The Peterborough Law Association was incorporated in 1879 in order to enable the local bar to establish and receive grants from the law society for a law library in the court house. The local bar had a library and rented a library from a local firm for $12.00 a year. In 1893 the Association paid the firm $22.00 and removed their library from the firm. This left the library depleted and hence the application for grants from the Law Society. The Law Association in Peterborough developed committees to look after the library and had a chief librarian. It celebrated its one hundredth anniversary in 1979 with a dinner and notable guest speaker. Since its inception the Peterborough Law Association has received innumerable gifts and donations in the form of books and paintings such as books of Sir John Beverly Robinson from his son Christopher Robinson Q.C. and a set of Supreme Court Reports from USA President Calvin Coolidge.
The Peterborough Humane Society opened its doors to stray, sick and abused animals around the 1940's. The objectives of the Society were to prevent cruelty to animals and birds; to provide shelter and food for animals and birds which were lost, injured or abandoned; to provide unclaimed animals and birds with homes; to investigate complaints of cruelty to animals and birds; and to create public interest in humane work. The Society had a president, secretary, officers, a board of directors and a council as well as a women's auxiliary and affiliation with other societies such as the Ontario Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and the Canadian Federation of Humane Societies. The Humane Society formerly operated from a building on Townsend Street in Peterborough. In 1957, the shelter on Lansdowne Street was built.
The Peterborough Horticultural Society was established April 9, 1861 by a few gentlemen interested in horticulture. Within a few weeks time the new horticulture club was registered in Toronto. Rev. Vincent Clementi was the first president. The first exhibition, which consisted of exhibits of flowers, fruits and vegetables, was held September 20, 1861. The first two day show was held in 1872. In 1885 the Society, with the help of the Peterborough Council, started a town beautification project in the Court House park. In 1898 the first lawn and garden competition was held. Eventually the Society joined with other societies to form the Ontario Horticultural Society. There were junior members as well as the adult members.
The Peterborough Historical Atlas was created by the Peterborough Historical Atlas Foundation which started in 1974. The Foundation was formed to produce and to publish an Illustrated Historical Atlas of Peterborough County 1825-1875 in the 19th century manner in conjunction with the 150th anniversary of the arrival of the Peter Robinson settlers. The Foundation was chaired by Jane Deyman and A.O.C. Cole was the general editor. Jean Murray Cole was a co-editor. Professors Alan Brunger, Bruce Hodgins, R.B. Johnston, Elwood Jones and Gordon Roper, all of Trent University, helped to write various parts of the Atlas. When the Atlas was published in 1975 it received a number of awards such as a communications award from Heritage Canada; a local histories award from the Canadian Historical Association; and a local societies award from the Ontario Historical Society. The Foundation donated a number of copies of the Atlas to schools and, from the proceeds of the sale of the Atlas, the Foundation was able to give a number of gifts. The Foundation gave financial gifts to Hutchinson House, the Peterborough Historical Society, the Peterborough Public Library, Lang Pioneer Village, the Journal for Canadian Studies and Trent University. Trent also received an endowment fund called the Peterborough Historical Atlas prize which an undergraduate student would be able to win with the best written paper or project on a Canadian topic. The prize was to be awarded in Canadian Reference books. Not only did the Foundation publish the Atlas but it helped publish Kawartha Heritage in 1981. The Foundation wound up its activities in 1985.
The Peterborough Free Press was published by members of the Peterborough Newspaper Guild and university students concerned about the strike at the Peterborough Examiner. (Taken from: "The Peterborough Free Press." December 18, 1968.)
The Peterborough Fortnightly Club was encouraged, by F.M. de la Fosse (?-1945) the librarian at the Public Library, to meet during the winter months and discuss learned talks by fellow members. (Taken from: "Peterborough The Electric City." Burlington: Greater Peterborough Chamber of Commerce, 1987.)
The Peterborough Fire brigade was established in 1850 and until 1908, the brigade ran on a totally voluntary basis. The volunteers were paid a fifteen dollar yearly honorarium for their efforts. The first Captain of the brigade was Robert Swayne. The first Chief Engineer was W.S. Conger and the Assistant Engineer was John R. Benson. From 1886 to 1908, the fire department was housed in the town buildings on the southeast corner of the market square and it shared quarters with the police department. On New Year's Day 1908, a new fire station was opened on Aylmer Street. In the same year, it was decided by the City of Peterborough that a permanent fire brigade was necessary. The change from voluntary to permanent brigade took place on June 30, 1908, and was marked by a grand procession of the old fire brigade. The personnel of the permanent brigade consisted of a Chief, Assistant Chief, two drivers, three paid firemen and six call men.
