History of Hamilton, Ontario
Encyclopedia
From the beginning, what is now Hamilton
has benefited from its geographical proximity to major land and water transportation routes along the Niagara Peninsula
and Lake Ontario
. Its strategic importance has created, by Canadian standards, a rich military history
which the city preserves.
And also from the beginning, the tension between maximizing economic growth and minimizing environmental damage was evident. The area between Burlington Bay
(also known as Hamilton Harbour) and the Niagara Escarpment
has been greatly altered for residential, industrial and recreational purposes. Cootes Paradise
in Dundas
also known as the Dundas Marsh, was a very rich wetland with plenty of fish
, birds and other game. Cootes Paradise was named after Captain Thomas Coote, a British army officer of Irish extraction who was stationed in the area at the time of the American revolutionary war in the 18th century. The richness of the valley led to population, and to degradation of the marsh, although its legal protection, starting in the 1880s, and the efforts of civic officials and others, have led to it still being of great environmental importance in the 21st century.
For about a century after achieving its status as a city in 1846, Hamilton has rightly seen itself in terms of industrial production. It adopted or acquired such nicknames as the Ambitious City, Steel City and the Birmingham
of Canada. However, after this period, other sectors of the economy
took over and Hamilton became a post-industrial economy but failed to change its image and self-image to match. Here then follows the growth of the Hamilton until the end of the Second World War.
Even in its early days when inhabited by Indians
, Hamilton's residents have had diverse ethnic, racial, national, religious and linguistic backgrounds. Since then, successive waves of immigration have crashed on Hamilton's shores, usually leaving some permanent evidence of their arrival in the names, buildings or institutions of the city.
south of the water line, the original inhabitants of the Hamilton area were Native North American Aboriginal peoples. The first Europe
an to visit what is now Hamilton was probably Étienne Brûlé
in 1616. Lasalle also visited the area, a fact commemorated at a park in nearby Burlington
.
In pre-became Upper Canada
in 1791 and ultimately Ontario
in 1867. These included Brant’s Ford (now Brantford) on the Grand River
in Brant County south of Hamilton, and Brant’s Block (now Burlington
) in Halton County north of Hamilton.
White United Empire Loyalists
moved into the Hamilton area during and after the American War of Independence as well, dramatically boosting the population and economic development of the region between the original Upper Canadian capital at Newark (now Niagara-on-the-Lake
) and the new one at York (now Toronto). This was to prove crucial, for the fighting between the United States and Britain was not yet over.
Administratively, the whole area was part of the Nassau District, which was renamed the Home District in 1792. Additionally, parts of the area were separately incorporated into the West Riding of York County
and First Riding of Lincoln County
. In 1798, most of the future Hamilton became part of Niagara District while remaining in Lincoln County.
when he purchased the Durand farm shortly after the War of 1812
. Nathaniel Hughson, a property owner to the north, cooperated with George Hamilton to prepare a proposal for a courthouse and jail on Hamilton's property. Hamilton offered the land to the crown for the future site. James Durand
, the local Member of the British Legislative Assembly, was empowered by Hughson and Hamilton to sell property holdings which later became the site of the town. As he had been instructed, Durand circulated the offers at York during a session of the Legislative Assembly and a new Gore District was established of which the Hamilton town site was a member. As such, Hamilton's future seemed to be shaped by a private collaboration of Hamilton, Hughson and Durand.
Initially the Town of Hamilton was not the dominant center of the Gore District. A permanent jail was not constructed until 1832 when a cut-stone design was completed on one of the two squares created in 1816, Prince's Square. Subsequently, the first police board and the town limits were defined by statute on February 13 of 1833.
After simmering treaty and border disputes finally erupted into the War of 1812
, the Hamilton area again became a strategic area. In 1813, the British regulars and Canadian militia defeated invading American troops at the Battle of Stoney Creek
which was fought in what is now a park in eastern Hamilton
. Burlington Heights, adjacent to the grounds of present-day Dundurn Park and Castle, was also a site commanding the entry to Burlington Bay
.
George Hamilton, a settler and local politician
, established a town site in the northern portion Barton Township after the war in 1815. He kept several east-west roads which were originally Indian trails, but the north-south streets were on a regular grid pattern. Streets were designated "East" or "West" if they crossed James Street
or King’s Highway No. 6. Streets were designated "North" or "South" if they crossed King Street or King’s Highway No. 8.
Gore Park, whose western boundary is King and James Streets
, formed the public square for the new settlement and has remained the centre of the city ever since. The original plot of land set aside for the courthouse
has had four different buildings erected on it. It was only supplanted as the court site by a move across the street in the 1990s as part of an architectural preservation project for the Post Office and Dominion Public Building.
Gore District of Upper Canada
and Wentworth County
were created in 1816, with Mr. Hamilton’s settlement as the seat for both. The county’s original constituent townships included the following, the territory of which became part of the amalgamated Hamilton in 2001: Ancaster
(later a town), Barton, Binbrook (later one half of Glanbrook), Glanford (later the other half of Glanbrook) and Saltfleet (later the town and city of Stoney Creek). Seneca and Brant Townships were also original constituents of the county but later became part of Brant County.
During the first half of the 19th century, Mr. Hamilton’s settlement in Barton Township steadily increased status at the expense of Dundas
. Growth was aided in 1827 by a channel cut to link Burlington Bay
directly with Lake Ontario
, thus improving its marine transportation. George Hamilton’s settlement was incorporated as a police
village in 1833. In comparison, the Desjardins Canal
to Dundas was at best an incomplete success. The physical structures, with living interpreters, of these pioneer days are preserved at Westfield Heritage Centre.
As railway
fever raced across North America
, Hamilton prematurely got in the act with the promotion of various paper lines in the 1830s. This included Allan Napier MacNab
’s Hamilton and Port Dover Railway which, although chartered in 1835, did not actually lay any track until the mid-1850s under a different corporate name. MacNab completed Dundurn Castle
, his stately home, in 1835. A boy soldier in the War of 1812
, he led Gore militia to crush insurgents in the Rebellion of 1837
for which he was knighted the following year.
As a result of municipal reorganization of Wentworth County, Caistor Township (earlier and later part of Haldimand County
) was briefly added in 1845. Hamilton received its city charter in 1846. Seneca, Onondaga and Caistor Townships were removed from the administration of county and replaced with three others from Halton County
: Beverly, East Flamborough and West Flamborough (which were amalgamated as the Town of Flamborough
1974-2000).
Hamilton City Council was based on a board of control, which effectively meant an executive committee of at-large city councillors controlled the city government. Mayors were short-term figureheads who changed mostly on practically an annual basis. The same year Hamilton became a city, Robert Smiley and a partner began publishing ‘’The Hamilton Spectator and Journal of Commerce’’.
As MacNab completed his two years as the premier of the united Province of Canada
, the newly renamed Great Western Railway
became Hamilton’s first functioning railway in 1854. Completion of this railway and the Niagara Suspension Bridge transforms Hamilton into a major centre and part of the American immigration
route from New York
or Boston
to Chicago
or Milwaukee. The GWR’s maintenance and marshalling yards were located in Hamilton, and the city got its first taste of the steel industry as it re-rolled rails imported from Britain
. Unfortunately, in 1857, 57 passengers were killed when a train
derailed near the Desjardins Canal
.
Not content with this relatively minor operation, dozens of small workshops and craftsmen banded together to smelt steel
rather than just mill steel. Easy access to limestone
from the Niagara Escarpment
, coal
mined in Appalachia
, iron ore mined from the Canadian Shield
and export markets through the Great Lakes
-St. Lawrence system made Hamilton an important iron
and steel
producing city.
Other industrial ventures conducted in the Ambitious City (a phrase adopted by ‘’The Spectator’’ from detractors in Toronto) and Birmingham
of Canada included manufactured tobacco
, beer
and other consumer products. It also became a centre for the textile industry
, which did not die out completely until the 1950s.
When the Dominion of Canada
was created in 1867, Hamilton was an enthusiastic partner in the bold new political enterprise and preached the joys of the British Empire
. The city was represented in the House of Commons
by one seat for the city proper and two for the remainder of the county (Wentworth South and Wentworth North).
Growing commercial and industrial prosperity prompted large scale emigration from the British Isles
. Many Irish
immigrants created a Corktown in the general vicinity of John
and Hunter Streets
. Patriotic Britons and native born Canadians of British stock erected many public monuments downtown to honour John A. Macdonald
, Queen Victoria
and the United Empire Loyalists
.
More people meant more demand for services and information. In 1874, the Hamilton Street Railway (HSR) began offering horse-drawn public transportation. Robert Smiley, the founding publisher of The Spectator, sold the newspaper to William Southam
in 1877 as the first link in the Southam newspaper chain. A unified and paid Hamilton Fire Department, replaced the numerous volunteer fire companies in 1879, led by fire chief Alexander Aitchison
.
The Hamilton area was also intimately connected with the early history of the telephone
. While staying at his parents’ Brantford home in neighbouring Brant County, Alexander Graham Bell
conceived of the idea of the telephone in 1874 and made the first experimental long distance call to Paris, Ontario
in 1876. The following year, retired Baptist
minister Thomas Peter Henderson become the first General Agent
for the telephone business in Canada. In 1878, the first telephone exchange in the British Empire
was opened in Hamilton by Hugh Cossart Baker, Jr.
On May 15, 1879 Hugh Cossart Baker Jr. makes Hamilton the site of the first commercial long distance telephone line in the British Empire
.
More workers and new immigrants encouraged a nascent trade union movement among skilled craftsmen. Hamilton unionists
and other working class people gave birth in 1872 the Nine Hour Movement, urging the government to limit working hours to nine per day.
A more modest but still unstable railway boom marked the last part of the 19th century too. The Toronto, Hamilton and Buffalo Railway
was incorporated in 1884, and by 1892 offered limited cargo service and ultimately passenger service. Electrical railways which sporadically linked Hamilton with Grimsby
, Beamsville, Brantford and Oakville
were established the following decade.
Modernization and business consolidation often went hand in hand with unionization. The HSR
converted to electrically powered vehicles in 1892. In keeping with the area’s reputation, the firefighters unionized in 1896.
As it was absorbed by Hamilton Electric Light and Power Company in 1899, HSR workers joined Division (now Local) 107 of the predecessor of the current Amalgamated Transit Union
.
But it was definitely not all work and no play for local residents. In 1894, Hamilton Herald newspaper and cigar store owner Billy Carroll established the Around the Bay Road Race
. The route circumnavigates Burlington Bay
and, although it is not a proper marathon, it is the longest continuously held long distance foot race in North America. It was won by such sporting greats as William “Billy” Sherring
, Tom Longboat
and Sam Mellor.
Adelaide Hoodless
and other founded the first Women’s Institute in Saltfleet Township (Stoney Creek) in 1897 and began her educational campaign for home economics
. A year after she died in 1910, one of Hamilton’s many new schools was named in her honour.
Hamiltonians, like other residents of the colonies, discovered one of the darker sides of British Imperialism when the South African War broke out in 1899. Men from Wentworth County and other Canadians volunteered to serve in the Canadian Mounted Rifles
or North-West Mounted Police
contingents. Although they excelled at the bitter guerrilla war
there against the Boers, its conclusion in 1902 served as an omen for the future
.
Ernest D’Israeli Smith, after being frustrated by paying to have his fruit transported from the Stoney Creek area, had founded a company in 1882 to market directly to wholesalers and eliminate the middleman. Smith & Sons Ltd.
continues operating today, and has since the early 1900s has sold manufactured preserves and jams. Its namesake founder served as the Conservative MP for Wentworth around the turn of the 20th century.
By the end of the century, symbolically marked by the death of Queen Victoria
in the first days of the 20th century, Hamilton expanded to the approximate limits of the Mountain Brow to the south, Chedoke Creek to the west and Gage Avenue
to the east.
Through natural increase and immigration, the urban Hamilton-rural Wentworth population balance shifted so much that in 1904 the federal ridings were redistributed. While the total number of MPs remained the same, two were now from the city proper (Hamilton East and Hamilton West) and one represented the rest of the county.
Hamilton had a momentous year in 1906: local boy Billy Sherring
won an Olympic
gold medal at Athens for the marathon. The Amalgamated Transit Union struck against the HSR in a bitter labour dispute. The working class voters of Hamilton East, sympathetic to the ATU, elected Allan Studholme as their Member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario
. For years he stood as the lone labour representative in the legislature, championing the eight hour day, workmen's compensation, the minimum wage
and women's suffrage
.
The steel industry continued to grow and finally consolidate through this period, some combining to form the Steel Company of Canada
in 1910 and others Dominion Steel Casting Company
in 1912. Stelco and Dofasco, as they became colloquially and then legally known, were located in the north end to take advantage of the transportation and cooling opportunities provided by access to the water.
The infant science of aviation
found early and enthusiastic supporters in Hamilton. Jack Elliot established an airport in the north end near Stelco which in 1911 hosted the first Canadian Air Meet. Pioneering aviator J.A.D. McCurdy won that contest, sponsored in part by the newly minted Hamilton Automobile Club (now CAA South-Central Ontario).
Emigration continued from Britain and the United States
(chiefly blacks) during this period as local museums show, but also began from other countries such as Italy
and Austria-Hungary
. Remarkably, thousands of Italian
Hamiltonians are descendants of emigrants in this period from a single Sicilian
town, commemorated by the dual naming of Murray Street as Corso Raculmuto.
