Showing 183 results

The Canadian Bank of Commerce was first established on May 15, 1867 in Toronto, Ontario. Through amalgamations with regional banks, it grew to include branches across the country. With additional acquisitions in the 1920's, the bank became one of the strongest branch networks in Canada with well over 700 locations by 1929.

In 1936 the Canadian Bank of Commerce was the first bank in Canada to establish a personal loans department. At first, the bank would only issue loans, for a maximum of $1,000, in the Toronto and Hamilton areas. After the success of this pilot project, loans were extended to Canadians across the country.

During the second world war, the Canadian Bank of Commerce, along with other banks across Canada, assisted the government with the implementation of Victory Loans and War Ration coupons. The Victory Loan campaigns raised around $12 billion for the war effort, with almost three million Canadians buying war loan bonds. With the war ration coupons, banks became responsible for the accounting of food ration coupons in March, 1943 and gasoline ration coupons in April, 1944. The federal government first introduced ration coupons in April, 1942 for gasoline (until Aug 1945) and for certain food products in June, 1942 as a way of insuring equitable distribution of these supplies because of an acute shortage during the war. (Sugar - June 1942-1947, tea - 1942-Sept 1944, coffee - 1942-Sept 1944, butter - Dec 1942 -June 1947, meat - May 1943-March 1947, preserves - Dec 1943-1947, and in some areas evaporated milk - Dec 1943-1947.) After the initial year, the government decided banks in Canada were in a better position to handle the accounting aspect of the ration coupons and the banks agreed, provided they were able to limit the amount of paperwork involved. Dealers such as jobbers and brokers, wholesalers, creamery and cheese factories, importers of tea and coffee, retailers whose normal monthly gross sales in food exceeded $5,000, as well as businesses which served meals including the rationed goods, such as hotels, restaurants, and hospitals, were required to conduct ration bank accounts. With the ration bank accounts, these dealers and food server businesses would deposit and withdraw ration stamps in the same manner as financial accounts. Each ration product required a separate account for these businesses. When ration supplies were needed, a business would simply write a cheque in the amount of the ration stamps required from their specific product ration account. In turn, when customers purchased a rationed product, they would hand the business the required number of stamps and they would then deposit them into the specific ration accounts for their next purchase from their suppliers (both the businesses and the public were still required to pay cash for their rationed products along with the ration stamps.)

After the war, the Canadian Bank of Commerce increased their holdings to include branches in newly created suburbs and in 1954, along with the rest of the banks in Canada, began to offer mortgages for newly constructed homes. Prior to this time, all banks were barred from the mortgage business since 1871, leaving life insurance companies to offer the majority of mortgages to the public.

On June 1st 1961, the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce was formed through the merger of The Canadian Bank of Commerce and the Imperial Bank of Canada. The merger occurred due to both banks growth in the resource industry. The Imperial Bank of Canada was unable to keep up with the increasing needs of its resource industry clients and in an attempt to meet these needs and to ward off a possible buyout by a foreign bank, a new, larger bank was formed by the merger.

The Sudbury Branch of the Bank of Commerce first opened on June 22, 1929. Located on the corner of Elm and Elgin in the former Sterling Bank of Canada building, this bank became the eighth to locate to Sudbury (The Sterling Bank of Canada 1905-1924, opened January 30, 1909 in Sudbury. This bank merged with the Standard Bank of Canada in 1924 and the Standard Bank of Canada merged with the Canadian Bank of Commerce in 1928). The Town of Sudbury Building Permits record a H.R. Sheldon for Sterling Bank applying for a building permit on July 1, 1918 for 151 Elm Street. The building material included 80,000 bricks, 1,100 yards plastering, 1,000 cubic feet stone work, and 2,900 cubic feet concrete. This branch served as the main office in Sudbury until a larger branch was opened at the corner of Cedar and Lisgar Streets. As the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, the Elm and Elgin branch merged with the Cedar Street branch on October 24, 1997, leaving the Elm and Elgin Street location vacant.

The Wartime Prices and Trade Board is a former Canadian government agency, established on September 3, 1939, by the Mackenzie King government, under the authority of the War Measures Act, in the Department of Labour responsible for price controls and inflation control. The board was abolished in 1951, upon the lapse of the Continuation of Transitional Measures Act, 1947.

