Annual report of the Commissioners for the Queen Victoria Niagara Falls Park of the Province of Ontario, 1894.

Description based on: 16th ed. (1901).

Edward Mirynech fonds, 1913-1914, 1946, 1952-1957, 1959-1960, 1965-1982, n.d.

Edward Mirynech joined the faculty at Brock University in 1964 as assistant professor of Geology. Edward Mirynech, the son of John and Katherine Mirynech, grew up in St. Catharines, attended Connaught Public School and received his formal education at the University of Toronto. Dr. Mirynech played several critical roles in the early development of the University. In addition to teaching, Dr. Mirynech was also the acting director of the athletics department, a coach for many of the early rowing, hockey and basketball teams and served the University as marshall for the sod turning ceremony for the new DeCew campus in 1965. Dr. Mirynech was instrumental in the founding of the physical education, geography and geological sciences programs. He served as acting chairman in 1968 when the department of geological sciences enrolled its first students. Part of the unique teaching program was the annual field trips to locations such as the Belleville area, extended summer teaching programs held in Trinidad-Tobago and the following year in Iceland. In 1972, the first graduation ceremony ever to be held in the Arctic, at Pond Inlet, NWT, made national news. Three geology students, on a study trip to the Arctic, received their degrees during a special ceremony. Dr. Mirynech was among the faculty team in Pond Inlet, NWT, representing Brock University. Dr. Mirynech retired from teaching in 1985, and passed away in 2004.

Office of the City Clerk, St. Catharines Records, 1928-1974, n.d.

The site of present-day St. Catharines was settled by 3000 United Empire Loyalists at the end of the 18th century. From 1790, the settlement (then known as "The Twelve") grew as an agricultural community. St. Catharines was once referred to Shipman's Corners after Paul Shipman, owner of a tavern that was an important stagecoach transfer point. In 1815, leading businessman William Hamilton Merritt abandoned his wharf at Queenston and set up another at Shipman's Corners. He became involved in the construction and operation of several lumber and gristmills along Twelve Mile Creek. Shipman's Corners soon became the principal milling site of the eastern Niagara Peninsula. At about the same time, Merritt began to develop the salt springs that were discovered along the river which subsequently gave the village a reputation as a health resort. By this time St. Catharines was the official name of the village; the origin of the name remains obscure, but is thought to be named after Catharine Askin Robertson Hamilton, wife of the Hon. Robert Hamilton, a prominent businessman. Merritt devised a canal scheme from Lake Erie to Lake Ontario that would provide a more reliable water supply for the mills while at the same time function as a canal. He formed the Welland Canal Company, and construction took place from 1824 to 1829. The canal and the mills made St. Catharines the most important industrial centre in Niagara. By 1845, St. Catharines was incorporated as a town, with the town limits extending in 1854. Administrative and political functions were added to St. Catharines in 1862 when it became the county seat of Lincoln. In 1871, construction began on the third Welland Canal, which attracted additional population to the town. As a consequence of continual growth, the town limits were again extended. St. Catharines attained city status in 1876 with its larger population and area. Manufacturing became increasingly important in St. Catharines in the early 1900s with the abundance of hydro-electric power, and its location on important land and water routes. The large increase in population after the 1900s was mainly due to the continued industrialization and urbanization of the northern part of the city and the related expansion of business activity. The fourth Welland Canal was opened in 1932 as the third canal could no longer accommodate the larger ships. The post war years and the automobile brought great change to the urban form of St. Catharines. St. Catharines began to spread its boundaries in all directions with land being added five times during the 1950s. The Town of Merritton, Village of Port Dalhousie and Grantham Township were all incorporated as part of St. Catharines in 1961. In 1970 the Province of Ontario implemented a regional approach to deal with such issues as planning, pollution, transportation and services. As a result, Louth Township on the west side of the city was amalgamated, extending the city's boundary to Fifteen Mile Creek. With its current population of 131,989, St. Catharines has become the dominant centre of the Niagara region. Source: City of St. Catharines website http://www.stcatharines.ca/en/governin/HistoryOfTheCity.asp (January 27, 2011)

Proceedings : Grand Lodge, A.F. & A.M. of Canada in the Province of Ontario - 1894

On spine : The Grand Lodge of Canada in the Province of Ontario.

Cabinet Card of African Canadian by Photographer W. J. Rea, of Windsor [n.d.]

