The first of the JRA lecture series was held in the basement of the Annette St. Library on Monday evening March 30th.
There was a small but enthusiastic crowd of twelve that gathered to listen to the history of Fire Service in the Junction from the 1890’s to today as presented by Firefighter Gregory Shultz and Captain Duncun Brown from station 462 at Keele and Dundas.
The pride in the profession and history of it was evident during the presentation that included a power point presentation and artifacts that have been collected and rescued over several years. What was perhaps most surpising was the rich history of the Junction and its early contributions and innovations in firefighting in the area. This area had manufacturers of early fire wagons and fire hydrants. And our modern Toronto Firefighters started a North American trend of having beavers mounted on their fire helmets.
The amount of research and effort that has obviously been invested in this project is truly amazing. Information from archives, minutes of meetings from the 1800’s, recovered photographs and artifacts from the past and even some original film footage of the Great Toronto Fire was used to trace the history of Fire Service in the Junction and surrounding area from its inception to present day.
We would like to thank the Annette Street Public Library for providing the space for this fabulous
presentation.
We would also like to thank Latitude 44 for providing a gift certificate to the fire house. We know they have more photos that they would like to display.
And finally we would like to thank Firefighter Gregory Shultz and Captain Duncun Brown for taking time on their day off to connect with and educate the people in the community they serve.
Their passion is inspiring.
If you couldn’t make it, you missed a good one.
Posted by: Linda, JRA Co-Chair
The JRA would like to apologize to those hoping to catch the lecture live on our JRA TV. We had technical difficulties, and only managed to record a portion of the lecture and are trying to figure out how to upload it. We are currently seeking out savvy technophiles who can help make us as cool as we think we are. We will be ready for our April 27th lecture led by local artist David Crighton.