Increased population and prosperity prompted a building boom. As a publicity stunt and raffle, workers and contractors built a house
in a day in 1913 which was later featured in a Ripley’s Believe It or Not cartoon. The same year, the Hamilton Public Library opened its new building funded by philanthropist Andrew Carnegie
. (The site was renovated and now houses the Family Court.)
Hamiltonians participated in the First World War
as combatants, but due to Col. Sir Sam Hughes
' mobilization plans for the Canadian Expeditionary Force
, there were no major battles associated purely with Hamiltonians. The Royal Hamilton Light Infantry later perpetuated the battle honours of four of these consecutively numbered Overseas Battalions of the CEF.
Heavy industry boomed as the Canadian and British governments' war driven demands for steel, arms, munitions and textiles increased. Unfortunately, in their quest to expand, the twin steel giants damaged the land by infilling Hamilton Harbour and burying or diverting many creeks which formerly flowed into the bay. War profiteering by manufacturers dampened some of the mood, but generally Hamiltonians pulled together.
The Great War was a somber affair, but post-war dream seemed secure in the Roaring Twenties
. The United Farmers of Ontario
won the most seats in the 1919 provincial election
and formed a coalition government
with the Independent Labour Party. Walter Rollo, Member of the Legislative Assembly for Hamilton West, became the first Ontario Minister of Labour in this government.
The Hamilton Board of Education resumed its ambitious building program for schools. Their names often honoured the memory of war veterans: Memorial School, Allenby School and Earl Kitchener School. The educational building boom was coupled with a residential housing boom in which hundreds of low-rise apartment buildings, of three to four stories and six to ten units, grew up across the city, especially in the east end.
Higher education—disregarding its normal school
or teachers college—arrived in Hamilton in 1930. McMaster University
was founded in Toronto as a Baptist institution of higher learning. Funded by a bequest of Senator William McMaster
in 1887, it was in danger of becoming absorbed by the University of Toronto
. Hamilton’s municipal government, civic boosters and ordinary residents lured the university to the city with grants of land and money in 1930. Not only did McMaster preserve its independence, but it began publishing The Silhouette student newspaper, now an award-winning weekly broadsheet.
Local boosters also ensured that Hamilton hosted the inaugural Empire Games, now known as the Commonwealth Games
in 1930. Amateur athletes from around the British Empire and Commonwealth gathered to compete at Hamilton Civic Stadium, the current site of Ivor Wynne Stadium
as a result of the efforts of Melville Marks Robinson
.
The Great Depression
of the 1930s
hit Hamilton hard. The simultaneous and prolonged decline in domestic consumption and international trade
in finished industrial goods and building supplies put a stop to residential and institutional construction for a decade. It was in this context of privation that Dr. Elizabeth Bagshaw
started her illegal birth control clinic in 1931.
Emotional relief from the Depression
was found in the Washingtons, local brothers who performed as a blues
quartet
throughout Ontario. Practical relief was found in government works projects designed to prime the economy
and which added to the long-term attractiveness of Hamilton.
Thomas B. McQuesten
, a Hamilton lawyer and MLA
, served as minister of transportation and chairman Niagara Parks Commission
starting in 1934. He spearheaded the construction of the Queen Elizabeth Way
, a controlled access highway which links Fort Erie
with Toronto
via Hamilton, and the Mountain access for Highway 20 in Stoney Creek. He also supported the construction of the Rock Gardens at the Royal Botanical Gardens
. Whitehern
, his downtown family home, now serves as a civic museum.
, Britain decided to shore up its support in the Dominions by having a royal visit to Canada
. When King George VI
and his consort Queen Elizabeth
visited Canada in May and June 1939, they stopped in Hamilton and also opened up the QEW.
Hamiltonians like others in Canada and the world welcomed the spike of economic demand caused by the Second World War
but not its source. Heavy industry again began spewing out its pollutants, and by the end of the war the ecological cost of pollution had taken its toll on Hamilton: heavy metals made fish from the Hamilton Harbour
inedible, air pollution
made breathing difficult and industrial dumps contaminated land.
Unlike the First World War, in this war the Canadian Army mobilized its territorially recruited militia units as a body rather than soliciting individuals to serve in conglomerated units. Men of the Royal Hamilton Light Infantry (colloquially known as the Rileys) and the rest of the 2nd Canadian Division
were mobilized early, but sat on their hands in Britain for two years. The Hamilton area was also active in the Royal Canadian Air Force
(RCAF): the city proper sponsored 424 “Tiger” Squadron by buying bombers to equip it.
On the home front, the public not only eagerly followed the progress of the war, but they also got a chance to see airmen in action. In 1940, as part of the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan
, the Royal Canadian Air Force
established a station in Glanford Township. Hundreds of Commonwealth
pilots and other aircrew were trained at RCAF Station Mount Hope, and some unfortunate ones are still buried there.
The army’s enforced idleness—disregarding their unsuccessful foray to France
in May 1940 and disastrous defence of Hong Kong
in December 1941—led to discontent in the army, the public and the government. In this atmosphere, the timing was ripe for Lord Louis Mountbatten
’s ill-advised and unauthorized raid-in-force
. The Rileys lost hundreds of its young men on a single day in 1942, when they were effectively wiped out as a fighting force at Dieppe
.
When the war
finally ended, Hamilton was a much different place. Women had permanently entered the paid workforce. The lean times of the Great Depression were over—and veterans were going to make sure that happened.
.jpg)
Hamilton, Ontario
Hamilton is a port city in the Canadian province of Ontario. Conceived by George Hamilton when he purchased the Durand farm shortly after the War of 1812, Hamilton has become the centre of a densely populated and industrialized region at the west end of Lake Ontario known as the Golden Horseshoe...
has benefited from its geographical proximity to major land and water transportation routes along the Niagara Peninsula
Niagara Peninsula
The Niagara Peninsula is the portion of Southern Ontario, Canada lying between the south shore of Lake Ontario and the north shore of Lake Erie. It stretches from the Niagara River in the east to Hamilton, Ontario in the west. The population of the peninsula is roughly 1,000,000 people...
and Lake Ontario
Lake Ontario
Lake Ontario is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is bounded on the north and southwest by the Canadian province of Ontario, and on the south by the American state of New York. Ontario, Canada's most populous province, was named for the lake. In the Wyandot language, ontarío means...
. Its strategic importance has created, by Canadian standards, a rich military history
Military history
Military history is a humanities discipline within the scope of general historical recording of armed conflict in the history of humanity, and its impact on the societies, their cultures, economies and changing intra and international relationships....
which the city preserves.
And also from the beginning, the tension between maximizing economic growth and minimizing environmental damage was evident. The area between Burlington Bay
Burlington Bay
Burlington Bay, known more commonly as Hamilton Harbour, lies on the western tip of Lake Ontario, bounded on the northwest by the City of Burlington, on the south by the City of Hamilton, and on the east by Hamilton Beach and Burlington Beach...
(also known as Hamilton Harbour) and the Niagara Escarpment
Niagara Escarpment
The Niagara Escarpment is a long escarpment, or cuesta, in the United States and Canada that runs westward from New York State, through Ontario, Michigan, Wisconsin and Illinois...
has been greatly altered for residential, industrial and recreational purposes. Cootes Paradise
Cootes Paradise
Cootes Paradise is the largest wetland at the western end of Lake Ontario, on the west side of Hamilton Harbour. It is bordered by the cities of Hamilton and Burlington, Ontario, Canada. It is owned and managed by the Royal Botanical Gardens , a private charitable status organization. These lands...
in Dundas
Dundas, Ontario
Dundas is a formerly independent town and now constituent community in the city of Hamilton in Ontario, Canada. It's nickname is the Valley Town. The population has been stable for decades at about twenty thousand, largely because it has not annexed rural land from the protected Dundas Valley...
also known as the Dundas Marsh, was a very rich wetland with plenty of fish
Fish
Fish are a paraphyletic group of organisms that consist of all gill-bearing aquatic vertebrate animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish, as well as various extinct related groups...
, birds and other game. Cootes Paradise was named after Captain Thomas Coote, a British army officer of Irish extraction who was stationed in the area at the time of the American revolutionary war in the 18th century. The richness of the valley led to population, and to degradation of the marsh, although its legal protection, starting in the 1880s, and the efforts of civic officials and others, have led to it still being of great environmental importance in the 21st century.
For about a century after achieving its status as a city in 1846, Hamilton has rightly seen itself in terms of industrial production. It adopted or acquired such nicknames as the Ambitious City, Steel City and the Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
of Canada. However, after this period, other sectors of the economy
Economy
An economy consists of the economic system of a country or other area; the labor, capital and land resources; and the manufacturing, trade, distribution, and consumption of goods and services of that area...
took over and Hamilton became a post-industrial economy but failed to change its image and self-image to match. Here then follows the growth of the Hamilton until the end of the Second World War.
Even in its early days when inhabited by Indians
First Nations
First Nations is a term that collectively refers to various Aboriginal peoples in Canada who are neither Inuit nor Métis. There are currently over 630 recognised First Nations governments or bands spread across Canada, roughly half of which are in the provinces of Ontario and British Columbia. The...
, Hamilton's residents have had diverse ethnic, racial, national, religious and linguistic backgrounds. Since then, successive waves of immigration have crashed on Hamilton's shores, usually leaving some permanent evidence of their arrival in the names, buildings or institutions of the city.
Pre-1811
Like most of the AmericasAmericas
The Americas, or America , are lands in the Western hemisphere, also known as the New World. In English, the plural form the Americas is often used to refer to the landmasses of North America and South America with their associated islands and regions, while the singular form America is primarily...
south of the water line, the original inhabitants of the Hamilton area were Native North American Aboriginal peoples. The first Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an to visit what is now Hamilton was probably Étienne Brûlé
Étienne Brûlé
Étienne Brûlé , was the first of European French explorers to journey along the St. Lawrence River with the Native Americans and to view Georgian Bay and Lake Huron Canada in the 17th century. A rugged outdoorsman, he took to the lifestyle of the First Nations and had a unique contribution to the...
in 1616. Lasalle also visited the area, a fact commemorated at a park in nearby Burlington
Burlington, Ontario
Burlington , is a city located in Halton Region at the western end of Lake Ontario. Burlington is part of the Greater Toronto Area, and is also included in the Hamilton Census Metropolitan Area. Physically, Burlington lies between the north shore of Lake Ontario and the Niagara Escarpment...
.
In pre-became Upper Canada
Upper Canada
The Province of Upper Canada was a political division in British Canada established in 1791 by the British Empire to govern the central third of the lands in British North America and to accommodate Loyalist refugees from the United States of America after the American Revolution...
in 1791 and ultimately Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
in 1867. These included Brant’s Ford (now Brantford) on the Grand River
Grand River (Ontario)
The Grand River is a large river in southwestern Ontario, Canada. From its source, it flows south through Grand Valley, Fergus, Elora, Waterloo, Kitchener, Cambridge, Paris, Brantford, Caledonia, and Cayuga before emptying into the north shore of Lake Erie south of Dunnville at Port Maitland...
in Brant County south of Hamilton, and Brant’s Block (now Burlington
Burlington, Ontario
Burlington , is a city located in Halton Region at the western end of Lake Ontario. Burlington is part of the Greater Toronto Area, and is also included in the Hamilton Census Metropolitan Area. Physically, Burlington lies between the north shore of Lake Ontario and the Niagara Escarpment...
) in Halton County north of Hamilton.
United Empire Loyalists
The name United Empire Loyalists is an honorific given after the fact to those American Loyalists who resettled in British North America and other British Colonies as an act of fealty to King George III after the British defeat in the American Revolutionary War and prior to the Treaty of Paris...
moved into the Hamilton area during and after the American War of Independence as well, dramatically boosting the population and economic development of the region between the original Upper Canadian capital at Newark (now Niagara-on-the-Lake
Niagara-on-the-Lake
Niagara-on-the-Lake is a Canadian town located in Southern Ontario where the Niagara River meets Lake Ontario in the Niagara Region of the southern part of the province of Ontario. It is located across the Niagara river from Youngstown, New York, USA...
) and the new one at York (now Toronto). This was to prove crucial, for the fighting between the United States and Britain was not yet over.
Administratively, the whole area was part of the Nassau District, which was renamed the Home District in 1792. Additionally, parts of the area were separately incorporated into the West Riding of York County
York County, Ontario
York County is a historic county in Upper Canada, Canada West, and the Canadian province of Ontario.York County was created in 1792 and was part of the jurisdiction of Home District of Upper Canada...
and First Riding of Lincoln County
Lincoln County, Ontario
Lincoln County is a historic county in the Canadian province of Ontario.The county was formed in 1792. In 1845, the southern portion of Lincoln County was separated to form Welland County....
. In 1798, most of the future Hamilton became part of Niagara District while remaining in Lincoln County.
1812-1844
The town of Hamilton was conceived by George HamiltonGeorge Hamilton (politician)
George Hamilton was a Canadian merchant and politician, who founded the city of Hamilton, Ontario.Hamiliton was born on October 1788 in Queenston Heights...
when he purchased the Durand farm shortly after the War of 1812
War of 1812
The War of 1812 was a military conflict fought between the forces of the United States of America and those of the British Empire. The Americans declared war in 1812 for several reasons, including trade restrictions because of Britain's ongoing war with France, impressment of American merchant...
. Nathaniel Hughson, a property owner to the north, cooperated with George Hamilton to prepare a proposal for a courthouse and jail on Hamilton's property. Hamilton offered the land to the crown for the future site. James Durand
James Durand
James Durand was a businessman and political figure in Upper Canada.He was born in Abergavenny, Wales in 1775 and came to Upper Canada in 1802 to deal with delinquent accounts on behalf of a group of London merchants. Having seized the Bridgewater Works at Chippawa, Durand purchased the operation...