An unidentified African Canadian man is featured in this cabinet card by W. J. Rea, photographer, of Windsor, Ontario. The man appears to be in official dress, possibly of a religious or legal nature. This cabinet card bears the stamp of the photographer, W. J. Rea, in black ink along the bottom of the card and on the reverse. While it is undated, it is likely from the 1870s or 1880s. This cabinet card was in the possession of Iris Sloman Bell, of St. Catharines, Ontario. The Sloman - Bell family descendants include African American slaves from the United States who settled in Canada."Cabinet card photographs were first introduced in 1866. They were initially employed for landscapes rather than portraitures. Cabinet cards replaced Carte de visite photographs as the popular mode of photography. Cabinet cards became the standard for photographic portraits in 1870. Cabinet cards experienced their peak in popularity in the 1880's. Cabinet cards were still being produced in the United States until the early 1900's and continued to be produced in Europe even longer. The best way to describe a cabinet card is that it is a thin photograph that is mounted on a card that measures 4 1/4″ by 6 1/2″. Cabinet cards frequently have artistic logos and information on the bottom or the reverse of the card which advertised the photographer or the photography studio's services." Source: http://cabinetcardgallery.wordpress.com/category/cabinet-card-history/

J.W. Spencer fonds, 1866, 1881-1921

Joseph William Winthrop Spencer (commonly known as J.W. Spencer) was a geologist and geomorphologist best known for his work on the geology of southern Ontario and the Great Lakes. He was born in Dundas, Upper Canada in 1851, but moved to Hamilton, Ontario in 1867. In 1871, he began studies in geology at McGill College in Montreal. In 1875 he worked in the Michigan copper mines and shortly afterwards prepared a thesis on the copper deposits. He submitted this thesis to the University of Gottingen in Germany in 1877 and was awarded a doctorate in geology, the second Canadian to earn a doctorate in this field. In 1880, he became a professor of geology and chemistry at King’s College in Windsor, N.S. Subsequently, he taught at the University of Missouri, and then the University of Georgia, but moved to Washington, D.C. in 1894, where he worked as a consultant geologist. Spencer spent much of his life studying preglacial river valleys in Ontario and the origins of the Great Lakes, as well as the Niagara River and Falls. In 1907, he published a book titled The Falls of Niagara: their evolution and varying relations to the Great Lakes. His opinions in these areas differed from some of his contemporaries, namely the American geologist Grove Karl Gilbert. Gilbert published a review of the The Falls of Niagara that exposed some flaws and inaccuracies in Spencer’s estimate of the age of the falls. Spencer’s studies also took him to the Caribbean and Central America. In 1920 he moved back to Canada, but died the following year.

Proceedings of the Grand Chapter of Royal Arch Masons of Canada at the annual convocation, 1894

Annual Convocation proceedings for the year 1894. The title varies slightly and convocation is held at different cities or towns in Canada. Thirty-seventh annual convocation.

Proceedings of the Grand Chapter of Royal Arch Masons of Canada at the annual convocation, 1972

Annual Convocation proceedings for the year 1972. The title varies slightly and convocation is held at different cities or towns in Canada. One hundred and fourteenth annual convocation.

Annual report of the Fruit Growers' Association of Ontario, 1894

The reports are also published in the Annual report of the Department of Agriculture of the province of Ontario, and in the Sessional papers of the province of Ontario "Printed by order of the Legislative Assembly" [-1923] "Printed by order of ... Minister of Agriculture" [1924-] 25th, 1893- pub. by the Ontario Department of Agriculture, Toronto 1890 -1908 reports are bound with the corresponding annual reports of the Entomological Society of Ontario 1894 -1905 reports are bound with the corresponding annual reports of the Fruit Experiment Stations of Ontario 1906 -1910 reports are bound with the corresponding Report of the Fruit Branch, Dept. of Agriculture, Ontario

Instrument of Protest from Edward Barrori Palmer

Instrument of protest from Edward Barrori Palmer, Notary Public of Oakville regarding a protest by Samuel Sutherland, Master of the schooner Elizabeth and Charles McEacherin, mate. The schooner belonged to the Port of Niagara. It set sail from Port Credit to the Port of Niagara. On the 15th day of May there was a violent storm. On the 16th day of May, part of the deck and cargo consisting of lumber went overboard. The mainsail was lost and the jib was split due to the wind. All losses and damages should be borne by the merchants and whomever else it concerned and not by or through the insufficiency of the schooner of neglect by the officers and mariners. This is a 2 ½ page handwritten document, May 16, 1837.

Description of Edward Dell’s property in Willoughby

Description of Edward Dell’s property in Willoughby which consists of part of Lot no.9. This includes a hand-drawn map and 1 ½ page handwritten description. The edges of this document are slightly burned. This does not affect the text, n.d.

Memo to the warden and councilors for the County of Welland in council assembled regarding the contract of Edward Henderson

Memo to the warden and councilors for the County of Welland in council assembled regarding the contract of Edward Henderson. The terms of the contract have not been exceeded. This note is not signed, n.d.

County of Welland estimate of work done on section no.1 of the tap drain at Marshville by Edward Henderson

County of Welland estimate of work done on section no.1 of the tap drain at Marshville by Edward Henderson, signed by S.D. Woodruff. Estimate no.1, June, 1856.

County of Welland estimate of work done on section no.1 and cleaning below the culvert of the tap drain at Marshville by Edward Henderson

County of Welland estimate of work done on section no.1 and cleaning below the culvert of the tap drain at Marshville by Edward Henderson, signed by S.D. Woodruff. Estimate no.2, Oct., 1856.