December 2019 Toronto, Ontario, is a city with many heritage buildings and most have unique stories to tell. Briarcrest Manor is just one of those heritage buildings, built in 1935 in what was then Etobicoke Township. Designed in the style of an English country manor by architect Frank Ridley, with elements of the Tudor style, …
Category Archive: Original Writing
Permanent link to this article: https://militarybruce.com/historic-toronto-house-has-a-connection-to-the-avro-arrow/
Dec 01 2019
Borden’s past brought back to life with restored training trenches
December 2019 When the Canadian Army established Camp Borden, north of Toronto, in 1916, it was to train recruits for the battlefields of Europe. Approximately 350, 000 soldiers trained at the camp built among the sand dunes in Simcoe County. As trench warfare was how much of the war was being fought at that point, …
Permanent link to this article: https://militarybruce.com/bordens-past-brought-back-to-life-with-restored-training-trenches/
Dec 01 2019
Citadel Clock Tower – One of the most recognizable landmarks in eastern Canada
December 2019 Atop Citadel Hill in Halifax, Nova Scotia, sits the Halifax Citadel, a star-shaped fort built in 1749 for defence of Halifax and the harbour. Manned by a garrison of British soldiers and after Confederation, Canadian soldiers, it remained an active military installation until 1906, when it became a tourist attraction. Located a short …
Permanent link to this article: https://militarybruce.com/citadel-clock-tower-one-of-the-most-recognizable-landmarks-in-eastern-canada/
Nov 27 2019
Mather Arch – A monument to the friendship of two nations
November 2019 The Mather Arch is the centrepiece of Mather Arch Park in Fort Erie, Ontario. Built by the Niagara Parks Commission in 1939 the arch, with its beautiful manicured gardens, is dedicated to Alonzo C. Mather, the architect of the nearby International Peace Bridge. The towering limestone arch was built on seventy-five acres of …
Permanent link to this article: https://militarybruce.com/mather-arch-a-monument-to-the-friendship-of-two-nations/
Nov 26 2019
Size doesn’t matter when it comes to worshiping
November 2019 Ontario is home to some of the smallest jails in North America, although none of them are active jails anymore. Not to be outdone, Ontario also has two tiny chapels, one of which holds the Guinness Book of World Records title for the smallest chapel in the world. The Living Water Wayside Chapel …
Permanent link to this article: https://militarybruce.com/size-doesnt-matter-when-it-comes-to-worshiping/
Nov 26 2019
The Toronto and York Radial Railway arch – An odd structure in the middle of Newmarket
November 2019 In the middle of Newmarket, Ontario, sits an odd-looking arch structure crossing over the Holland River. This structure was once a part of early public transportation system in the Greater Toronto Area. Built in 1909 by the Toronto and York Radial Railway (T&YRR) Company, this reinforced concrete arch was built as a trestle …
Permanent link to this article: https://militarybruce.com/the-toronto-and-york-radial-railway-arch-an-odd-structure-in-the-middle-of-newmarket/
Nov 22 2019
Irony can be pretty ironic sometimes
November 2019 In a case of be careful of what you wish for, Quebec Premier Francois Legault is sounding the alarm that his province will run out of propane within 4 days due to the strike by 3200 Canadian National Railway conductors, train and yard workers. Quebec imports 85 percent of its propane reserves by …
Permanent link to this article: https://militarybruce.com/irony-can-be-pretty-ironic-sometimes/
Nov 21 2019
The next time, it might be you
November 2019 Let’s talk about the mental health crisis in policing Thirty-seven. That’s how many OPP officers have taken their own lives in the past 30 years; with 15 in just the past 7 years. This year alone, there have been three officers from the OPP alone; the most recent being Staff-Sergeant Jeff Harmer. There …
Permanent link to this article: https://militarybruce.com/the-next-time-it-might-be-you/
Nov 12 2019
The rebirth of de Havilland’s Plant #1 – Historic aircraft production plant gets a fitting new lease on life
November 2019 A historic aircraft production plant in the Downsview area of north Toronto got a new lease on life, one that is quite fitting, thanks to the efforts of designers MacLennan Jaunkalns Miller Architects and Stantec, Architects in Association, and Bondfield Construction. Once housing the original production plant for the de Havilland Aircraft Company of …
Permanent link to this article: https://militarybruce.com/the-rebirth-of-de-havillands-plant-1-historic-aircraft-production-plant-gets-a-fitting-new-lease-on-life/
Nov 08 2019
Can their souls ever find peace? A cemetery with a tragic past
November 2019 Beside the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) Headquarters in Orillia, Ontario, there is a small cemetery with a particularly tragic past. While death is a sad thing, most cemeteries provide some comfort and solace to surviving family and friends of the deceased interred in the cemetery; a place to visit to remember and reflect …
Permanent link to this article: https://militarybruce.com/can-their-souls-ever-find-peace-a-cemetery-with-a-tragic-past/