, the local Member of the British Legislative Assembly, was empowered by Hughson and Hamilton to sell property holdings which later became the site of the town. As he had been instructed, Durand circulated the offers at York during a session of the Legislative Assembly and a new Gore District was established of which the Hamilton town site was a member. As such, Hamilton's future seemed to be shaped by a private collaboration of Hamilton, Hughson and Durand.
Initially the Town of Hamilton was not the dominant center of the Gore District. A permanent jail was not constructed until 1832 when a cut-stone design was completed on one of the two squares created in 1816, Prince's Square. Subsequently, the first police board and the town limits were defined by statute on February 13 of 1833.
After simmering treaty and border disputes finally erupted into the War of 1812
War of 1812
The War of 1812 was a military conflict fought between the forces of the United States of America and those of the British Empire. The Americans declared war in 1812 for several reasons, including trade restrictions because of Britain's ongoing war with France, impressment of American merchant...
, the Hamilton area again became a strategic area. In 1813, the British regulars and Canadian militia defeated invading American troops at the Battle of Stoney Creek
Battle of Stoney Creek
The Battle of Stoney Creek was fought on 6 June 1813 during the War of 1812 near present day Stoney Creek, Ontario. British units made a night attack on an American encampment...
which was fought in what is now a park in eastern Hamilton
Stoney Creek, Ontario
Stoney Creek is a community in Ontario, Canada.Note: This article will only deal with matters up to its amalgamation with Hamilton.-Geography and population:...
. Burlington Heights, adjacent to the grounds of present-day Dundurn Park and Castle, was also a site commanding the entry to Burlington Bay
Burlington Bay
Burlington Bay, known more commonly as Hamilton Harbour, lies on the western tip of Lake Ontario, bounded on the northwest by the City of Burlington, on the south by the City of Hamilton, and on the east by Hamilton Beach and Burlington Beach...
.
George Hamilton, a settler and local politician
Politician
A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...
, established a town site in the northern portion Barton Township after the war in 1815. He kept several east-west roads which were originally Indian trails, but the north-south streets were on a regular grid pattern. Streets were designated "East" or "West" if they crossed James Street
James Street (Hamilton, Ontario)
James Street is a Lower City arterial road in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. It starts off at the base of the Niagara Escarpment from James Mountain Road, a mountain-access road in the city, originally was a one-way street going south throughout but now has sections of it that are two-way...
or King’s Highway No. 6. Streets were designated "North" or "South" if they crossed King Street or King’s Highway No. 8.
Gore Park, whose western boundary is King and James Streets
James Street (Hamilton, Ontario)
James Street is a Lower City arterial road in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. It starts off at the base of the Niagara Escarpment from James Mountain Road, a mountain-access road in the city, originally was a one-way street going south throughout but now has sections of it that are two-way...
, formed the public square for the new settlement and has remained the centre of the city ever since. The original plot of land set aside for the courthouse
Courthouse
A courthouse is a building that is home to a local court of law and often the regional county government as well, although this is not the case in some larger cities. The term is common in North America. In most other English speaking countries, buildings which house courts of law are simply...
has had four different buildings erected on it. It was only supplanted as the court site by a move across the street in the 1990s as part of an architectural preservation project for the Post Office and Dominion Public Building.
Gore District of Upper Canada
Upper Canada
The Province of Upper Canada was a political division in British Canada established in 1791 by the British Empire to govern the central third of the lands in British North America and to accommodate Loyalist refugees from the United States of America after the American Revolution...
and Wentworth County
Wentworth County, Ontario
Wentworth County, area , is a historic county in the Canadian province of Ontario.It was created in 1816 as part of the Gore District in what was then Upper Canada and later Canada West...
were created in 1816, with Mr. Hamilton’s settlement as the seat for both. The county’s original constituent townships included the following, the territory of which became part of the amalgamated Hamilton in 2001: Ancaster
Ancaster, Ontario
Ancaster is a picturesque and historic community located on the Niagara escarpment, within the greater area of the city of Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. This former town was founded officially in 1793 and was one of the oldest European communities established in present day Ontario along with Windsor...
(later a town), Barton, Binbrook (later one half of Glanbrook), Glanford (later the other half of Glanbrook) and Saltfleet (later the town and city of Stoney Creek). Seneca and Brant Townships were also original constituents of the county but later became part of Brant County.
During the first half of the 19th century, Mr. Hamilton’s settlement in Barton Township steadily increased status at the expense of Dundas
Dundas, Ontario
Dundas is a formerly independent town and now constituent community in the city of Hamilton in Ontario, Canada. It's nickname is the Valley Town. The population has been stable for decades at about twenty thousand, largely because it has not annexed rural land from the protected Dundas Valley...
. Growth was aided in 1827 by a channel cut to link Burlington Bay
Burlington Bay
Burlington Bay, known more commonly as Hamilton Harbour, lies on the western tip of Lake Ontario, bounded on the northwest by the City of Burlington, on the south by the City of Hamilton, and on the east by Hamilton Beach and Burlington Beach...
directly with Lake Ontario
Lake Ontario
Lake Ontario is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is bounded on the north and southwest by the Canadian province of Ontario, and on the south by the American state of New York. Ontario, Canada's most populous province, was named for the lake. In the Wyandot language, ontarío means...
, thus improving its marine transportation. George Hamilton’s settlement was incorporated as a police
Police
The police is a personification of the state designated to put in practice the enforced law, protect property and reduce civil disorder in civilian matters. Their powers include the legitimized use of force...
village in 1833. In comparison, the Desjardins Canal
Desjardins Canal
The Desjardins Canal, named after its promoter Pierre Desjardins, was built to give Dundas, Ontario, easier access to Lake Ontario and the Great Lakes system of North America...
to Dundas was at best an incomplete success. The physical structures, with living interpreters, of these pioneer days are preserved at Westfield Heritage Centre.
As railway
Rail transport
Rail transport is a means of conveyance of passengers and goods by way of wheeled vehicles running on rail tracks. In contrast to road transport, where vehicles merely run on a prepared surface, rail vehicles are also directionally guided by the tracks they run on...
fever raced across North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
, Hamilton prematurely got in the act with the promotion of various paper lines in the 1830s. This included Allan Napier MacNab
Allan MacNab
Sir Allan Napier MacNab, 1st Baronet was a Canadian political leader and Premier of the Province of Canada before Canadian Confederation .-Biography:...
’s Hamilton and Port Dover Railway which, although chartered in 1835, did not actually lay any track until the mid-1850s under a different corporate name. MacNab completed Dundurn Castle
Dundurn Castle
Dundurn Castle is a historic neoclassical mansion on York Boulevard in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. The house took three years and $175,000.00 to build, and was completed in 1835....
, his stately home, in 1835. A boy soldier in the War of 1812
War of 1812
The War of 1812 was a military conflict fought between the forces of the United States of America and those of the British Empire. The Americans declared war in 1812 for several reasons, including trade restrictions because of Britain's ongoing war with France, impressment of American merchant...
, he led Gore militia to crush insurgents in the Rebellion of 1837
Upper Canada Rebellion
The Upper Canada Rebellion was, along with the Lower Canada Rebellion in Lower Canada, a rebellion against the British colonial government in 1837 and 1838. Collectively they are also known as the Rebellions of 1837.-Issues:...
for which he was knighted the following year.
1845-1866
Official City status was achieved on June 9, 1846.As a result of municipal reorganization of Wentworth County, Caistor Township (earlier and later part of Haldimand County
Haldimand County, Ontario
Haldimand is a rural city-status single-tier municipality on the Niagara Peninsula in Southern Ontario, Canada, on the north shore of Lake Erie, and on the Grand River. Municipal offices are located in Cayuga....
) was briefly added in 1845. Hamilton received its city charter in 1846. Seneca, Onondaga and Caistor Townships were removed from the administration of county and replaced with three others from Halton County
Halton County, Ontario
Halton County is a historic county in the Canadian province of Ontario. It is also one of the oldest counties in Canada.-History:Halton County is named after Major William Mathew Halton who was appointed in 1805 as Secretary to the Upper Canada provincial Lieutenant-Governor Sir Francis...
: Beverly, East Flamborough and West Flamborough (which were amalgamated as the Town of Flamborough
Flamborough, Ontario
Flamborough is a former town near, and a current community in, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada....
1974-2000).
Hamilton City Council was based on a board of control, which effectively meant an executive committee of at-large city councillors controlled the city government. Mayors were short-term figureheads who changed mostly on practically an annual basis. The same year Hamilton became a city, Robert Smiley and a partner began publishing ‘’The Hamilton Spectator and Journal of Commerce’’.
Province of Canada
The Province of Canada, United Province of Canada, or the United Canadas was a British colony in North America from 1841 to 1867. Its formation reflected recommendations made by John Lambton, 1st Earl of Durham in the Report on the Affairs of British North America following the Rebellions of...
, the newly renamed Great Western Railway
Great Western Railway (Ontario)
The Great Western Railway was a historic Canadian railway that operated in Canada West and later the province of Ontario, following Confederation...
became Hamilton’s first functioning railway in 1854. Completion of this railway and the Niagara Suspension Bridge transforms Hamilton into a major centre and part of the American immigration
Immigration
Immigration is the act of foreigners passing or coming into a country for the purpose of permanent residence...
route from New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
or Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
to Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
or Milwaukee. The GWR’s maintenance and marshalling yards were located in Hamilton, and the city got its first taste of the steel industry as it re-rolled rails imported from Britain
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. Unfortunately, in 1857, 57 passengers were killed when a train
Train
A train is a connected series of vehicles for rail transport that move along a track to transport cargo or passengers from one place to another place. The track usually consists of two rails, but might also be a monorail or maglev guideway.Propulsion for the train is provided by a separate...
derailed near the Desjardins Canal
Desjardins Canal
The Desjardins Canal, named after its promoter Pierre Desjardins, was built to give Dundas, Ontario, easier access to Lake Ontario and the Great Lakes system of North America...
.
Not content with this relatively minor operation, dozens of small workshops and craftsmen banded together to smelt steel
Steel
Steel is an alloy that consists mostly of iron and has a carbon content between 0.2% and 2.1% by weight, depending on the grade. Carbon is the most common alloying material for iron, but various other alloying elements are used, such as manganese, chromium, vanadium, and tungsten...
rather than just mill steel. Easy access to limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
from the Niagara Escarpment
Niagara Escarpment
The Niagara Escarpment is a long escarpment, or cuesta, in the United States and Canada that runs westward from New York State, through Ontario, Michigan, Wisconsin and Illinois...
, coal
Coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...
mined in Appalachia
Appalachia
Appalachia is a term used to describe a cultural region in the eastern United States that stretches from the Southern Tier of New York state to northern Alabama, Mississippi, and Georgia. While the Appalachian Mountains stretch from Belle Isle in Canada to Cheaha Mountain in the U.S...
, iron ore mined from the Canadian Shield
Canadian Shield
The Canadian Shield, also called the Laurentian Plateau, or Bouclier Canadien , is a vast geological shield covered by a thin layer of soil that forms the nucleus of the North American or Laurentia craton. It is an area mostly composed of igneous rock which relates to its long volcanic history...
and export markets through the Great Lakes
Great Lakes
The Great Lakes are a collection of freshwater lakes located in northeastern North America, on the Canada – United States border. Consisting of Lakes Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie, and Ontario, they form the largest group of freshwater lakes on Earth by total surface, coming in second by volume...
-St. Lawrence system made Hamilton an important iron
Iron
Iron is a chemical element with the symbol Fe and atomic number 26. It is a metal in the first transition series. It is the most common element forming the planet Earth as a whole, forming much of Earth's outer and inner core. It is the fourth most common element in the Earth's crust...
and steel
Steel
Steel is an alloy that consists mostly of iron and has a carbon content between 0.2% and 2.1% by weight, depending on the grade. Carbon is the most common alloying material for iron, but various other alloying elements are used, such as manganese, chromium, vanadium, and tungsten...
producing city.
Other industrial ventures conducted in the Ambitious City (a phrase adopted by ‘’The Spectator’’ from detractors in Toronto) and Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
of Canada included manufactured tobacco
Tobacco
Tobacco is an agricultural product processed from the leaves of plants in the genus Nicotiana. It can be consumed, used as a pesticide and, in the form of nicotine tartrate, used in some medicines...
, beer
Beer
Beer is the world's most widely consumed andprobably oldest alcoholic beverage; it is the third most popular drink overall, after water and tea. It is produced by the brewing and fermentation of sugars, mainly derived from malted cereal grains, most commonly malted barley and malted wheat...
and other consumer products. It also became a centre for the textile industry
Textile industry
The textile industry is primarily concerned with the production of yarn, and cloth and the subsequent design or manufacture of clothing and their distribution. The raw material may be natural, or synthetic using products of the chemical industry....
, which did not die out completely until the 1950s.
1867-1892
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
was created in 1867, Hamilton was an enthusiastic partner in the bold new political enterprise and preached the joys of the British Empire
British Empire
The British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom. It originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height, it was the...
. The city was represented in the House of Commons
Canadian House of Commons
The House of Commons of Canada is a component of the Parliament of Canada, along with the Sovereign and the Senate. The House of Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 308 members known as Members of Parliament...
by one seat for the city proper and two for the remainder of the county (Wentworth South and Wentworth North).