Previous to 1908, Peterborough's fire brigade ran on a totally voluntary basis. The volunteers were paid a fifteen dollar yearly honorarium for their efforts. From 1886 to 1908, the fire department was housed in the town buildings on the southeast corner of the market square and it shared quarters with the police department. On New Year's Day 1908, a new fire station was opened on Aylmer Street. In the same year, it was decided by the City of Peterborough that a permanent fire brigade was necessary. The change from voluntary to permanent brigade took place on June 30, 1908, and was marked by a grand procession of the old fire brigade.
The Peterborough Ecology Strategy is a community-initiated project to identify and describe green space and natural areas in and around the City of Peterborough, Ontario, with the aim of developing strategies and policies for their protection (taken from the Report). The idea for doing an inventory of the City's green space was initiated by Professor John Marsh, Trent University. Over time the Peterborough Field Naturalists became involved, and later the Planning Division and the Parks and Forestry Division of the City of Peterborough. The draft interim report was submitted by project coordinator Jean Greig to the Ecology Strategy Steering Committee in 1991.
Peterborough's Diamond Jubilee took place in 1927.
In 1859 the Junior Cricket Club was formed as a younger member of the Peterborough Cricket Club. The Peterborough Cricket Club produced amateur minstrel shows in the 1890's at Victoria Hall in the Bradburn Opera House. (Taken from: Jones, Elwood and Bruce Dyer. "Peterborough The Electric City." Burlington: Windsor Publications (Canada) Ltd., 1987.)
The Peterborough Community Concert Association was formally established in 1942 when the Peterborough Music Club joined Community Concerts of America, Inc. It was formed under the leadership of Dr. J.J. Craig, a well known Peterborough dentist, and a group of business people interested in bringing outstanding musical talent to Peterborough. The objectives of the Association were to "build and maintain through nonprofit plan a permanent concert audience on a strictly membership basis; to cultivate in the citizens of Peterborough and its surrounding area interest in good music; to provide for its members an opportunity to hear good music in the form of concerts and recitals, of which there will be a minimum of three presented annually; and to foster and encourage public appreciation of music and the teaching of music, history of music, and music appreciation in the schools of Peterborough and its surrounding area." Peterborough did have a concert association which existed before 1942, but unfortunately, all written records of this association have been lost. Over the years, the Peterborough Community Concert Association was able to bring many big name artists and groups to Peterborough including Ephriam Zimbalist, the Munich Chamber Orchestra, and Liona Boyd. In 1987, the Peterborough Community Concert Association broke its ties with Community Concerts of America, Inc. due to high commissions and the high American dollar and comparatively low Canadian dollar. The Peterborough Concert Association was the result of this split and it has continued to function effectively, holding five to six concerts a year and maintaining the high artistic standards set in previous years.
The Peterborough Common Press was a self-supporting weekly community newspaper covering Peterborough and surrounding areas. It was run by Harry Underwood and Clifford Maynes and operated only in the 1970's. (Taken from: "Peterborough The Electric City." Windsor Publications: The Greater Peterborough Chamber of Commerce, 1987.) The "Common Press" invited members of the public to submit articles, letters, ideas and time to help support itself. It was printed by the Quinte Web Press in Tweed using a photo-offset technique.(Taken from: "The Peterborough Common Press." November 2, 1976.)
Reverend Samuel Armour opened the Peterborough Collegiate and Vocational Institute on May 1, 1826. The school, originally known as the Peterborough Government School, was first located in the back playground of present day Central Public School on Murray Street in Peterborough. As the population increased, due to immigration, the Common School (public school) students moved into smaller schools while the Grammar School (high school) students stayed in the original school building. By 1854 the school trustees had leased an old church, on the corner of Hunter and Sheridan Streets, to hold the school but the student population soon grew too large. In 1855 plans to build a new school had begun. The new building was completed in 1859 and was intended to be used by both common and grammar school students. It was located where the present day Central School is built. The new school was known as the Union School. By 1868 the principal of the school asked that girls be allowed to attend grammar school. A new building was constructed west of the Union School to allow for the increased student population. In 1871, with a government bill abolishing the term grammar school and replacing it with collegiate, the Union School became the Collegiate Institute. Due to overcrowding and various moves within the buildings it soon came time for the Collegiate to have its own building, separate from the public school. On August 1, 1907 the cornerstone for the new school was laid. The new school opened in 1908 on the corner of Aylmer and McDonnel Streets near the Armouries. In 1927 a vocational school was added to the P.C.I. Students and staff at the school helped in a variety of projects including creation and publication of the student monthly newsletter "The Collegiate Echoes" which began publication in 1905. The Collegiate has played a major role in the shaping of Peterborough through the changes that the community has sustained during the years of settlement, growth, war, poverty, industrialization and computerization. (Taken from: "Echoes Sesquicentennial Edition." 1977.)
