Scarborough Mirror: Scarborough has special connection to Simcoe Day
The Scarborough Mirror had a story I want to share because it is about something that touched me when I was very young. I went to Elizabeth Simcoe JPS from kindergarten until my grade six graduation. I don’t remember how old I was, but I do remember being taught why my school was named after Mrs. Simcoe and not Sir John Graves Simcoe.
The simple explanation is that Sir John Graves Simcoe as Ontario’s first Lt. Governor put in place a number of key planks our province was built on and that later came to define us. Abolishing slavery long before the British Empire had, our judicial system, the founding of York (and the expansion of Fort York) to defend it.
In some respects he showed a certain shrewd ability to stay in the good graces of those who kept him employed and serving as Upper Canada’s first vice-regal. Yonge st. was effectively named after is boss, Dundas has a similar story, the re-naming of Toronto to York was done so in honour of a member of the royal family. He is the reason London, ON is called London and why it’s river is the Thames.
There are quite a bit of reminders of Simcoe throughout Ontario, and in particular Toronto. Castle Frank is the name of his summer home, which was located near to where the subway station is now. There is a Simcoe County, a Lake Simcoe, Fort York – something I always associate with Simcoe and of course the (former) City of Scarborough.
Scarborough as a name for the settlement east of York was decided upon by Elizabeth Simcoe, his wife. The cliffs of Scarborough she recorded in her diary are said to have reminded her of the cliffs of Scarborough England. She kept detailed diaries of her life in Ontario in addition to being a painter. Her works are treasures to Ontario historians as they provide a glimpse of life in colonial Ontario.
In 1996 the City of Scarborough held it’s bicentennial celebrations and during this period much of the pride in Scarborough’s history was brought alive by teachers and local historians eager to have students understand the past of their city. I remember the big mural on the wall in the main entrance of Simcoe, and the copy of the painting of the Simcoe’s in a row boat on Lake Ontario off the bluffs on what looks to be a tour. It could be found hanging in a number of different places around the school then.
Scarborough’s history is a victim of the forced amalgamations that awaited Scarborough just after its bicentnnial year. There was a time when Scarborough was being referred to by the City as “Toronto-East District” exclusively. It still happens to some degree, but recently the Scarborough Civic Centre has reclaimed its old flag, a flag I am proud to have on my wall at home, and many residents are involved in community projects to raise the level of pride of Scarborough residents.
If you see a button that says GSA (Greater Scarborough Area) you’ll know what I’m talking about. If you are not fortunate to live in Scarborough proper, but in one of it’s neighbouring cities, than it is very likely you are a resident of the GSA.
Scarborough is an amazing place. Perhaps people don’t think about things like where the name comes from because it stirs up reminders of where the name went. I know for me, Scarborough’s immense parklands, higher than average rate of recycling and higher library book circulation are all things that I am proud to recall when talking about my city.
I’ve fallen off track, but I will end by saying, not all have forgotten the special connection Simcoe has to Scarborough, or the memory of city separate from the rest of Toronto, as Scarborough had been since the many pioneer families arrived and founded the varies settlements that back Scarborough’s neighbourhoods. Scarborough as a facinating history, one that if studied by current Councillors would shock them. Annual reports to voters, spendthrift policies that saw Scarborough go without a proper Town Hall or Council Chamber for decades. I better stop here, but some have not forgotten and all 600 000 residents of Scarborough share a connection to a beautiful city they ought to be proud of.
Tags: Scarborough
May 5th, 2009 at 12:27 pm
[...] Like Elizabeth Simcoe, the wife of Upper Canada’s first Lt. Governor, many of us have loved the bluffs since our first sighting of them. We will defend them, as countless generations going back to Canada’s first people’s who lived in their watershed and along their cliffs have dating back 8000 years. I wrote about Elizabeth Simcoe and Sir John Graves Simcoe in August. Here is the link to that. Scarborough Mirror: Scarborough has special connection to Simcoe Day [...]