Growing commercial and industrial prosperity prompted large scale emigration from the British Isles
British Isles
The British Isles are a group of islands off the northwest coast of continental Europe that include the islands of Great Britain and Ireland and over six thousand smaller isles. There are two sovereign states located on the islands: the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and...
. Many Irish
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
immigrants created a Corktown in the general vicinity of John
John Street (Hamilton, Ontario)
John Street, is a Lower City arterial road in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. Originally it was known as Mountain Road or Ancaster Road. It starts off at the base of Arkledun Avenue, a Mountain-access road in the city, just east of St.Joseph's Hospital where it's a one-way street going north and tunnels...
and Hunter Streets
Hunter Street (Hamilton, Ontario)
Hunter Street is a Lower City collector road in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. It is a one-way street that starts West of Locke Street at Hill Street Park and ends two blocks East of Victoria Avenue at Emerald Street...
. Patriotic Britons and native born Canadians of British stock erected many public monuments downtown to honour John A. Macdonald
John A. Macdonald
Sir John Alexander Macdonald, GCB, KCMG, PC, PC , QC was the first Prime Minister of Canada. The dominant figure of Canadian Confederation, his political career spanned almost half a century...
, Queen Victoria
Victoria of the United Kingdom
Victoria was the monarch of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death. From 1 May 1876, she used the additional title of Empress of India....
and the United Empire Loyalists
United Empire Loyalists
The name United Empire Loyalists is an honorific given after the fact to those American Loyalists who resettled in British North America and other British Colonies as an act of fealty to King George III after the British defeat in the American Revolutionary War and prior to the Treaty of Paris...
.
More people meant more demand for services and information. In 1874, the Hamilton Street Railway (HSR) began offering horse-drawn public transportation. Robert Smiley, the founding publisher of The Spectator, sold the newspaper to William Southam
William Southam
William Southam was a Canadian newspaper publisher. Born in Montreal, Quebec, he began his newspaper career working for the London Free Press. The first newspaper he bought was the Hamilton Spectator...
in 1877 as the first link in the Southam newspaper chain. A unified and paid Hamilton Fire Department, replaced the numerous volunteer fire companies in 1879, led by fire chief Alexander Aitchison
Alexander Aitchison
Alexander Aitchison was the first full-time fire chief for the city of Hamilton, Ontario.- Early life :Alexander Aitchison was born on May 20, 1850 at Binghamton, New York to parents William and Janet. Although the family moved to Hamilton, Ontario in 1853, Alexander returned to New York upon...
.
The Hamilton area was also intimately connected with the early history of the telephone
Telephone
The telephone , colloquially referred to as a phone, is a telecommunications device that transmits and receives sounds, usually the human voice. Telephones are a point-to-point communication system whose most basic function is to allow two people separated by large distances to talk to each other...
. While staying at his parents’ Brantford home in neighbouring Brant County, Alexander Graham Bell
Alexander Graham Bell
Alexander Graham Bell was an eminent scientist, inventor, engineer and innovator who is credited with inventing the first practical telephone....
conceived of the idea of the telephone in 1874 and made the first experimental long distance call to Paris, Ontario
Paris, Ontario
Paris, Ontario is a community on the Grand River in Ontario, Canada. The town was established in 1850. In 1999, its town government was amalgamated into that of the County of Brant, Ontario, thus ending about 149 years as a separate incorporated municipality.-History:The town was first settled in...
in 1876. The following year, retired Baptist
Baptist
Baptists comprise a group of Christian denominations and churches that subscribe to a doctrine that baptism should be performed only for professing believers , and that it must be done by immersion...
minister Thomas Peter Henderson become the first General Agent
General Agent
A General Agent is an agent, i.e., representative of another, who has a mandate of general nature.-Colonial use:In the Niger Rivers District the only Senior Agent, who administered the region for the National African Company Limited , was promoted in 1882 to become the first...
for the telephone business in Canada. In 1878, the first telephone exchange in the British Empire
British Empire
The British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom. It originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height, it was the...
was opened in Hamilton by Hugh Cossart Baker, Jr.
Hugh Cossart Baker, Jr.
Hugh Cossart Baker, Jr. , Businessman, telephone pioneer.On June 20, 1877, Hugh Cossart Baker, Jr. started up the first commercial telephone service in Canada in the city of Hamilton, Ontario. Then in 1878, he made the first telephone exchange in the British Empire...
On May 15, 1879 Hugh Cossart Baker Jr. makes Hamilton the site of the first commercial long distance telephone line in the British Empire
British Empire
The British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom. It originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height, it was the...
.
More workers and new immigrants encouraged a nascent trade union movement among skilled craftsmen. Hamilton unionists
Trade union
A trade union, trades union or labor union is an organization of workers that have banded together to achieve common goals such as better working conditions. The trade union, through its leadership, bargains with the employer on behalf of union members and negotiates labour contracts with...
and other working class people gave birth in 1872 the Nine Hour Movement, urging the government to limit working hours to nine per day.
A more modest but still unstable railway boom marked the last part of the 19th century too. The Toronto, Hamilton and Buffalo Railway
Toronto, Hamilton and Buffalo Railway
The Toronto, Hamilton and Buffalo Railway was a railway based in Hamilton that ran in Southern Ontario from 1894 to 1987. It never reached the other two cities in its name, although it did have branch lines extending to Dunnville and Port Maitland.-History:...
was incorporated in 1884, and by 1892 offered limited cargo service and ultimately passenger service. Electrical railways which sporadically linked Hamilton with Grimsby
Grimsby, Ontario
Grimsby is a town on Lake Ontario in the Niagara Region, Ontario, Canada. Grimsby is a part of the Hamilton Census Metropolitan Area. The majority of residents reside in the area bounded by Lake Ontario and the Niagara escarpment...
, Beamsville, Brantford and Oakville
Oakville, Ontario
Oakville is a town in Halton Region, on Lake Ontario in Southern Ontario, Canada, and is part of the Greater Toronto Area. As of the 2006 census the population was 165,613.-History:In 1793, Dundas Street was surveyed for a military road...
were established the following decade.
1893-1905
Hamilton Street Railway
The Hamilton Street Railway Company is the Transit Division of the City of Hamilton, Public Works Department in Ontario, Canada. The name is a legacy of the days when the majority of public transit vehicles were streetcars; the present-day Hamilton Street Railway is in fact a bus operator...
converted to electrically powered vehicles in 1892. In keeping with the area’s reputation, the firefighters unionized in 1896.
As it was absorbed by Hamilton Electric Light and Power Company in 1899, HSR workers joined Division (now Local) 107 of the predecessor of the current Amalgamated Transit Union
Amalgamated Transit Union
The Amalgamated Transit Union is a labor union in the United States and The Amalgamated Transit Union Canadian Council in Canada, representing workers in the transit system and other industries...
.
But it was definitely not all work and no play for local residents. In 1894, Hamilton Herald newspaper and cigar store owner Billy Carroll established the Around the Bay Road Race
Around the Bay Road Race
Around the Bay Road Race, is the oldest long distance road race in North America, held in Hamilton, Ontario since 1894, nearly three years before the Boston Marathon, though is not marathon length...
. The route circumnavigates Burlington Bay
Burlington Bay
Burlington Bay, known more commonly as Hamilton Harbour, lies on the western tip of Lake Ontario, bounded on the northwest by the City of Burlington, on the south by the City of Hamilton, and on the east by Hamilton Beach and Burlington Beach...
and, although it is not a proper marathon, it is the longest continuously held long distance foot race in North America. It was won by such sporting greats as William “Billy” Sherring
William Sherring
Billy Sherring was an Irish Canadian athlete, winner of the marathon race at the 1906 Intercalated Games ....
, Tom Longboat
Tom Longboat
Cogwagee was an Onondaga distance runner from the Six Nations of the Grand River First Nation Indian reserve near Brantford, Ontario, and for much of his career the dominant long distance runner of the time...
and Sam Mellor.
Adelaide Hoodless
Adelaide Hoodless
Adelaide Hoodless née Hunter was a Canadian educational reformer who founded the international women’s organization known as the Women's Institute....
and other founded the first Women’s Institute in Saltfleet Township (Stoney Creek) in 1897 and began her educational campaign for home economics
Home Economics
Home economics is the profession and field of study that deals with the economics and management of the home and community...
. A year after she died in 1910, one of Hamilton’s many new schools was named in her honour.
Hamiltonians, like other residents of the colonies, discovered one of the darker sides of British Imperialism when the South African War broke out in 1899. Men from Wentworth County and other Canadians volunteered to serve in the Canadian Mounted Rifles
Canadian Mounted Rifles
Canadian Mounted Rifles was part of the designation of several mounted infantry units in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.* The Canadian Mounted Rifle Corps, formed in 1885, now part of The Royal Canadian Dragoons...
or North-West Mounted Police
Royal Canadian Mounted Police
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police , literally ‘Royal Gendarmerie of Canada’; colloquially known as The Mounties, and internally as ‘The Force’) is the national police force of Canada, and one of the most recognized of its kind in the world. It is unique in the world as a national, federal,...
contingents. Although they excelled at the bitter guerrilla war
Guerrilla warfare
Guerrilla warfare is a form of irregular warfare and refers to conflicts in which a small group of combatants including, but not limited to, armed civilians use military tactics, such as ambushes, sabotage, raids, the element of surprise, and extraordinary mobility to harass a larger and...
there against the Boers, its conclusion in 1902 served as an omen for the future
Future
The future is the indefinite time period after the present. Its arrival is considered inevitable due to the existence of time and the laws of physics. Due to the nature of the reality and the unavoidability of the future, everything that currently exists and will exist is temporary and will come...
.
Ernest D’Israeli Smith, after being frustrated by paying to have his fruit transported from the Stoney Creek area, had founded a company in 1882 to market directly to wholesalers and eliminate the middleman. Smith & Sons Ltd.
E. D. Smith
Ernest D'Israeli Smith was a Canadian businessman and politician who founded a food company that bears his name....
continues operating today, and has since the early 1900s has sold manufactured preserves and jams. Its namesake founder served as the Conservative MP for Wentworth around the turn of the 20th century.
By the end of the century, symbolically marked by the death of Queen Victoria
Victoria of the United Kingdom
Victoria was the monarch of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death. From 1 May 1876, she used the additional title of Empress of India....
in the first days of the 20th century, Hamilton expanded to the approximate limits of the Mountain Brow to the south, Chedoke Creek to the west and Gage Avenue
Gage Avenue (Hamilton, Ontario)
thumb|right|350px|Gage Park WaterfountainGage Avenue, is a Lower City arterial road in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. It starts off at Lawrence Road at the base of the Niagara Escarpment at the south end of Gage Park...
to the east.
Through natural increase and immigration, the urban Hamilton-rural Wentworth population balance shifted so much that in 1904 the federal ridings were redistributed. While the total number of MPs remained the same, two were now from the city proper (Hamilton East and Hamilton West) and one represented the rest of the county.
1906-1918
William Sherring
Billy Sherring was an Irish Canadian athlete, winner of the marathon race at the 1906 Intercalated Games ....
won an Olympic
Olympic Games
The Olympic Games is a major international event featuring summer and winter sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The Olympic Games have come to be regarded as the world’s foremost sports competition where more than 200 nations participate...
gold medal at Athens for the marathon. The Amalgamated Transit Union struck against the HSR in a bitter labour dispute. The working class voters of Hamilton East, sympathetic to the ATU, elected Allan Studholme as their Member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario
Legislative Assembly of Ontario
The Legislative Assembly of Ontario , is the legislature of the Canadian province of Ontario, and is the second largest provincial legislature of Canada...
. For years he stood as the lone labour representative in the legislature, championing the eight hour day, workmen's compensation, the minimum wage
Minimum wage
A minimum wage is the lowest hourly, daily or monthly remuneration that employers may legally pay to workers. Equivalently, it is the lowest wage at which workers may sell their labour. Although minimum wage laws are in effect in a great many jurisdictions, there are differences of opinion about...
and women's suffrage
Women's suffrage
Women's suffrage or woman suffrage is the right of women to vote and to run for office. The expression is also used for the economic and political reform movement aimed at extending these rights to women and without any restrictions or qualifications such as property ownership, payment of tax, or...
.
The steel industry continued to grow and finally consolidate through this period, some combining to form the Steel Company of Canada
Stelco
US Steel Canada is a steel company based in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.-History:Several existing smaller steelworks combined and were incorporated as the Steel Company of Canada in 1910. Charles S...
in 1910 and others Dominion Steel Casting Company
Dofasco
Dofasco is a steel company based in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, which is also home to longtime Canadian rival Stelco. Dofasco is currently a standalone subsidiary of ArcelorMittal, the world's largest steel producer. Previously ordered by the U.S...
in 1912. Stelco and Dofasco, as they became colloquially and then legally known, were located in the north end to take advantage of the transportation and cooling opportunities provided by access to the water.
The infant science of aviation
Aviation
Aviation is the design, development, production, operation, and use of aircraft, especially heavier-than-air aircraft. Aviation is derived from avis, the Latin word for bird.-History:...
found early and enthusiastic supporters in Hamilton. Jack Elliot established an airport in the north end near Stelco which in 1911 hosted the first Canadian Air Meet. Pioneering aviator J.A.D. McCurdy won that contest, sponsored in part by the newly minted Hamilton Automobile Club (now CAA South-Central Ontario).
Emigration continued from Britain and the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
(chiefly blacks) during this period as local museums show, but also began from other countries such as Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
and Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary , more formally known as the Kingdoms and Lands Represented in the Imperial Council and the Lands of the Holy Hungarian Crown of Saint Stephen, was a constitutional monarchic union between the crowns of the Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of Hungary in...