John Theberge (1940- ) was a professor and researcher in the Faculty of Environmental Studies, University of Waterloo, from 1972 until his retirement in 2000. Theberge received his BSc from the University of Guelph, MSc from the University of Toronto, and PhD from the University of British Columbia. John Theberge's career focused on his wolf research, pioneering a technique using vocal patterns to identify wolves. John Theberge and his co-researcher and wife Mary Theberge became Canada's premier timber wolf research team, receiving international recognition for their field research. In 1993, Equinox magazine proclaimed John and Mary Theberge "Environmentalist of the Year". In 1998 they were presented with the Harkin Medal from Canadian Parks and Wilderness Services.

The Tovell family of Toronto, in particular Harold Murchison Tovell (1887-1947), Ruth Massey Tovell (1889-1961) and their son Vincent Massey Tovell (b. 1922), was active in art circles in Toronto for several decades following the First World War. Harold Tovell and Ruth Massey married in 1910 and in 1913-1914 travelled in Europe, visiting the major art galleries. Returning to Toronto, they lived on the eastern edge of the city in Dentonia Park, the Massey estate, until 1936 when they moved to the city centre. The Tovells built a collection of works by Canadian and European artists. In France in 1926 they met French painter Marcel Duchamp (1887-1968) through their friend American author and artist Walter Pach (1883-1958). In 1928 they purchased a painting by Duchamp’s older half-brother Jacques Villon (1875-1963) at an exhibition in New York. They met Jacques and Gaby Villon in Paris in 1930 and corresponded with them until the 1960s. The Villons befriended Vincent who visited them in France in the years before the Second World War. From 1941 to 1947, the Tovells lived near Port Hope, Ontario. After her husband’s death, Mrs Tovell returned to live in Toronto. Harold and Ruth Tovell had three other sons: Walter (b. 1916), a geologist and Director of the Royal Ontario Museum 1972-1975, Freeman (b. 1918), diplomat and historian, and Harold (1919-2002), a physician. They bequeathed many of their artworks to the Royal Ontario Museum, the National Gallery of Canada and the Art Gallery of Ontario.

In 1986, Uniroyal Chemical Company was formed as a subsidiary of Avery Inc. Then, in 1989, Uniroyal Chemical Company Investors Holding bought Uniroyal Chemical Company from Avery and became Uniroyal Chemical Corporation. In 1996, Uniroyal Chemical Corporation went public and merged with Crompton & Knowles. In 1996, Uniroyal Chemical Corporation went public and merged with Crompton & Knowles. In 1999, Crompton & Knowles merged with Witco to form Crompton Corporation. In 2005, Crompton acquired Great Lakes Chemical Company, Inc., of West Lafayette, Indiana, to form Chemtura Corporation.

The University of British Columbia's Faculty of Law opened in September 1945. Prior to this, law students in British Columbia articled for three years and attended lectures given by the legal profession at the Vancouver Law School (V.L.S.) operated by the Law Society of British Columbia. After lengthy discussions a joint Law Society/UBC committee was struck in July 1945 to submit recommendations and plans for the establishment of a Faculty of Law. The University's Board of Governors and Senate approved the committee's recommendations late in August. The faculty's original staff consisted of George F. Curtis (professor and dean), Frederick Read and Alfred Watts. The Faculty was housed in converted army huts on campus and would remain there until 1952. Student enrollment increased significantly following World War II. By the early 1950s the Faculty had outgrown its accommodations and Dean Curtis began plans for a permanent Faculty of Law Building. Prime Minister Louis St. Laurent opened the new building in 1952. Curtis was succeeded in 1971 as Dean by Albert J. McClean. The Faculty continued to grow throughout the seventies, again raising the need for a larger building. In 1975 the existing building was remodelled and a new addition constructed. This new structure was completed in 1976 and named the George F. Curtis Building. In 1985 Chinese Legal Studies was added to the East Asian programme through a
joint U.B.C./Peking University exchange of legal scholars and graduate students. That same year also saw the establishment of a Cooperative Project in Law and Computers with IBM Canada.

Florence Vale, Canadian artist, was born on April 18, 1909 in llford, Essex, England and died on July 23, 2003 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Her family immigrated to Toronto two years after her birth, where she grew up with an interest in music. She married artist Albert Franck on June 8, 1929, and together they bought a house on Hazelton Avenue in Toronto which became a centre for artists, writers, musicians, and critics. Florence Vale was the mother of two children, Trudy (who died as an infant) and Anneke.
Florence Vale began to paint with her husband’s paints and brushes in the late 1940’s with no previous artistic training – only what she had learned under the influence of her husband and the artists who visited her home. Her art was influenced by Surrealism, Cubism, Expressionism, and the works of Paul Klee. After her husband’s death in 1973, Florence Vale continued to express her artistic ability with oil paints, collages, and ink, also including her own poetry in some of her works. Many of her works, most prominently after the death of her husband, were erotic, while still viewed by critics as keeping a whimsical, innocent tone. Her art appeared in exhibitions throughout Ontario, with exhibitions also in Quebec and New York, U.S.A. She was associated with the Gadatsy Gallery, Toronto.

