Aug 18 2020
August 2020 When the government of Ontario Premier John Robarts announced the creation of Ontario Place in August 1968, he envisioned a facility on the shore of Lake Ontario in Toronto, that would serve as a showcase to promote the Province of Ontario through exhibits and entertainment. Over the years, Ontario Place would become more …
Permanent link to this article: https://militarybruce.com/three-decommissioned-lake-freighters-now-provide-shelter-for-ontario-place-and-its-marina/
Aug 17 2020
August 2020 Everyone likes truth in advertising, from the kid who mails away for those X-ray glasses advertised in the back of his comic book, to adults buying cars that their manufacturer promises are safe and won’t explode in a rear-end collision. With the upcoming school year rapidly approaching, I’m having to deal with my …
Permanent link to this article: https://militarybruce.com/some-truth-in-advertising/
Aug 13 2020
August 2020 The Preston Springs Hotel, an abandoned luxury hotel in Cambridge, Ontario, has been an iconic landmark in the area for 137 years. Opened in 1888 as the Del Monte Hotel Walder by Robert Walder, in what was then called the Village of Preston, an area populated by German-speaking Mennonites from Pennsylvania. Standing at …
Permanent link to this article: https://militarybruce.com/preston-springs-hotel-a-grim-future-for-a-historic-hotel/
Aug 12 2020
August 2020 Lighthouses have served as essential navigational aids for shipping for centuries. Although its light was extinguished long ago, the Gibraltar Point Lighthouse on Toronto Island is the oldest lighthouse still standing on the shore of the Great Lakes, and one of the oldest buildings in Toronto. Built in 1808 using stone quarried in …
Permanent link to this article: https://militarybruce.com/gibraltar-point-lighthouse-the-historic-lighthouse-on-toronto-island/
Aug 12 2020
August 2020 Regarding Brian Lilley’s column in the Toronto Sun on 12 August, “Yes, the public does get to know where Trudeau vacations.” Given that Justin is once again (Yes, AGAIN) on vacation, this time “renting” a cottage on Georgian Bay (rumour is that he’s staying at a cottage owned by the Weston family, the …
Permanent link to this article: https://militarybruce.com/time-to-take-a-walk-in-the-snow-justin/
Aug 11 2020
August 2020 Carousels, or merry-go-rounds, have been popular amusement park attractions for around two centuries. These circular rides commonly feature wooden horses, but may also feature an assortment of other wooden animals like pigs, zebras, lions, tigers, mythological creatures like dragons or unicorns, bench seats, aeroplanes or cars. While the ride is in motion, the …
Permanent link to this article: https://militarybruce.com/the-jewel-of-centreville-the-centreville-antique-carousel/
Aug 10 2020
August 2020 The quaint, colourful, lakefront cottage community of Grimsby Park in Grimsby, Ontario, Grimsby Park has its beginnings in 1846, when John Bowslaugh, a Methodist, offered up his lakeside property to host large Temperance gatherings; events that soon became quite popular with over 2000 people regularly attending. These gatherings were not just religious gatherings, …
Permanent link to this article: https://militarybruce.com/grimsby-park-a-colourfully-beautiful-historic-cottage-community/
Aug 07 2020
Published in the Toronto Sun, Edmonton Sun, 8 August 2020 Published in the Borden Citizen, 10 August 2020 (Note: This is an updating of an article that I wrote back in 2008) In conjunction with the commemoration of the 75th anniversary of V-J Day (Victory over Japan), and the official end of WWII on 15 …
Permanent link to this article: https://militarybruce.com/honouring-canadas-last-victoria-cross-winner-on-the-75th-anniversary-of-vj-day/
Aug 05 2020
August 2020 The Grand Trunk Railway (GTR) is long gone, but many of the architecturally significant stations built to serve this one grand Canadian railway company endure to this day. Built in 1903 and originally standing at the corner of Station Street (now Galt Street) and Grand Trunk Street, the Whitby Junction Station replaced an …
Permanent link to this article: https://militarybruce.com/former-whitby-junction-station-lives-on-as-an-art-gallery/
Aug 04 2020
August 2020 On a hill, overlooking the Muskoka River in Bracebridge, Ontario, sits the historic octagon house built in 1882 by wool manufacturer Henry J. Bird. Known both as Woodchester Villa and The Bird House, the house has 16 inch-thick walls, each section of which alternates between 14 feet 8 inches and 16 feet 5 …
Permanent link to this article: https://militarybruce.com/woodcester-villa-bracebridges-historic-octagonal-home/