. Remarkably, thousands of Italian
Italian people
The Italian people are an ethnic group that share a common Italian culture, ancestry and speak the Italian language as a mother tongue. Within Italy, Italians are defined by citizenship, regardless of ancestry or country of residence , and are distinguished from people...
Hamiltonians are descendants of emigrants in this period from a single Sicilian
Sicily
Sicily is a region of Italy, and is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Along with the surrounding minor islands, it constitutes an autonomous region of Italy, the Regione Autonoma Siciliana Sicily has a rich and unique culture, especially with regard to the arts, music, literature,...
town, commemorated by the dual naming of Murray Street as Corso Raculmuto.
Increased population and prosperity prompted a building boom. As a publicity stunt and raffle, workers and contractors built a house
House
A house is a building or structure that has the ability to be occupied for dwelling by human beings or other creatures. The term house includes many kinds of different dwellings ranging from rudimentary huts of nomadic tribes to free standing individual structures...
in a day in 1913 which was later featured in a Ripley’s Believe It or Not cartoon. The same year, the Hamilton Public Library opened its new building funded by philanthropist Andrew Carnegie
Andrew Carnegie
Andrew Carnegie was a Scottish-American industrialist, businessman, and entrepreneur who led the enormous expansion of the American steel industry in the late 19th century...
. (The site was renovated and now houses the Family Court.)
Hamiltonians participated in the First World War
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
as combatants, but due to Col. Sir Sam Hughes
Sam Hughes
For other people of the same name see Sam Hughes Sir Samuel Hughes, KCB, PC was the Canadian Minister of Militia and Defence during World War I...
' mobilization plans for the Canadian Expeditionary Force
Canadian Expeditionary Force
The Canadian Expeditionary Force was the designation of the field force created by Canada for service overseas in the First World War. Units of the C.E.F. were divided into field formation in France, where they were organized first into separate divisions and later joined together into a single...
, there were no major battles associated purely with Hamiltonians. The Royal Hamilton Light Infantry later perpetuated the battle honours of four of these consecutively numbered Overseas Battalions of the CEF.
Heavy industry boomed as the Canadian and British governments' war driven demands for steel, arms, munitions and textiles increased. Unfortunately, in their quest to expand, the twin steel giants damaged the land by infilling Hamilton Harbour and burying or diverting many creeks which formerly flowed into the bay. War profiteering by manufacturers dampened some of the mood, but generally Hamiltonians pulled together.
1919-1938
Roaring Twenties
The Roaring Twenties is a phrase used to describe the 1920s, principally in North America, but also in London, Berlin and Paris for a period of sustained economic prosperity. The phrase was meant to emphasize the period's social, artistic, and cultural dynamism...
. The United Farmers of Ontario
United Farmers of Ontario
The United Farmers of Ontario was a political party in Ontario, Canada. It was the Ontario provincial branch of the United Farmers movement of the early part of the 20th century.- Foundation and rise :...
won the most seats in the 1919 provincial election
Ontario general election, 1919
The Ontario general election, 1919 was the 15th general election held in the Province of Ontario, Canada. It was held on October 20, 1919, to elect the 111 Members of the 15th Legislative Assembly of Ontario ....
and formed a coalition government
Coalition government
A coalition government is a cabinet of a parliamentary government in which several political parties cooperate. The usual reason given for this arrangement is that no party on its own can achieve a majority in the parliament...
with the Independent Labour Party. Walter Rollo, Member of the Legislative Assembly for Hamilton West, became the first Ontario Minister of Labour in this government.
The Hamilton Board of Education resumed its ambitious building program for schools. Their names often honoured the memory of war veterans: Memorial School, Allenby School and Earl Kitchener School. The educational building boom was coupled with a residential housing boom in which hundreds of low-rise apartment buildings, of three to four stories and six to ten units, grew up across the city, especially in the east end.
Higher education—disregarding its normal school
Normal school
A normal school is a school created to train high school graduates to be teachers. Its purpose is to establish teaching standards or norms, hence its name...
or teachers college—arrived in Hamilton in 1930. McMaster University
McMaster University
McMaster University is a public research university whose main campus is located in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is located on of land in the residential neighbourhood of Westdale, adjacent to Hamilton's Royal Botanical Gardens...
was founded in Toronto as a Baptist institution of higher learning. Funded by a bequest of Senator William McMaster
William McMaster
William McMaster was a wholesaler, Senator and banker in the 19th century. A director of the Bank of Montreal from 1864–1867, he was a driving force behind the creation of the Canadian Bank of Commerce of which he served as the founding president from 1867 to his death in 1887.He served in the...
in 1887, it was in danger of becoming absorbed by the University of Toronto
University of Toronto
The University of Toronto is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution of higher learning in Upper Canada...
. Hamilton’s municipal government, civic boosters and ordinary residents lured the university to the city with grants of land and money in 1930. Not only did McMaster preserve its independence, but it began publishing The Silhouette student newspaper, now an award-winning weekly broadsheet.
Local boosters also ensured that Hamilton hosted the inaugural Empire Games, now known as the Commonwealth Games
Commonwealth Games
The Commonwealth Games is an international, multi-sport event involving athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations. The event was first held in 1930 and takes place every four years....
in 1930. Amateur athletes from around the British Empire and Commonwealth gathered to compete at Hamilton Civic Stadium, the current site of Ivor Wynne Stadium
Ivor Wynne Stadium
Ivor Wynne Stadium is a Canadian football stadium located at the corner of Balsam and Beechwood Avenues, two blocks west of Gage Avenue North in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada...
as a result of the efforts of Melville Marks Robinson
Melville Marks Robinson
Melville Marks Robinson founded the British Empire Games, now known as the Commonwealth Games. Bobby Robinson was a sports reporter for the Hamilton Spectator...
.
The Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
of the 1930s
1930s
File:1930s decade montage.png|From left, clockwise: Dorothea Lange's photo of the homeless Florence Thompson show the effects of the Great Depression; Due to the economic collapse, the farms become dry and the Dust Bowl spreads through America; The Battle of Wuhan during the Second Sino-Japanese...
hit Hamilton hard. The simultaneous and prolonged decline in domestic consumption and international trade
International trade
International trade is the exchange of capital, goods, and services across international borders or territories. In most countries, such trade represents a significant share of gross domestic product...
in finished industrial goods and building supplies put a stop to residential and institutional construction for a decade. It was in this context of privation that Dr. Elizabeth Bagshaw
Elizabeth Bagshaw
Elizabeth Catherine Bagshaw, CM was one of Canada's first female doctors and the medical director of the first birth control clinic in Canada.-History:...
started her illegal birth control clinic in 1931.
Emotional relief from the Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
was found in the Washingtons, local brothers who performed as a blues
Blues
Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
quartet
Quartet
In music, a quartet is a method of instrumentation , used to perform a musical composition, and consisting of four parts.-Western art music:...
throughout Ontario. Practical relief was found in government works projects designed to prime the economy
Economy
An economy consists of the economic system of a country or other area; the labor, capital and land resources; and the manufacturing, trade, distribution, and consumption of goods and services of that area...
and which added to the long-term attractiveness of Hamilton.
Thomas B. McQuesten
Thomas McQuesten
Thomas Baker McQuesten was a Canadian athlete, militiaman, lawyer, politician and government appointee who lived in Hamilton, Ontario....
, a Hamilton lawyer and MLA
Legislative Assembly of Ontario
The Legislative Assembly of Ontario , is the legislature of the Canadian province of Ontario, and is the second largest provincial legislature of Canada...
, served as minister of transportation and chairman Niagara Parks Commission
Niagara Parks Commission
The Niagara Parks Commission, or Niagara Parks for short, is an agency of government of Ontario which maintains the Ontario shoreline of the Niagara River.- History :...
starting in 1934. He spearheaded the construction of the Queen Elizabeth Way
Queen Elizabeth Way
The Queen Elizabeth Way, commonly abbreviated as the QEW, is a 400-Series highway in the Canadian province of Ontario. The freeway links Buffalo, New York and the Niagara Peninsula with Toronto. It begins at the Peace Bridge in Fort Erie and travels around the western shore of Lake Ontario, ending...
, a controlled access highway which links Fort Erie
Fort Erie
Fort Erie was the first British fort to be constructed as part of a network developed after the Seven Years' War was concluded by the Treaty of Paris at which time all of New France had been ceded to Great Britain...
with Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
via Hamilton, and the Mountain access for Highway 20 in Stoney Creek. He also supported the construction of the Rock Gardens at the Royal Botanical Gardens
Royal Botanical Gardens, Ontario
Royal Botanical Gardens is headquartered in Burlington and also include lands in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. It is one of the major tourist attractions between Niagara Falls and Toronto, as well as a significant local and regional horticultural, education, conservation and scientific resource...
. Whitehern
Whitehern
Whitehern Historic House and Garden in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, built shortly before 1850, is a Late Classical house that is now a historic house museum....
, his downtown family home, now serves as a civic museum.
1939-1945
As war clouds gathered over EuropeEurope
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, Britain decided to shore up its support in the Dominions by having a royal visit to Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. When King George VI
George VI of the United Kingdom
George VI was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until his death...
and his consort Queen Elizabeth
Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon
Elizabeth Angela Marguerite Bowes-Lyon was the queen consort of King George VI from 1936 until her husband's death in 1952, after which she was known as Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother, to avoid confusion with her daughter, Queen Elizabeth II...
visited Canada in May and June 1939, they stopped in Hamilton and also opened up the QEW.
Hamiltonians like others in Canada and the world welcomed the spike of economic demand caused by the Second World War
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
but not its source. Heavy industry again began spewing out its pollutants, and by the end of the war the ecological cost of pollution had taken its toll on Hamilton: heavy metals made fish from the Hamilton Harbour
Burlington Bay
Burlington Bay, known more commonly as Hamilton Harbour, lies on the western tip of Lake Ontario, bounded on the northwest by the City of Burlington, on the south by the City of Hamilton, and on the east by Hamilton Beach and Burlington Beach...
inedible, air pollution
Air pollution
Air pollution is the introduction of chemicals, particulate matter, or biological materials that cause harm or discomfort to humans or other living organisms, or cause damage to the natural environment or built environment, into the atmosphere....
made breathing difficult and industrial dumps contaminated land.
Unlike the First World War, in this war the Canadian Army mobilized its territorially recruited militia units as a body rather than soliciting individuals to serve in conglomerated units. Men of the Royal Hamilton Light Infantry (colloquially known as the Rileys) and the rest of the 2nd Canadian Division
2nd Canadian Division
The 2nd Canadian Division was an infantry formation that saw service in the First World War. A 2nd Canadian Infantry Division was raised for the Second World War.-History:...
were mobilized early, but sat on their hands in Britain for two years. The Hamilton area was also active in the Royal Canadian Air Force
Royal Canadian Air Force
The history of the Royal Canadian Air Force begins in 1920, when the air force was created as the Canadian Air Force . In 1924 the CAF was renamed the Royal Canadian Air Force and granted royal sanction by King George V. The RCAF existed as an independent service until 1968...
(RCAF): the city proper sponsored 424 “Tiger” Squadron by buying bombers to equip it.
On the home front, the public not only eagerly followed the progress of the war, but they also got a chance to see airmen in action. In 1940, as part of the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan
British Commonwealth Air Training Plan
The British Commonwealth Air Training Plan , known in some countries as the Empire Air Training Scheme , was a massive, joint military aircrew training program created by the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, during the Second World War...
, the Royal Canadian Air Force
Royal Canadian Air Force
The history of the Royal Canadian Air Force begins in 1920, when the air force was created as the Canadian Air Force . In 1924 the CAF was renamed the Royal Canadian Air Force and granted royal sanction by King George V. The RCAF existed as an independent service until 1968...
established a station in Glanford Township. Hundreds of Commonwealth
Commonwealth of Nations
The Commonwealth of Nations, normally referred to as the Commonwealth and formerly known as the British Commonwealth, is an intergovernmental organisation of fifty-four independent member states...
pilots and other aircrew were trained at RCAF Station Mount Hope, and some unfortunate ones are still buried there.
The army’s enforced idleness—disregarding their unsuccessful foray to France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
in May 1940 and disastrous defence of Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
in December 1941—led to discontent in the army, the public and the government. In this atmosphere, the timing was ripe for Lord Louis Mountbatten
Louis Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma
Admiral of the Fleet Louis Francis Albert Victor Nicholas George Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma, KG, GCB, OM, GCSI, GCIE, GCVO, DSO, PC, FRS , was a British statesman and naval officer, and an uncle of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh...
’s ill-advised and unauthorized raid-in-force
Dieppe Raid
The Dieppe Raid, also known as the Battle of Dieppe, Operation Rutter or later on Operation Jubilee, during the Second World War, was an Allied attack on the German-occupied port of Dieppe on the northern coast of France on 19 August 1942. The assault began at 5:00 AM and by 10:50 AM the Allied...
. The Rileys lost hundreds of its young men on a single day in 1942, when they were effectively wiped out as a fighting force at Dieppe
Dieppe Raid
The Dieppe Raid, also known as the Battle of Dieppe, Operation Rutter or later on Operation Jubilee, during the Second World War, was an Allied attack on the German-occupied port of Dieppe on the northern coast of France on 19 August 1942. The assault began at 5:00 AM and by 10:50 AM the Allied...
.