Sir William Cornelius Van Horne (1843-1915), principal builder of the Canadian Pacific Railway and prominent businessman, was an important collector of paintings and Japanese ceramics and an accomplished amateur painter. Born in Illinois, he worked for American railway companies in various capacities until 1882, when he was appointed general manager of Canadian Pacific Railway, the construction of which was completed under his direction. In 1888, Van Horne was elected president of the company, and in 1899, he became president of its board of directors. He retired from active work in the company in 1910. Van Horne incorporated the Cuba Company in 1900 following a visit to that country; under its operations he built and operated a railway, sugar plantations and hotels. In North America, Van Horne was executive or director of more than 40 companies, and was considered one of Canada’s most successful businessmen. William Van Horne married Lucy Adaline, daughter of Erastus Hurd of Galesburg, Illinois, in 1867. They had 3 children: Adaline (1868-1941), William (1871-1876), and Richard Benedict (1877-1931). The family lived principally in Montreal, and also had residences in St. Andrews, New Brunswick, and in Cuba. Van Horne was knighted (KCMG) in 1894. Sir William’s art collection is considered to have been the most prominent pre-First World War collection in Montreal. It contained Old Master and 19th-century European paintings and Japanese ceramics, and also featured ship models and European decorative arts. Van Horne lent regularly to the Montreal Art Association (precursor to the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts) from 1887 to 1912. His reputation as a collector resulted in his appointment to the consultative committee of the Burlington Magazine in London from 1905 until his death in 1915. Following Sir William’s death, the bulk of his ceramics collection was left to the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto and the art collection passed to the joint ownership of Lady Van Horne and her children Adaline and Richard Benedict, according to terms of Sir William’s will. Lady Van Horne died in 1929. Under the terms of her will, a portion of the art collection went to the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts and the rest was shared among her children. Richard Benedict Van Horne died in 1931. His widow, Edith Molson, had no claim to any share in the remains of the art collection; subsequently she married R. Randolph Bruce. A fire at the Van Horne mansion in 1935 did not damage any paintings. Adaline Van Horne, who had been managing the collection through the 1930s, died unmarried and childless in 1941. Ownership of the collection then passed to Richard Benedict and Edith’s son William C.C. Van Horne (1907–1946) and his wife Margaret (d.1987), familiarly known as “Billie” (née Hannon). When William died, leaving no heir, ownership of the collection remained with his wife. Margaret Van Horne managed the art collection for over forty years, corresponding with art dealers and conservators in order to achieve optimal values for paintings. Numerous paintings were sold in several different auction sales over the course of this time. She continued to live in the Van Horne mansion until 1972. The house was demolished the following year to great protest in the architectural conservation community. When Margaret Van Horne died in 1987, the remainder of the collection passed to her brother Matthew Hannon. Upon Matthew Hannon’s death in 1988, the remainder of the art collection passed to his heirs.

J.A. Wainwright (1946- ) is a writer of poetry, fiction and non-fiction; and an emeritus Professor of English at Dalhousie University. He published Blazing Figures: A Life of Robert Markle (Waterloo, ON: Wilfrid Laurier University Press) in 2010.

The Walden Garden Club was first founded by Jean Narozanski in 1976. Narozanski was the municipal horticulturalist in Walden and also worked at the public library. She noticed a desire of residents to learn more about horticulture and founded the club to provide an outlet for various homeowners to discuss gardening. That same year, Narozanski also established Northern Perennials, a local gardening store. By 1980, Narozanski moved to Manitolan Island and the club discontinued around the mid 1980's.

Former Chairmen of the Walden Garden Club include;

Jean Narozanski 1976-1977
Evelyn Nelson 1977-1978
Myra Gauthier 1978-1979

In 1910 the Canada Synod and Synod of Central Canada of the Lutheran Church entered into an agreement to establish a Lutheran Seminary. Though the location first proposed for the Seminary was Toronto, Waterloo was selected when its citizens offered a tract of land on the boundary of the town. The choice of location was affected, too, by the fact that the majority of Lutherans in Ontario lived in the vicinity of Waterloo and Berlin (Kitchener). In 1911 the Evangelical Lutheran Seminary of Canada opened its doors.

Facilities for pre-theological education were established in 1914 with courses leading to senior matriculation given in Waterloo College School.

