Preservation of the castle provides visitors with access to fully decorated suites, secret passages, an 800-foot tunnel, towers, and stables.
Various seasonal events (e.g., Free Garden Access Days, documentary film screenings concerning the history of Toronto and Casa Loma). Calendar available on website.
Virtual tours of the castle and grounds available on website, self-guided multimedia tours are available on site.
Walking tours highlight the restoration of Cabbagetown homes in the style of Worker’s Cottage, Georgian, Queen Anne, Second Empire, Gothic Revival, Bay n’ Gable, Romanesque Revival, and Arts and Crafts
The Cabbagetown People Project commemorates more than fifty historical personalities and colourful characters who lived in Cabbagetown and who have contributed to Canada’s rich heritage. The project has expanded to include the many other “heroes” and their inspiring stories which are explored through an online exhibit as well as incorporated in their Program for Schools.
To facilitate self-guided walking tours by the public, the association has installed a Cabbagetown People Orientation Directory, including images, biographical text and a map of plaque locations, which is located at the northwest corner of Riverdale Park. For that purpose, a brochure exists. All this material is complemented by the www.cabbagetownpeople.ca website. Cabbagetown People tours are also offered (with guides) free of charge to local schools.
The CPA also offers various seasonal tours (with guides) often organized in cooperation with organizations such as Heritage Toronto, la Société d’histoire de Toronto, etc. Tours vary every year and can touch on such topic as architecture, social history, remarkable people, medical heritage, artists and writers, etc. CPA guides can also take the public through Cabbagetown’s two historical cemeteries: the Necropolis and the St. James Cemetery.
Produces and provides teaching manuals (including biographies of the “heritage heroes”) for teachers to use in classroom projects and to “pre-teach” students in advance of participating in guided walking tours of Cabbagetown.
Various public speakers and lecture events on a variety of topics concerning Brampton’s heritage (e.g. topics of historical family genealogy, historical buildings in Brampton, Ontario conservancy of heritage buildings).
This heritage board advises the City Council of Brampton on which resources, specifically architectural, are of priority for preservation and conservation such as the Brampton Heritage Theatre, Peel County Courthouse and The Mill.
A Walk Through Time Walking Tour is the first phase in what will become a larger walking heritage program that showcases various heritage locations throughout Brampton, focuses on the history of the City of Brampton and highlight relevant residential and commercial buildings as well as religious edifices
Black Creek Pioneer Village’s collection of 50,000 artefacts represents the development of the Toronto region in the 19th century. Of special note are the Percy Band Toy Collection with over 2,000 pieces and the Catherine Thuro Collection of over 150 working kerosene lamps. Other items include domestic artefacts, books, fine art, furniture, machinery, textiles, and tools.
Black Creek Pioneer Village features a collection of 40 heritage homes, trade shops, community, and farm buildings from across south central Ontario. Each of the Village’s original buildings has been restored and furnished to recapture its original ambiance and demonstrates how settlers used it. Examples consist of a print shop, grain barn, smoke house and a tinsmith shop.
Digital archive of onsite museum’s holdings available: http://www.blackcreekartifacts.com/bcpv/srchitem.html.
At Black Creek Pioneer Village visitors enjoy exhibits focusing on the people and stories of Toronto Region, including the award-winning Breaking the Silence: Stories of the British Home Children, 1869-1948.
Public programs are offered daily and range from tours of the recreated 19th century brewery to short performances by Black Creek’s History Actors, from hands-on Discovery Stations to Farmyard Friends where visitors can get up close with heritage breed animals.
A seasonal roster of special events include Pioneer Harvest Festival, which has been celebrated annually for over 50 years, Light Up the Night, Ghost Walks, and Christmas by Lamplight.
Interactive curriculum-linked programs are provided for students ranging from pre-school to post-secondary.
The oldest house remaining on the site, the Jesse Ashbridge House, was built in 1854 according to a design by Joseph Sheard, architect and Toronto mayor (1871-72).
A significant collection of household and personal artefacts:
A large collection of archival documents representing the personal characteristics, tastes and influences that affected six generations of the Ashbridge family.
Open seasonally to the public during special events such as Doors Open Toronto and Toronto Heritage Week.
The majority of the records in the collections of the Archives were created by the government of Ontario and its predecessors in the fulfillment of its legal and administrative functions. These records date from the late eighteenth century to the present day concerning:
Since 1903, the Archives of Ontario has been acquiring records from the private sector. The Archives holds the records of over 2600 private individuals, businesses, clubs and associations, labour and political organizations. These collections can range in size from one or two items to thousands of items that occupy hundreds of metres of shelf space.