When the war
War
War is a state of organized, armed, and often prolonged conflict carried on between states, nations, or other parties typified by extreme aggression, social disruption, and usually high mortality. War should be understood as an actual, intentional and widespread armed conflict between political...
finally ended, Hamilton was a much different place. Women had permanently entered the paid workforce. The lean times of the Great Depression were over—and veterans were going to make sure that happened.
Notable people from Hamilton prior to 1946
People associated with Hamilton who became well-known prior to 1946 are listed below in the order of their birth year.- Étienne BrûléÉtienne BrûléÉtienne Brûlé , was the first of European French explorers to journey along the St. Lawrence River with the Native Americans and to view Georgian Bay and Lake Huron Canada in the 17th century. A rugged outdoorsman, he took to the lifestyle of the First Nations and had a unique contribution to the...
, (1592–1633), The first European to visit what is now Hamilton was probably Étienne Brûlé in 1616. - Robert Land, (1736–1818), veteran of the American RevolutionAmerican RevolutionThe American Revolution was the political upheaval during the last half of the 18th century in which thirteen colonies in North America joined together to break free from the British Empire, combining to become the United States of America...
and one of Hamilton's founding citizens. - John AskinJohn AskinJohn Askin was a fur trader, merchant and official in Upper Canada.He was born in Aughnacloy in Ireland in 1739; his ancestors are believed to have originally lived in Scotland with the surname Erskine. He came to North America with the British Army in 1758. After the British took over New France,...
, (1739–1815), was a fur trader, merchant and official in Upper Canada. - Nathaniel HughsonNathaniel HughsonNathaniel Hughson, born: 16 July 1755 at New York. died: 1 November 1837 at Hamilton, Ontario. Farmer and hotel owner, Loyalist who moved to Canada following the American Revolution, one of the city founders of Hamilton, Ontario. Married to Rebecca Land...
, (1755–1837), Farmer & hotel owner, Loyalist who moved to Canada following the American RevolutionAmerican RevolutionThe American Revolution was the political upheaval during the last half of the 18th century in which thirteen colonies in North America joined together to break free from the British Empire, combining to become the United States of America...
, one of the city founders of Hamilton. - William RymalWilliam RymalWilliam Rymal, born: November 19, 1759 at Upper Bethel Township, Northampton County, Pennsylvania. died: May 25, 1852 in Hamilton, Ontario, buried at Barton Union Cemetery. Farmer and one of earliest settlers on the Hamilton, Ontario mountain....
, (1759–1852), farmer and one of earliest settlers on the Hamilton mountain. Rymal Road was named after him. - Richard BeasleyRichard BeasleyRichard Beasley was a soldier, political figure, farmer and businessman in Upper Canada.He was born in New York in 1761 and moved to Quebec in 1777. In 1783, he formed a partnership with Peter Smith in the fur trade. In 1788, he settled in Barton Township on Lake Ontario near the current city of...
(1761–1842), was a soldier, political figure, farmer and businessman in Upper Canada. - John VincentJohn Vincent (general)General John Vincent was the British commanding officer of the Niagara Peninsula in Upper Canada when the United States attacked in the spring of 1813. He was defeated at the Battle of Fort George but was able to rebound and establish the new lines at Burlington Heights...
, (1764–1848), British army officer in the Battle of Stoney CreekBattle of Stoney CreekThe Battle of Stoney Creek was fought on 6 June 1813 during the War of 1812 near present day Stoney Creek, Ontario. British units made a night attack on an American encampment...
, War of 1812War of 1812The War of 1812 was a military conflict fought between the forces of the United States of America and those of the British Empire. The Americans declared war in 1812 for several reasons, including trade restrictions because of Britain's ongoing war with France, impressment of American merchant...
. - Richard HattRichard HattRichard Hatt was a businessman, judge and political figure in Upper Canada.He was born in London, England, in 1769 and came to Upper Canada in 1792. He originally started business as a merchant at Niagara but later moved to Ancaster, where he opened a store and built a grist mill...
(1769–1819), was a businessman, judge and political figure in Upper CanadaUpper CanadaThe Province of Upper Canada was a political division in British Canada established in 1791 by the British Empire to govern the central third of the lands in British North America and to accommodate Loyalist refugees from the United States of America after the American Revolution...
. - James GageJames GageJames Gage was born in Greenbush, New York. Lumber merchant, miller. His father, a private in the New York militia, was killed fighting the British in 1777. His mother moved with the family to Canada in 1790 and they began farming in the Stoney Creek area. James gradually took responsibility...
, (1774–1854), Lumber merchant, miller. Gage Avenue in the city named after him. - James DurandJames DurandJames Durand was a businessman and political figure in Upper Canada.He was born in Abergavenny, Wales in 1775 and came to Upper Canada in 1802 to deal with delinquent accounts on behalf of a group of London merchants. Having seized the Bridgewater Works at Chippawa, Durand purchased the operation...
, (1775–1833), was a businessman and political figure in Upper Canada. - John WillsonJohn WillsonJohn Willson was a judge and political figure in Upper Canada.He was born in New Jersey in 1776. He arrived in the Niagara District around 1789 and settled in Saltfleet Township, where he became a farmer, in 1797. In 1809, he was elected to the 5th Parliament of Upper Canada in a by-election in...
, (1776–1860) was a judge and political figure in Upper CanadaUpper CanadaThe Province of Upper Canada was a political division in British Canada established in 1791 by the British Empire to govern the central third of the lands in British North America and to accommodate Loyalist refugees from the United States of America after the American Revolution...
. - Peter HessPeter Hess (Hamilton, Ontario)Peter Hess was a farmer and landowner. Peter Street and Hess Street in the city of Hamilton, Ontario are named after him as well as Caroline Street after one of his daughters....
, (1779–1855), farmer, landowner. Peter and Hess StreetsHess Street (Hamilton, Ontario)Hess Street, is a Lower City collector road in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. It starts off at the base of the Niagara Escarpment right before Aberdeen Avenue, and is a one-way street going north past the Durand and Central neighbourhoods. Between Main and King Street West is where you will find Hess...
in the city named after him as well as Caroline Street named after one of his daughters. - George HamiltonGeorge Hamilton (politician)George Hamilton was a Canadian merchant and politician, who founded the city of Hamilton, Ontario.Hamiliton was born on October 1788 in Queenston Heights...
, (1788–1836), settler and city founder. - Henry BeasleyHenry BeasleyLieutenant Colonel Henry Mountifort Beasley DSO , known as 'Pops', was a British Army officer and a leading contract bridge personality in the early days of the game.-Life:...
, (1793–1859), was a farmer and office-holder. - Sir Allan McNab, (Sir Allan Napier McNab), (1798–1862), soldier, lawyer, businessman, knight and former Prime Minister of Upper Canada. MacNab StreetMacNab Street (Hamilton, Ontario)MacNab Street, is a Lower City collector road in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. It starts in the Durand neighbourhood on Markland Street, as a one-way street going north to Bold Street, where it becomes two-way for one block until Hurst Place where it's cut off by a wall for the Hunter Street railway...
in Hamilton is named after him. - Thomas StinsonThomas StinsonThomas Stinson was a Hamilton, Ontario merchant, banker, and landowner.-Early life and marriage:Stinson was born in 1798 near Drum, County Monaghan, Ireland....
, (1798–1864), merchant, banker, landowner. He was an extensive landowner in not only in Hamilton but as well as ChicagoChicagoChicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, St. Paul, Minnesota, and Superior City, WisconsinSuperior, WisconsinSuperior is a city in and the county seat of Douglas County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 26,960 at the 2010 census. Located at the junction of U.S. Highways 2 and 53, it is north of and adjacent to both the Village of Superior and the Town of Superior.Superior is at the western...
, which he named. - George Perkins Boothesby Bull, (1795–1847), newspaper printer, publisher of one of Hamilton's early newspapers The Hamilton Gazette (1835–1856).
- Edward JacksonEdward Jackson (manufacturer)Edward Jackson, born: 20 April 1799 at Redding, Connecticut. died: 14 July 1872 at Hamilton, Ontario. Tinware manufacturer. Edward came to Canada with his wife in 1826 and settled at Niagara , where he opened a tinware business. Two years later moved to Ancaster, Ontario and opened up a similar firm...
, (1799–1872), tinware manufacturer. Jackson StreetJackson Street (Hamilton, Ontario)Jackson Street, is a Lower City collector road in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. It starts off West of Locke Street South at Jackson Playground as a one-way street up to Queen Street South where it then switches over to a two-way street and is interrupted at Bay Street South the site of the Hamilton...
in city namd after him. - Peter Hunter HamiltonPeter Hunter HamiltonPeter Hunter Hamilton, born: 1800 at Queenston Heights, Upper Canada. died: 1857 at Hamilton, Ontario. Buried in Hamilton Cemetery. Landowner and businessman + half brother of city founder George Hamilton...
, (1800–1857), landowner and businessman + half brother of city founder George HamiltonGeorge Hamilton (politician)George Hamilton was a Canadian merchant and politician, who founded the city of Hamilton, Ontario.Hamiliton was born on October 1788 in Queenston Heights...
. Hunter StreetHunter Street (Hamilton, Ontario)Hunter Street is a Lower City collector road in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. It is a one-way street that starts West of Locke Street at Hill Street Park and ends two blocks East of Victoria Avenue at Emerald Street...
in city named after him. - Colin Campbell FerrieColin Campbell FerrieColin Campbell Ferrie was a Canadian merchant, banker, and politician.Born in Glasgow, the son of Adam Ferrie and Rachel Campbell, he came to Montreal from Scotland in 1824 to work in new wholesale and forwarding company belonging to his father...
, (1808–1856), Hamilton's first Mayor. - Isaac BuchananIsaac BuchananIsaac Buchanan was a businessman and political figure in Canada West. He was also an international merchant, first president of the Hamilton Club, founder of Hamilton and Toronto boards of trade - forerunners to modern chambers of commerce - and founder of the regiment that later became the Royal...
, (1810–1883), was a businessman and political figure in Canada West. - Daniel C. Gunn, (1811–1876), wharfinger, locomotive manufacturer.
- James JolleyJames JolleyJames Jolley, was born in 1813 in Argyllshire, Scotland, and died on 28 November 1892 in Hamilton, Ontario. He is buried in Hamilton Cemetery. Jolley was a saddler, harnessmaker, and politician. He funded construction of the Jolley Cut, a Mountain access road in Hamilton, Ontario...
, (1813–1892), saddler, harnessmaker, politician. Funded construction of the Jolley Cut; a Mountain access road in Hamilton. - Dennis Moore, (1817–1887), tinware manufacturer.
- Hugh Cossart Baker, Sr.Hugh Cossart Baker, Sr.Hugh Cossart Baker, Sr. was a banker, businessman, mathematician.Hugh Cossart Baker, Sr. established the first life insurance company in Canada 21 August 1847; the Canada Life Assurance Company. The firm was incorporated in 1849...
, (1818–1859), Banker, businessman, mathematician. Establishes the first life insurance company in Canada (21 August 1847); the Canada Life Assurance Company. - Richard Wanzer, (1818–1900), sewing machine manufacturer.
- Thomas Mayne Daly, Sr.Thomas Mayne Daly, Sr.Thomas Mayne Daly was a businessman and political figure in Canada West . He represented the riding of Perth North in the Canadian House of Commons and in the Ontario Provincial Parliament....
, (1827–1885), was a businessman and political figure in Canada West (later Ontario). He represented the riding of Perth North in the Canadian House of CommonsCanadian House of CommonsThe House of Commons of Canada is a component of the Parliament of Canada, along with the Sovereign and the Senate. The House of Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 308 members known as Members of Parliament...
and in the Legislative Assembly of OntarioLegislative Assembly of OntarioThe Legislative Assembly of Ontario , is the legislature of the Canadian province of Ontario, and is the second largest provincial legislature of Canada...
. - Thomas BainThomas BainThomas Bain was a Canadian parliamentarian.Bain was born in Scotland, the son of Walter Bain, and migrated to Canada with his family when he was three years old. They settled on a bush farm in Wentworth County near Hamilton, Ontario.He was elected to the County Council in the 1860s and became...
, (1834–1915), Speaker of the Canadian House of CommonsSpeaker of the Canadian House of CommonsThe Speaker of the House of Commons of Canada is the presiding officer of the lower house of the Parliament of Canada and is elected at the beginning of each new parliament by fellow Members of Parliament...
. - Richard ButlerRichard Butler (publisher)Richard Butler, born: 11 November 1834 at Coteau du Lac, Lower Canada. died: 16 March 1925. Buried in Hamilton Cemetery. Editor, publisher, journalist and U.S. vice-consul in Hamilton, Ontario....
, (1834–1925), editor, publisher, journalist. Butler neighbourhood in Hamilton named after him. - George Elias TuckettGeorge Elias TuckettGeorge Elias Tuckett was mayor of Hamilton, Ontario in 1896.Tuckett built a fortune during the American Civil War, cornering a chunk of the tobacco market. He also founded the Tuckett Tobacco Company in 1857...
, (1835–1900), Tuckett Tobacco Company, Hamilton's 27th Mayor. - James McMillanJames McMillan (Senator)James McMillan was a U.S. Senator from the state of Michigan.-Biography:McMillan was born in Hamilton, Ontario to William and Grace McMillan, both Scottish natives...
, (1838–1902), was a U.S. Senator from the state of MichiganMichiganMichigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
from 1889-1902. - William Eli SanfordWilliam Eli SanfordWilliam Eli Sanford was a Canadian businessman, philanthropist, and politician.Born in New York City, he was orphaned before his seventh birthday and then moved to Hamilton, Upper Canada, to live with his paternal aunt.In 1887, he was summoned to the Canadian Senate. A Conservative, he represented...
