Daily Archives: November 28, 2010

Photo Credit: Laura Waldie, 2010

It’s been a busy month here at “History to the People” and I wanted to take the opportunity to tell you about some seminars and workshops I have taken part in recently that have been both helpful and have given me further knowledge in this wonderful world of built heritage and cultural landscapes.

The first event was a four day workshop hosted by the University of Waterloo’s Heritage Resources Centre which took place at the beautiful Museum of Steam and Technology in Hamilton, Ontario from October 23-24 and November 6-7, 2010. Here, Professor Robert Shipley and his staff led a series of lectures, group discussions, and team exercises on the world of heritage planning. As someone who eventually wants to become a heritage planner, I had literally been waiting all year for this workshop to take place, and it was worth the wait!  (more…)

Photo Credit: Urban Toronto

We have come to the final chapter of our series on Canadian Castles and we end with the youngest of them all, Toronto’s Casa Loma. Since its construction, Casa Loma has been a tourist attraction and prominent landmark in the city of Toronto. It was built as a dream castle for wealthy financier and military man Sir Henry Pellatt and his wife, Lady Mary Pellatt. When construction began on the castle in 1911, Pellatt had amassed a vast fortune by investing in a number of Canadian businesses which included the Toronto Electric Light Company, the Home Bank of Canada and Cobalt Lake Mining. At the height of his financial success, Pellatt was the Chairman of 21 companies and through his own personal investments, he was in control of 25% of the Canadian economy. But before he even moved into his “dream home on the hill”, the seeds for his downfall were being sewn. Unlike his fellow Canadian Castle owners, Pellatt was forced to vacate his property less than a decade after he moved in.  (more…)