It was in May of 1819 that the first settlers came to the region in Newcastle District which is now known as Peterborough. One of these settlers was Adam Scott (1796-1838), and he erected a saw and grist mill on the west bank of the Otonabee River (at the location where King Street now crosses the river). This location, then known as Scott's Plains, was to become the City of Peterborough. The area had been previously surveyed by Samuel Wilmot in 1818, and at that time, he recommended to the surveyor general that land be set aside for the development of a town at the junction of Smith, Douro, North Monaghan and Otonabee Townships, along the shores of the Otonabee River. In 1825, the recommended townsite was surveyed again by Richard Birdsall and the creation of a town plan was undertaken. From 1819 to 1825, the only inhabitants of Scott's Plains were Adam Scott's family and a few hired men. This changed with the arrival of the Peter Robinson immigrants in 1825 who numbered close to 2,000 people. Many of them settled in the townships surrounding Scott's Plains, which was renamed in 1826, to Peterboro by Sir Peregrine Maitland, in honour of Peter Robinson. By 1827, there were 20 buildings located within the townsite, and in the summer of 1828, another 20 houses were built. Shops, taverns, schools and churches were built within the town boundaries. Timber, and then lumber, dominated the Peterborough industrial scene from 1825 to 1875, but it was not the only form of industry. Peterborough also had a tannery, three iron foundries, and several woolen and grain mills. The location of Peterborough along the shores of the Otonabee was extremely important in the development of Peterborough as a manufacturing centre. The river provided not only water power, but a means of transportation for both people and goods. In 1890, Edison Electric, later known as Canadian General Electric, set up a plant in Peterborough, and by 1892, it became the site of the CGE head office for Canadian Operations. In 1900, Quaker Oats also came to Peterborough. Not only did Quaker employ a substantial number of people, they also used locally grown grains in the production of their cereals. The period between 1875 and 1930 was one of rapid industrial growth in Peterborough. As well, the population was constantly increasing. In 1838, the population was between eight and nine hundred and by the 1852 census, it had risen to 2,191. In 1871 it had increased to 4,611 and it became necessary for Peterborough to annex land from the surrounding townships. In 1872, 239 acres were annexed from Smith, 50 acres from Douro, and 581 acres from North Monaghan. After the annexation, the population was close to 7,000 inhabitants. Peterborough officially became a city in 1904 and by 1921 the population had increased to 21,000.
In 1792, the United Counties of Northumberland and Durham were officially created in a proclamation made by Lieutenant-Governor John Graves Simcoe. The proclamation divided Upper Canada in 19 Counties for representation purposes. The United Counties are bounded by Lake Ontario in the south, Hasting County in the east, Ontario County in the west and Peterborough and Victoria Counties in the north. The town line between Hope and Hamilton Townships divide the two counties. Durham County consists of the Townships of Cartwright, Manvers, Cavan, Darlington, Clarke and Hope. Northumberland County consists of South Monaghan, Hamilton, Haldimand, Alnwick, Percy, Cramahe, Seymour, Brighton and Murray Townships. (Taken from: Illustrated Historical Atlas of Northumberland and Durham Counties, Ontario. Belleville: Mika Silk Screening Limited, 1972.)