In 1924 the Waterloo College of Arts, providing courses in post-secondary education in a four year program, was established. In 1925 the Faculty of Arts, under the name of Waterloo College, affiliated with the University of Western Ontario. Waterloo College soon began to offer Honours degree programs in the arts.

The affiliation with the University of Western Ontario ended in 1960 when the Seminary obtained a revised charter changing the name of the institution to Waterloo Lutheran University.

On November 1, 1973, Waterloo Lutheran University became Wilfrid Laurier University, one of Ontario's provincially assisted universities after Bill 178 was given Royal Assent by the Lieutenant Governor (and former Waterloo Lutheran University Chancellor) William Ross Macdonald.

In September 1999, Laurier opened a campus in Brantford, Ontario.

Waterloo Lutheran Seminary (WLS) officially opened on October 30, 1911 in Waterloo, Ontario in a house located on five acres of land donated by the City of Waterloo. The first class consisted of four students and one full-time faculty member, Ottomar Lincke. Lincke would also serve as the first executive officer until 1914. In 1924, Waterloo College was established, providing courses in post-secondary education. The following year, the Seminary and Waterloo College affiliated with the University of Western Ontario (UWO) allowing students to earn an accredited degree. Women were allowed to attend to Waterloo College beginning in 1929.

In 1960 Waterloo College ended its affiliation with the University of Western Ontario and became an independent, degree granting institution called Waterloo Lutheran University that operated alongside the Seminary.

The current Seminary building was dedicated on October 20th, 1963. In 1973 Waterloo Lutheran University became a provincially-funded, secular institution and was renamed Wilfrid Laurier University. The Lutheran Church was no longer responsible for the operating the University but the Waterloo Lutheran Seminary remained a federated college of Wilfrid Laurier University.

In the 1980s, the Waterloo Lutheran Seminary gained full accreditation status in the Association of Theological Schools in the United States and Canada. In 1994, a Doctor of Ministry degree was added. The year 2010 saw the creation of the Kanata Centre for Worship and Global Song, which seeks to bridge the cultural gap between developed and less developed countries. Currently, the Seminary offers a variety of diploma, master’s and doctoral programs, as well as a Bachelor of Arts in Christian Studies and Global Citizenship.

In 1910 the Canada Synod and Synod of Central Canada of the Lutheran Church entered into an agreement to establish a Lutheran Seminary. Though the location first proposed for the Seminary was Toronto, Waterloo was selected when its citizens offered a tract of land on the boundary of the town. The choice of location was affected, too, by the fact that the majority of Lutherans in Ontario lived in the vicinity of Waterloo and Berlin (Kitchener). In 1911 the Evangelical Lutheran Seminary of Canada opened its doors.

Facilities for pre-theological education were established in 1914 with courses leading to senior matriculation given in Waterloo College School.

In 1924 the Waterloo College of Arts, providing courses in post-secondary education in a four year program, was established. In 1925 the Faculty of Arts, under the name of Waterloo College, affiliated with the University of Western Ontario. Waterloo College soon began to offer Honours degree programs in the arts.

The affiliation with the University of Western Ontario ended in 1960 when the Seminary obtained a revised charter changing the name of the institution to Waterloo Lutheran University.

On November 1, 1973, Waterloo Lutheran University became Wilfrid Laurier University, one of Ontario's provincially assisted universities after Bill 178 was given Royal Assent by the Lieutenant Governor, former Wilfrid Laurier University Chancellor William Ross Macdonald.

Jules Frederic Wegman was born in Neuchatel, Switzerland on 14 July 1865 and received his early education there. He came to the United States with his father Julius, also an architect, at the age of ten years and trained with him. At one point he was sent to Jerusalem to measure the city and its buildings, and his drawings were used to reproduce the city at the Worlds’ Fair at St. Louis in 1904. Wegmen then spent several years in the Chicago office of Daniel H. Burnham & Co., a leading figure of American architecture. He appears to have also worked there under his own name, and is credited with the design of the Newbury Building, South Wabash Avenue at East Ninth Street in Chicago, in 1896. In 1905 he was invited to join the Toronto firm of Darling & Pearson, and worked there until his death in 1931, becoming a partner in 1924. He worked on the Sun Life Building in Montreal, the North Toronto Station at Yonge and Summerhill, and the 1925 expansion of the Art Gallery of Toronto. He spoke at least four languages fluently and traveled widely, collecting photographs and drawings of architectural details. In 1911 he joined the Arts and Letters Club and lunched there regularly. In 1912 he was Chairman of the Toronto Chapter of the Ontario Association of Architects and he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada shortly before his death.