(1838–1899), was a Canadian businessman, philanthropist, and politician. - George Johnson, (1839–1917), teacher and songwriter.
- Sir John Morison GibsonJohn Morison GibsonSir John Morison Gibson, KCMG, KC was a Canadian politician and the tenth Lieutenant Governor of Ontario....
, (1842–1929), lawyer, politician, businessman. - Clementina TrenholmeClementina TrenholmeClementina Trenholme Fessenden, , was born at the village of Trenholm, Canada East and died at Hamilton, Ontario, author, social organiser. Also, mother of Reginald Fessenden, the radio pioneer...
, (1844–1918), Clementina (Fessenden) Trenholme, author, social organizer. Also, mother of Reginald FessendenReginald FessendenReginald Aubrey Fessenden , a naturalized American citizen born in Canada, was an inventor who performed pioneering experiments in radio, including early—and possibly the first—radio transmissions of voice and music...
, the radio pioneer. Had two neighbourhoods on the Hamilton Mountain named after her, Trenholme and Fessenden neighbourhoods. - Hugh Cossart Baker, Jr.Hugh Cossart Baker, Jr.Hugh Cossart Baker, Jr. , Businessman, telephone pioneer.On June 20, 1877, Hugh Cossart Baker, Jr. started up the first commercial telephone service in Canada in the city of Hamilton, Ontario. Then in 1878, he made the first telephone exchange in the British Empire...
, (1846–1931), businessman, telephone pioneer. - William W. CookeWilliam W. CookeWilliam Winer Cooke was a military officer in the United States Army during the American Civil War and the Black Hills War. He was the adjutant for George Armstrong Custer and was killed during the Battle of the Little Bighorn.-Overview:Cooke was born in Mount Pleasant, Brant County, Ontario, to...
, (1846–1876), was a military officer in the United States Army during the American Civil WarAmerican Civil WarThe American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
and the Black Hills War. He was the adjutant for George Armstrong CusterGeorge Armstrong CusterGeorge Armstrong Custer was a United States Army officer and cavalry commander in the American Civil War and the Indian Wars. Raised in Michigan and Ohio, Custer was admitted to West Point in 1858, where he graduated last in his class...
and was killed during the Battle of the Little BighornBattle of the Little BighornThe Battle of the Little Bighorn, also known as Custer's Last Stand and, by the Indians involved, as the Battle of the Greasy Grass, was an armed engagement between combined forces of Lakota, Northern Cheyenne and Arapaho people against the 7th Cavalry Regiment of the United States Army...
. Buried in Hamilton Cemetery. - Allan StudholmeAllan StudholmeAllan Studholme was a Canadian trade unionist and politician.Born in England near Birmingham, Studholme worked from his childhood. He moved to Canada in 1878 living in Dundas and Guelph before settling in Hamilton in 1885 where he found work as a stove mounter...
, (1846–1919), stove maker and first Ontario Labour MLA. - Campbell LeckieCampbell LeckieCampbell Leckie was a Scottish-Canadian engineer.Leckie completed his technical school training in Scotland, becoming a marine engineer on ships in the Atlantic. He emigrated to Hamilton in 1873, working as a marine engineer and machinist in the Grand Trunk Railway shops...
, (1848–1925), engineer. Leckie Park neighbourhood in Hamilton named after him. - Sir William OslerWilliam OslerSir William Osler, 1st Baronet was a physician. He was one of the "Big Four" founding professors at Johns Hopkins Hospital as the first Professor of Medicine and founder of the Medical Service there. Sir William Osler, 1st Baronet (July 12, 1849 – December 29, 1919) was a physician. He was...
, (1849–1919), 1st BaronetBaronetA baronet or the rare female equivalent, a baronetess , is the holder of a hereditary baronetcy awarded by the British Crown...
, the Father of Modern Medicine. - Robert B. Harris, (1852–1933), businessman who established The Hamilton Herald newspaper in 1889.
- E.D. Smith, (1853–1948), farmer, businessman and politician.
- James BalfourJames Balfour (architect)James Balfour, , architect.Son of Peter Balfour, Hamilton alderman and carpenter. Educated in Hamilton. Studied architecture with the famous firm of Peddie and Kniver in Edinburgh, Scotland. Before returning to Hamilton he worked in New York for several years. First professional mention of Balfour...
, (1854–1917), architect, Canada Life Assurance Company building at corner of King & James (1883), City Hall on corner of James & York (1888). - Robert Kirkland KernighanRobert Kirkland KernighanRobert Kirkland Kernighan was a Canadian poet, journalist, and farmer. Born at Rushdale Farm, Rockton, Ontario, he apprenticed as a journalist on the Hamilton Spectator staff. In about 1876 the paper printed his first poetry. Kernighan lived in Western Canada for a while working for the Winnipeg Sun...
, (1854–1926), poet, journalist. Kernighan neighbourhood in Hamilton named after him. - Robert Stanley WeirRobert Stanley WeirRobert Stanley Weir, FRSC, was a Montreal, Quebec judge and poet most famous for writing the English lyrics to O Canada, the national anthem of Canada. He was educated as a teacher and lawyer and considered one of the leading experts of the day on Quebec's municipal civil law...
, (1856–1926), lawyer, poet, author, best remembered as the author of the English lyrics to O Canada. - Charles S. Wilcox, (1856–1938), First president of Iron and Steel Company of Canada, (later called simply StelcoStelcoUS Steel Canada is a steel company based in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.-History:Several existing smaller steelworks combined and were incorporated as the Steel Company of Canada in 1910. Charles S...
), which was formed from five companies, including his Hamilton Steel and Iron Company. - Sir John Strathearn HendrieJohn Strathearn HendrieSir John Strathearn Hendrie, KCMG, CVO was the 11th Lieutenant Governor of Ontario from 1914 to 1919.John Hendrie was born in 1857 in Hamilton, Ontario and was educated at Upper Canada College. He became a railway contractor and promoted the Hamilton Bridge Works. In 1885 he married Lena Henderson...
, (1857–1923), was Lieutenant Governor of OntarioLieutenant Governor of OntarioThe Lieutenant Governor of Ontario is the viceregal representative in Ontario of the Canadian monarch, Queen Elizabeth II, who operates distinctly within the province but is also shared equally with the ten other jurisdictions of Canada and resides predominantly in her oldest realm, the United...
from 1914 to 1919. - Adam InchAdam InchAdam Inch, born 22 March 1857 at Coulterhaugh, Scotland. died: 3 July 1933 in Hamilton, Ontario. Dairy farmer, politician.His father Alexander Inch died when he was twelve years old and was bequeathed two small farms. Also sold horses that he brought over from Scotland on ship and successfully sold...
, (1857–1933), dairy farmer, politician. Inch Park neighbourhood in Hamilton named after him. - Andrew Ross, (1857–1941), businessman, builder of Tivoli Theatre & Barton Street ArenaBarton Street ArenaBarton Street Arena, also known as the Hamilton Forum, was the main sports arena located in downtown Hamilton, Ontario, on Barton Street between Sanford Street and Wentworth Street...
. - Adelaide HoodlessAdelaide HoodlessAdelaide Hoodless née Hunter was a Canadian educational reformer who founded the international women’s organization known as the Women's Institute....
, (1858–1910), education and women’s activist. - John MoodieJohn MoodieJohn Moodie, Jr., born: 1859 in Hamilton, Ontario. died: 8 August, 1944. Textile manufacturer, executive, hobbyist. In 1903, was founder of the Hamilton Automobile Club, first organization of its kind in Canada. Also belonged to the Royal Auto Club of London, England.Moodie invested in many...
Jr., (1859–1944), executive, hobbyist, drove first automobile in Canada in 1898; a one-cylinder WintonWinton Motor Carriage CompanyThe Winton Motor Carriage Company was a pioneer United States automobile manufacturer based in Cleveland, Ohio. Winton was one of the first American companies to sell a motor car.-1896:...
he imported from Cleveland, Ohio. - Thomas WillsonThomas WillsonThomas Leopold "Carbide" Willson was a Canadian inventor.He was born on a farm near Princeton, Ontario in 1860 and went to school in Hamilton, Ontario. By the age of 21, he had designed and patented the first electric arc lamps used in Hamilton...
, (1860–1915), Canadian inventor, designed and patented the first electric arc lamps. - Sydney Chilton MewburnSydney Chilton MewburnSydney Chilton Mewburn, PC was a Canadian lawyer, soldier, and politician.Born in Hamilton, Canada West, he was the Canadian Minister of Militia and Defence from October 12, 1917 - January 15, 1920 under Sir Robert Borden's Union Government in 1917. During World War I, he was a Major General in...
, (1863–1956), was a Canadian lawyer and politician. He was the Canadian Minister of Militia and Defence from October 12, 1917 - January 15, 1920 under Sir Robert BordenRobert BordenSir Robert Laird Borden, PC, GCMG, KC was a Canadian lawyer and politician. He served as the eighth Prime Minister of Canada from October 10, 1911 to July 10, 1920, and was the third Nova Scotian to hold this office...
's Union Government in 1917. - John Charles FieldsJohn Charles FieldsJohn Charles Fields, FRS, FRSC was a Canadian mathematician and the founder of the Fields Medal for outstanding achievement in mathematics...
, (1863–1932), was a Canadian mathematician and the founder of the Fields MedalFields MedalThe Fields Medal, officially known as International Medal for Outstanding Discoveries in Mathematics, is a prize awarded to two, three, or four mathematicians not over 40 years of age at each International Congress of the International Mathematical Union , a meeting that takes place every four...
for outstanding achievement in mathematics. the Fields Medal, is considered by some to be the Nobel PrizeNobel PrizeThe Nobel Prizes are annual international awards bestowed by Scandinavian committees in recognition of cultural and scientific advances. The will of the Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, established the prizes in 1895...
in Mathematics. - Helen Gregory MacGillHelen Gregory MacGillHelen Emma Gregory MacGill was one of Canada's first woman judges and for many years the only woman judge, and a noted women's rights advocate in Canada, where she fought for female suffrage....
, (1864–1947), the first woman in British Columbia to be appointed a judge of the juvenile Court, a post she held for 23 years. - Julia ArthurJulia ArthurJulia Arthur Although 1868 is accepted as the year of her birth, both The National Cyclopaedia of National Biography and Who Was Who in America give 1869 as the year. was a Canadian-born stage and film actress.-Early life:...
, (1868–1959), was a Canadian-born stage and film actress. - Walter Rollo, first Ontario minister of labour.
- John M. LyleJohn M. LyleJohn MacIntosh Lyle was a Canadian architect, designer, urban planner, and teacher active in the late 19th century and into the first half of the 20th century. He was a leading Canadian architect in the Beaux Arts style and was involved in the City Beautiful movement in several Canadian cities...
, (1872–1945), Canadian architect in the late 19th Century; New York Public LibraryNew York Public LibraryThe New York Public Library is the largest public library in North America and is one of the United States' most significant research libraries...
(1897), Royal Alexandra Theatre, in Toronto (1907), Union Station (Toronto)Union Station (Toronto)Union Station is the major inter-city rail station and a major commuter rail hub in Toronto, located on Front Street West and occupying the south side of the block bounded by Bay Street and York Street in the central business district. The station building is owned by the City of Toronto, while the...
1914-1921. - Clifton Sherman, (1872–1955), Founded Dominion Foundries and Steel (later called DofascoDofascoDofasco is a steel company based in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, which is also home to longtime Canadian rival Stelco. Dofasco is currently a standalone subsidiary of ArcelorMittal, the world's largest steel producer. Previously ordered by the U.S...
) in 1912 (with his brother Frank Sherman), creating a giant that would bring prosperity and identity to the city. - Jean AdairJean AdairJean Adair was a Canadian actress.Born as Violet McNaughton, she worked primarily on stage but also made several film appearances late in her career, most notably as one of Cary Grant's dotty old aunts in Arsenic and Old Lace, a role she originated on Broadway...
, (1873–1953), actress. Although she worked primarily on stage (sometimes billed as Jennet Adair), she made several film appearances late in her career, most notably as one of the misguided murdering aunts of Cary GrantCary GrantArchibald Alexander Leach , better known by his stage name Cary Grant, was an English actor who later took U.S. citizenship...
in Arsenic and Old LaceArsenic and Old Lace (film)Arsenic and Old Lace is a 1944 film directed by Frank Capra based on Joseph Kesselring's play of the same name. The script adaptation was by twins Julius J. Epstein and Philip G. Epstein. Capra actually filmed the movie in 1941, but it was not released until 1944, after the original stage version...
. - Charles William BellCharles William BellCharles William Bell was a Canadian playwright, lawyer and politician, born in Hamilton, Ontario. He was Rocco Perri's lawyer....
, (1876–1938), Playwright, Politician and Rocco Perri's Lawyer. - Florence Harvey, (1878–1968), Golf, Ontario Ladies Amateur Champion 1904, 1906, 1913, and 1914. Canadian Ladies Champion in 1903 and 1904. Founded and served on the executive of the Canadian Ladies Golf Association. Member of Canada's Golf Hall of Fame.
- William SherringWilliam SherringBilly Sherring was an Irish Canadian athlete, winner of the marathon race at the 1906 Intercalated Games ....
, (1878–1964), was a Canadian athlete, gold medal winner of the marathon race at the 1906 Summer Olympics1906 Summer OlympicsThe 1906 Intercalated Games or 1906 Olympic Games were an international multi-sport event which was celebrated in Athens, Greece. They were at the time considered to be Olympic Games and were referred to as the "Second International Olympic Games in Athens" by the International Olympic Committee...
