Fight Against TB -- Cathy Crowe The Stone Yard -- Gaetan Heroux William James: Toronto's First Photojournalist -- Vincenzo Pietropaolo The Avenue Not Taken -- Michael McClelland Timothy Eaton's Stern Fortifications -- Michael Valpy Settling In: Central Neighbourhood House -- Ratna Omidvar and Ranjit Bhaskar Toronto's Girl with the Curls -- Ellen Scheinberg Chinese Cafes: Survival and Danger -- Ellen Scheinberg and Paul Yee Defiance and Divisions: The Great Eaton's Strike -- Ruth A. Frager Elizabeth Street: What the City Directories Reveal -- Denise Balkissoon Growing Up on Walton Street -- Cynthia MacDougall Revitalizing George Street: The Ward's Lessons -- Alina Chatterjee and Derek Ballantyne Taking Care of Business in the Ward -- Ellen Scheinberg A Magnificent Dome: The Great University Avenue Synagogue -- Jack Lipinsky Reading the Ward: The Inevitability of Loss -- Kim Storey and James Brown Toronto's First Little Italy -- John Lorinc The Elizabeth Street Playground, Revisited -- Bruce Kidd Divided Loyalties -- Sandra Shaul Crowded by Any Measure -- John Lorinc A Peddler and His Cart: The Ward's Rag Trade -- Deena Nathanson Toronto's Original Tenement: Wineberg Apartments -- Richard Dennis An Untimely Death -- Brian Banks Paper Pushers -- Ellen Scheinberg The BMR's Wake-Up Call -- Laurie Monsebraaten Excerpt: Report of the Medical Health Officer ... -- Charles J. Hastings Outpatients -- Thelma Wheatley Slum-Free: The Suburban Ideal -- Richard Harris The Glionna Clan and Toronto's First Little Italy -- John E. Zucchi The Hipp' -- Michael Posner Before Yorkville -- John Lorinc Public Baths: Schvitzing on Centre Avenue -- Ellen Scheinberg Sex Work and the Ward's Bachelor Society -- Elise Chenier The Health Advocates: McKeown on Hastings -- John Lorinc Remembering Toronto's First Chinatown -- Kristyn Wong-Tam Tabula Rasa -- Mark Kingwell Unrealized Renewal -- J. David Hulchanski A Short History of the 'Civic Square' Expropriation -- John Lorinc Storytelling is Part of the Story -- Tatum Taylor How We Think About What (Little) Survives -- Patrick Cummins Institutional Memory -- Scott James & Victor Russell Alternative Histories -- Michael McClelland