Since many of us have “a wee drop” in celebration of New Year’s Eve, here’s a short history of breweries and the brewing industry as it relates to our area. There has been an ongoing struggle to determine the place that alcohol should play in our community. You can read my article on Newmarket’s prohibition for background. Brewing in…
Tag: Interview
Teen Town Highlight Of Social Scene In 1950s, ’60s
I have been working on this article since I first began writing this column nearly five years ago, looking back at some of the memories associated with Newmarket’s Teen Town that are still so strong after all these years. My sincere thanks need to go out to all those who have participated in quite a few…
Indigenous Shared Secrets Including That Of The Sugar Bush With Settlers
Let’s examine a fun topic, you may say a “sweet topic.” Maple sugar was an important commodity for our early pioneers and, as was so often the case, the knowledge of maple sugar production came to us from our Indigenous peoples who shared the secret with our ancestors. Would our early settlers have survived life in the new world…
Irish Immigrants Settled In Newmarket’s Paddytown
A tiny Irish settlement along the river on Main Street north of Davis Drive (formerly Huron Street) remains a vital part of our Newmarket history. It took many years for Newmarket to spread north over the hill on Main Street north and this is the story of a tiny community that was indeed ahead of its…
Young Doctor’s Persistence Behind Southlake’s Beginnings
How many know the history of institutionalized medical care in Newmarket? Here is an overview of how we progressed from rooms in a local hotel to a modern facility called Southlake Regional Health Centre. The Royal Hotel at the corner of Main Street and Millard Avenue was repaired after the fire of 1907 and, in…
1930’s Mark Heyday Of Hockey, Theatre In Newmarket
We return to our series on Newmarket’s history timeline, beginning with the status of the town as the year 1930 opens. The total population sits at approximately 3,700. The town register lists 186 persons as being owners of their own businesses, with 98 business and trades located on the east side of town and 88 businesses…
1920’s Brought Newmarket A Hospital, Saw Trading Tree Saved
Welcome back to our timeline of Newmarket’s history, where we pick up the story in 1921, following the roller coaster war years. The year 1921 finds the local butchers presenting a petition to amend a bylaw that prohibited them from selling smaller cuts of meat as this was reserved for the farmers market. They were limited to the…
Newmarket Through The 1910s
This weekend on Newmarket Today I continue my timeline series, starting with the year 1910. The second decade of the twentieth century found Newmarket in the midst of rapid industrialization and a period of steady growth. We were blessed with an abundance of natural resources including a clean and safe water supply on both the…
New Century Brought Cars, Davis Tannery, Great Canal Project To Newmarket
We continue our journey through highlights of Newmarket’s history from 1800 up to the dawning of a new century, 1900. During this time, our Main Street has evolved from an Indigenous trail to a thriving business throughfare. Our town administrators and politicians were drawn from the principal businesses and entrepreneurs that blessed this verging community….
1880s Mark Arrival Of Telephone, Water Works, Poor House, Temperance Movement
In this third instalment of my series on our local historical timeline, we pick up the narrative in the year 1881 and we will proceed up to 1900 and the turn of the century. The year 1881 opens with a huge celebration of our Newmarket’s incorporation. William Cane is our newly minted mayor, a position…