. - Elizabeth BagshawElizabeth BagshawElizabeth Catherine Bagshaw, CM was one of Canada's first female doctors and the medical director of the first birth control clinic in Canada.-History:...
, (1881–1982), physician and birth control activist. - John Christie HollandJohn Christie HollandJohn Christie Holland was a Canadian pastor. He was the first Canadian of African heritage to be named a "Citizen of the Year". Holland was the pastor of Stewart Memorial Church in Hamilton, Ontario. Due to his tireless work in the community he was given the award of "Distinguished Citizen" for...
, (1882–1954), In 1924, became an ordained Minister and served as Pastor of Hamilton's Steward Memorial Church. The church has been designated an historic site by the Ontario government because its solid history and connection to the infamous Underground RailroadUnderground RailroadThe Underground Railroad was an informal network of secret routes and safe houses used by 19th-century black slaves in the United States to escape to free states and Canada with the aid of abolitionists and allies who were sympathetic to their cause. The term is also applied to the abolitionists,...
. 1953 was honored as Citizen of the Year in Hamilton, the first African Canadian to be given that recognition. - Robert Kerr, (1882–1963), was an Irish-Canadian sprinter. He won the gold medal in the 200 metres and the bronze medal in the 100 metres at the 1908 Summer Olympics1908 Summer OlympicsThe 1908 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the IV Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event which was held in 1908 in London, England, United Kingdom. These games were originally scheduled to be held in Rome. At the time they were the fifth modern Olympic games...
. - Thomas McQuestenThomas McQuestenThomas Baker McQuesten was a Canadian athlete, militiaman, lawyer, politician and government appointee who lived in Hamilton, Ontario....
, (1882–1948), lawyer and Ontario minister of transportation. - Rocco PerriRocco PerriRocco Perri was an organized crime figure in Ontario, Canada in the early 20th century...
, (1887–1944), 1920s Gangster. 'King of the Bootleggers'. - Frank Sherman, (1887–1967), Founded Dominion Foundries and Steel (later called DofascoDofascoDofasco is a steel company based in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, which is also home to longtime Canadian rival Stelco. Dofasco is currently a standalone subsidiary of ArcelorMittal, the world's largest steel producer. Previously ordered by the U.S...
) in 1912 (with his brother Clifton Sherman), creating a giant that would bring prosperity and identity to the city. - Harry CrerarHarry CrerarHenry Duncan Graham "Harry" Crerar CH, CB, DSO, KStJ, CD, PC was a Canadian general and the country's "leading field commander" in World War II.-Early years:...
, (1888–1965), was a Canadian general and the country's "leading field commander" in World War II. - Besha Starkman, (1889–1907), Criminal. Rocco Perri's wife and partner in crime. ("the Brains")
- Douglass DumbrilleDouglass DumbrilleDouglass Dumbrille was a Canadian actor and one of the Canadian pioneers in early Hollywood.-Life and career:...
, (1889–1974), was an actor and one of the Canadian pioneers in early HollywoodCanadian pioneers in early HollywoodMotion pictures have been a part of the culture of Canada since the beginning.-History:Around 1910, the East Coast filmmakers began to take advantage of California winters and after Nestor Studios, run by Canadian Al Christie, built the first permanent movie studio in Hollywood a number of the...
. - James Lyle TelfordJames Lyle TelfordJames Lyle Telford was the 24th mayor of Vancouver, British Columbia from 1939 to 1940 and a founder of the British Columbia branch of the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation . He was born in Valens, Ontario....
, (1889–1960), was mayor of Vancouver, B.C. from 1939-40. - Florence LawrenceFlorence LawrenceFlorence Lawrence was a Canadian inventor and silent film actress. She is often referred to as "The First Movie Star." When she was popular, she was known as "The Biograph Girl," "The Imp Girl," and "The Girl of a Thousand Faces." Lawrence appeared in more than 270 films for various motion...
, (1890–1938), Hollywood's first movie star. - Dick IrvinDick IrvinJames Dickinson Irvin, Sr. was a Canadian ice hockey player and coach in the National Hockey League.Born in Hamilton, Ontario, Irvin was one of the greatest players of his day, balancing a torrid slapshot and tough style with gentlemanly play...
Sr., (1892–1957), NHL hockey player. Former head coach of Toronto Maple LeafsToronto Maple LeafsThe Toronto Maple Leafs are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...
& Montreal CanadiensMontreal CanadiensThe Montreal Canadiens are a professional ice hockey team based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The club is officially known as ...
. - Del LordDel LordDel Lord was a Canadian film director and actor best known as a director of Three Stooges films.-Career:Delmer Lord was born in the small town of Grimsby, Ontario, Canada...
, (1894–1970), was a film director and actor best known as a director of Three StoogesThree StoogesThe Three Stooges were an American vaudeville and comedy act of the early to mid–20th century best known for their numerous short subject films. Their hallmark was physical farce and extreme slapstick. In films, the Stooges were commonly known by their first names: "Moe, Larry, and Curly" and "Moe,...
films. (Grimsby Ontario) - Helen Alice KinnearHelen Alice KinnearHelen Alice Kinnear, QC was a Canadian lawyer. She was the first federally appointed woman judge in Canada.-Early life:She was born in Cayuga, Ontario, Canada...
, (1894–1970), was a Canadian lawyer. She was the first federally appointed woman judge in Canada. - Frank O'RourkeFrank O'Rourke (baseball)James Francis O'Rourke was a Canadian infielder in Major League Baseball. He played fourteen seasons in the major leagues with the Boston Braves , Brooklyn Robins , Washington Senators , Boston Red Sox , Detroit Tigers , and St...
, (1894–1986), ex-pro MLB baseball player and long time New York YankeesNew York YankeesThe New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the The Bronx, New York. They compete in Major League Baseball in the American League's East Division...
scout. - Cecil "Babe" Dye, (1898–1962), NHL hockey player, NHL's top goal scorer of the 1920s, inducted into the Hockey Hall of FameHockey Hall of FameThe Hockey Hall of Fame is located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Dedicated to the history of ice hockey, it is both a museum and a hall of fame. It holds exhibits about players, teams, National Hockey League records, memorabilia and NHL trophies, including the Stanley Cup...
in 1970. - Harold A. Rogers, (1899–1994), was the founder of Kin Canada, is a Canadian non-profit service organization that promotes service, fellowship, positive values, and national pride.
- George OwenGeorge Owen (ice hockey)Harvard George Owen Jr. was a professional ice hockey defenceman for the Boston Bruins of the NHL. He was also elected into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1983. In 1928, Owen became the first player to wear a helmet in an NHL game. He wore the same leather helmet that he had worn when...
, (1901–1986) was a pro hockey defenceman for the Boston BruinsBoston BruinsThe Boston Bruins are a professional ice hockey team based in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The team has been in existence since 1924, and is the league's third-oldest team and its oldest in the...
of the NHL. - Robert McDonaldRobert McDonald (soccer)Whitey McDonald was a Canadian soccer player who earned two caps with Ireland. He began his professional career in Canada, spent four seasons in the American Soccer League, then finished it in Scotland with Rangers F.C.....
, (1902–1956), was a Canadian soccer player from the 1920s and 30s who spent a decade playing for famous Scottish football club Rangers. - John FooteJohn Weir FooteJohn Weir Foote, VC , CD was a Canadian recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces...
, (1904–1988), military chaplain and Ontario cabinet minister. Canadian recipient of the Victoria CrossVictoria CrossThe Victoria Cross is the highest military decoration awarded for valour "in the face of the enemy" to members of the armed forces of various Commonwealth countries, and previous British Empire territories....
. - George Klein, (1904–1992), often called "the most productive inventor in Canada in the 20th century"; electric wheelchairs, microsurgical staple gun, the ZEEP nuclear reactor and the Canadarm.
- Red HornerRed HornerGeorge Reginald "Red" Horner was an ice hockey defenceman for the Toronto Maple Leafs of the National Hockey League from 1928 to 1940. He was the Leafs captain from 1938 until his retirement. He helped the Leafs win their first Stanley Cup in 1932...
, (1909–2005), ex-pro hockey player, helped Toronto Maple Leafs win their first Stanley CupStanley CupThe Stanley Cup is an ice hockey club trophy, awarded annually to the National Hockey League playoffs champion after the conclusion of the Stanley Cup Finals. It has been referred to as The Cup, Lord Stanley's Cup, The Holy Grail, or facetiously as Lord Stanley's Mug...
in 1932. - Ray LewisRay Lewis (runner)Competitor for CanadaRaymond "Ray" Gray Lewis, CM was a Canadian track and field athlete, and the first Canadian-born black Olympic medalist....
, (1910–2003), Track & Field, first Canadian-born Black Olympic medalist. - Jackie CalluraJackie CalluraJohn "Jackie" Callura was a Canadian featherweight boxer.He was born and died in Hamilton, Ontario,.Callura won the national featherweight title in 1931 and was a member of the 1932 Summer Olympics team....
, (1914–1943), Canadian featherweight Boxer, World featherweight champion 1943. - Harold E. JohnsHarold E. JohnsHarold Elford Johns, OC was a Canadian medical physicist, noted for his extensive contributions to the use of ionizing radiation to treat cancer.-Early life and education:...
, (1915–1998), was a Canadian medical physicist, noted for his extensive contributions to the use of ionizing radiation to treat cancer. - Jackie WashingtonJackie WashingtonJackie Washington was a Canadian blues musician.Born and raised in Hamilton, Ontario, Washington became Canada's first black disk jockey in 1948, at CHML in Hamilton....
, (1919- ), bluesBluesBlues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
musician and railway worker. - Joe KrolJoe KrolJoe "King" Krol was a Canadian football quarterback, running back, defensive back, and placekicker/punter from 1942 to 1953 and 1955...
, (1919- ), Canadian Football quarterback (1932–53), Lou Marsh TrophyLou Marsh TrophyThe Lou Marsh Trophy, also known as the Lou Marsh Memorial Trophy and Lou Marsh Award, is a trophy that is awarded annually to Canada's top athlete, professional or amateur. It is awarded by a panel of journalists, with the vote taking place in December. It was first awarded in 1936...
winner as Canada's top athlete in 1946. - Syl AppsSyl AppsCharles Joseph Sylvanus Apps, CM of Paris, Ontario, was a Canadian pole vaulter and professional hockey player for the Toronto Maple Leafs from 1936 to 1948 and a Conservative Member of Provincial Parliament in Ontario.-Athletic career:Apps was a strong athlete, 6 feet tall, weighing 185 pounds,...
, (1915–1998), Legendary Toronto Maple Leafs captain who led the Leafs to 3-Stanley Cups. McMaster UniversityMcMaster UniversityMcMaster University is a public research university whose main campus is located in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is located on of land in the residential neighbourhood of Westdale, adjacent to Hamilton's Royal Botanical Gardens...
Alumni. (Paris Ontario). - Win MortimerWin MortimerJames Winslow "Win" Mortimer was a comic book and comic strip artist best known as one of the major illustrators of the DC Comics superhero Superman...
, (1919–1998), was a comic book and comic strip artist for the DC ComicsDC ComicsDC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...
superhero SupermanSupermanSuperman is a fictional comic book superhero appearing in publications by DC Comics, widely considered to be an American cultural icon. Created by American writer Jerry Siegel and Canadian-born American artist Joe Shuster in 1932 while both were living in Cleveland, Ohio, and sold to Detective...
. - Leo Reise Jr., (1922- ), retired NHL hockey defenseman. 494-games played in the 1940s & 50s for Detroit, Chicago and NY Rangers.
- John CallaghanJohn CallaghanJohn Carter Callaghan, was a Canadian cardiac surgeon who "pioneered open-heart surgery in Alberta" Born in Hamilton, Ontario on October 1, 1923, he received his medical degree from the University of Toronto in 1946...
, (1923–2004), Canadian cardiologist who pioneered open-heart surgery.
See also
- List of attractions in Hamilton, Ontario#Historical sites and museums
- Haunted HamiltonHaunted HamiltonHaunted Hamilton is a paranormal group website that began in 1999 with a focus on residential and business ghost investigation.- History :Haunted Hamilton is dedicated to the history and ghosts of Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, and elsewhere around the world...
- Historical Timeline of events in Hamilton, OntarioHistorical timeline of events in Hamilton, OntarioBelow is a timeline of events in Hamilton, Ontario Canada.-Before 1800:* According to all records from local historians, this district was inhabited by the Neutral Indians who called it ATTIWANDARONIA....
- Economic History of Hamilton, OntarioEconomic history of Hamilton, OntarioThis article describes the Economic History of Hamilton, Ontario.-Beginning:In the beginning, the Head-of-the-Lake was covered in forest. In 1815 a chopping mill becomes the first industry in the area. Growth of the area was aided in 1827 by a channel cut to link Burlington Bay directly with Lake...
- List of Royal visits to Hamilton, Ontario
- People from Hamilton, Ontario
Historical documentation
Many other websites contain some photographs and other documentation, but these sites contain primarily these.- Canadian Souvenir View Albums (Hamilton, Ontario)
- Cultural Landmarks of Hamilton Wentworth
- Federated Women’s Institutes of Ontario
- Postcards from Hamilton's Past
- Vintage Postcards of Hamilton, Ontario
- HistoricalHamilton.com, A Historical Photographic Tour of Hamilton's Past
- "When You and I Were Young, Maggie", lyrics to George Johnson's song