These records include:
The Archives of Ontario holds many important sources for researching family history in Ontario. There is no single finding aid or database for this type of research.
Historical registrations of births, marriages and deaths. No database yet exists that allows you to search these records by name. Rather, these records must be searched using microfilm.
Records Relating to Aboriginal Peoples:
The Archives of Ontario has a substantial number of records relating to aboriginal history, very widely scattered through the Archives’ total holdings. Dating from the 1760s, most focus on what is now Ontario. However, a reasonable number — for example, fur trade and missionary papers — refer to Aboriginal people of Quebec, other parts of Canada, and the United States
The J. J. Talman Library at the Archives of Ontario is a research and reference collection for the general public and the staff of the Archives. Most of the Library collections relate to the social, political, economic, cultural and military history of the Province of Ontario.
There are approximately 75,000 pieces including:
The Archives of Ontario’s photographic collection consists of approximately 1.7 million images documenting activities, people, places and events in Ontario from the mid-1800s to the present.
These images come in many formats including: colour and black and white prints, daguerreotypes, ambrotypes, tintypes, slides, and glass plate negatives.
The Archives photographic holdings include images from many private sources such as: photojournalists, studio photographers, amateur photographers, and corporate collections.
The Archives’ photographic holdings also include images created by many Ontario government ministries and agencies to document programs and activities.
Photographs are accessed through the Reading Room.
Online Photographic Database:
A selection of images drawn from the holdings of the Archives of Ontario which document the province’s history and landscape. Images are continually being added to the database.
The Cartographic Records Collection of the Archives of Ontario contains over 40,000 maps, plans, hydrographic charts, atlases, bird’s eye views, and other cartographic materials relating to the Province of Ontario. Many of these maps are in manuscript form and thus are unique items.
The Archives has significant collections of private cartographic records including those produced by or for: Lieutenant Governor Simcoe, Thomas Talbot, the Canada Company, and David Thompson.
The foundation of the collection consists of maps produced by and for the Government of Ontario, most notably the Ministry of Natural Resources and its predecessors. Maps in the collection span the period from the early eighteenth century, when Ontario was still part of New France, to the present.
The collection contains maps and plans documenting many aspects of the province’s history and development including:
An extensive architectural records collection of approximately 200,000 drawings and other items, dating from the early 1820s to the 1990s. These records document Ontario’s built environment and heritage.
The collection consists of architectural materials created or accumulated for government purposes. An example would be the records of the Public Works Department, which was responsible for the construction of prisons, hospitals, special schools, and other facilities.
The Archives also holds architectural records created by individual architects or private sector firms. The scope of these records ranges from houses to factories to skyscrapers.
The Archives of Ontario holds a collection of approximately 4000 documentary art records that document the people, places and events in Ontario from the 1790s until the 1900s.
The collection contains paintings, drawings, and prints by both amateur and professional artists, such as: Caroline Armington, William Armstrong, Thomas Burrowes, Anne Langton, C. W. Jefferys, Stewart C. Shaw, Elizabeth Simcoe, Fred Brygden, Robert Sproule, Owen Staples, and Dorothy Stevens.
It covers a wide range of subjects such as views of small towns, famous and infamous people, and historical events.
Several exhibitions that highlight the collections. The most recent online exhibits can be accessed directly from the website.
Various heritage photo competitions.
Walking tours of various buildings, participant in Doors Open.
Lecture series concerning historical architecture, awards programs, fundraising events (such as Port Hope’s annual house tour and Cobourg’s Moveable Feast).
The building, moved in 1980 to avoid demolition, serves as an example of the architecture of 19th century farmhouses in this region.
The interior of the homestead has been restored and furnished in the Victorian period of 1870-1890 (e.g. furniture and personal effects such as desks, china dolls, roll top desks, kitchen appliances).
A tour of the main floor rooms and basement, with a slide presentation of the big move and restoration of the homestead.
Tours can also be tailored to a group’s interest, (i.e. J.S. Woodsworth, historic buildings, pioneer life, the Shaver Family, etc.).
Visitors may drop in and staff are available to answer questions.
The museum holds a diverse collection of objects reflecting the history of Oakville from its establishment to the present day, including costumes and textiles, fine and decorative arts, ethnological artefacts and Chisholm family-related materials.
Permanent and changing exhibitions. Permanent exhibitions include Freedom, Opportunity and Family: Oakville’s Black History and The Underground Railroad: Next Stop Freedom.
The Oakville Museum offers guided tours of the Chisholm family home.
Throughout the year, museum staff present a series of mini exhibits coupled with conversational-style presentations to seniors’ residences in the community. Various themes are covered including oddities in the museum’s collections, an overview of Oakville’s history, vintage quilts and cocktail party gowns.