Underwood & Underwood established itself in 1882 as a stereographic distributing company. The company was founded by two brothers, Elmer and Bert Underwood. They distributed stereographs for Charles Bierstadt, J.F. Jarvis and the Littleton View Company. In 1891 Bert learned how to operate a camera and thus the firm of Underwood & Underwood Publishing entered a new merchandising sphere. By 1897 the company had a number of full-time staff and free lance photographers. In the same year the Underwoods purchased the businesses of Jarvis; Bierstadt; and, William H. Rau. Underwood & Underwood were publishing twenty-five thousand stereographs a day by 1901. The firm still canvassed and sold its own stereographs. Around 1900 Underwood & Underwood introduced boxed sets, with specific themes such as education and religion, and travel sets depicting popular tourist areas of the world. By 1910 Underwood & Underwood had entered the field of news photography. Due to this expansion stereograph production was reduced until the early years of World War I. Altogether Underwood & Underwood produced between 30 000 and 40 000 stereographic titles. In 1920 stereograph production was discontinued and Underwood & Underwood sold its stereographic stock and rights to the Keystone View Company. (Taken from: Darrah, William C. The World of Stereographs. Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, 1977.)
The Atwood family is associated with nineteenth-century settlement in the Lakefield, Ontario region. James Parr Clinton Atwood (1836-1912) immigrated to Canada from Gloucestershire in 1855 and married Anne Traill Fotheringhame (Annie) Traill (1838-1931), daughter of Thomas Traill and Catharine Parr Traill, in 1858. Together they had seven children: Henry, Emily, Clinton, Katharine, George, Anne, and Florence. The Atwood family is related to the Upper Canada pioneer Traill, Moodie, and Strickland families.
The Municipal Boards of Health were answerable to the Provincial and Secretaries' Offices of Upper Canada and Canada West.
The Association of Canadian Universities for Northern Studies (ACUNS) was founded in 1977 at Churchill, Manitoba and legally incorporated in March, 1987. The main founder of the Association was Professor Trevor Lloyd. Members include Universities across Canada, of which Trent University is one, that have an interest in Northern Studies. The Association does four types of work. It offers mutual assistance among member-universities in research, shared use of facilities, interchange of staff and students, the provision and use of libraries, preparation of bibliographies etc.; provision of assistance to northern residents through research, teacher training and higher education; makes available the knowledge, skills and services of universities to the Governments of Canada, the Provinces and Territories and to industry and the community at large; and, contributes towards Canada's international commitments for scientific information and research on the polar regions and increasing the exchange of scholars, students and information between polar countries. (Taken from: ACUNS - AUCEN Constitution and By-laws, 1979, page i.) The association has held annual conferences since 1979 at Chicoutimi, Quebec (1979), Trent University (1980), Calgary, Alberta (1981), Lakehead University in Thunder Bay, Ontario (1982) and at Regina in Saskatchewan (1983).
The Association for Canadian Studies (ACS) was founded in 1973 at Queen's University as a Pan-Canadian, non-profit organization which sought to promote a knowledge of Canada at the post-secondary level through teaching, research, and publications. A founding member of the International Council for Canadian Studies, the ACS is also a member of the Canadian Federation for the Humanities and the Social Science Federation of Canada. The objectives of the Association was to promote multidisciplinary and comparative perspectives, and to encourage exchanges and co-operation between the numerous programs, centres, study groups, institutes and other organizations working in the field of Canadian, Quebec, and regional studies.
J.J. Turner & Sons was a commercial sign distributor (and general retailer) in Peterborough, Ontario.
The Tuer family originated in or around Liverpool, England. Part of the family emigrated to Canada, possibly around the 1840's, and settled into the Port Hope area. They maintained strong links with the family residing in Liverpool as can be seen by the wills and estate settlements in the fonds. One of the Tuer family members, a Peter Tuer (died December 22, 1849), the father, married Mary and they had Peter (who married Lucy and he died April 1, 1855) Charles, Robert, James, William Henry (died January 1, 1853), Clara Tuer (married Henry Gregory), Thomas, Eliza (married Richard Gregory) and Sarah (married Currie Busfield). William Henry, (died 1853) had four children: Fanny (married Robert Olden), Ann (married Lionel Smith) and Francis Hugh and Sarah who were infants at the time of his death. Another Tuer family member was Thomas Tuer (died November 15, 1881) who married Elizabeth Jane Kilshaw and they had Thomas, Henry, Mary, Henry Arthur, Margaret, Jessie and William Frederick Joseph. Thomas Tuer was a bookkeeper living in Liverpool in the County of Lancaster, England, Great Britain. There are a number of family members on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean who carry the same names and this makes it difficult to ascertain familial relationships. (The preceding information was found in the wills and estates records within the fonds.)
The Trotter family lived on a farm in Lindsay, Ontario at the turn of the century.
The Trent Valley Woollen Mill was located in Campbellford, Ontario on the shore of the Trent River at the turn of the 20th century.