Truman Raymond, Esq., M.D. - Obituary

An obituary describing the life of Dr. Truman Raymond of Welland County. The article recounts the many accomplishments of Dr. Raymond and his involvement in the Temperance movement. His sons are mentioned, including the predeceased Erastus B. Raymond, Esq., and his eldest son Lorenzo D. Raymond , Esq, who is appointed to the office of Clerk of Peace for Welland County. Dr. Raymond resided with his son Lorenzo at the time of his death.

Province of Upper Canada Land Grant to Ann Cook, 1812

A grant of land to Ann Cook of the Township of Crowland. The land is situated in the township of Wainfleet, in the County of Lincoln, in the district of Niagara. Ann Cook is granted 200 acres in lot no. 32 in the 4th concession in Wainfleet. One of the signatures on the document is illegible but other signatures include: Prideaux Selby, auditor general on April 15, 1812. This is the date that the document was entered into the auditor’s office. Isaac Brock has signed in the upper left hand corner as “Isaac Brock President” which refers to the fact that he was President administering the Government of Upper Canada and Major General commanding the forces within the province. It is also signed on the left hand side by John Macdonell (who is buried at Brock’s Monument). At the time, he was the attorney general.

John N. Jackson papers, 1960-1989, n.d.

John N. Jackson was born in Nottingham, England in 1926. He developed a passion for landforms and geography from his father, a high school math and science teacher who had studied geology. During the Second World War, he served in the British Navy. He received his BA from the University of Birmingham, and a PhD from the University of Manchester. After spending a year as a visiting professor at the University of British Columbia, he was hired in 1965 as the founding head of the Geography Department at Brock University. He taught at Brock for more than 25 years, immersing himself in the geography and history of the Niagara area. He became particularly interested in the history of the Welland Canals. He authored 20 books on various topics, including land use in Niagara, the history of St. Catharines, the Welland Canal, and railways in the Niagara Peninsula. He died in 2010, at the age of 84.

The True and Wonderful Story of Paul Gasford

"The following true and remarkable story is taken from the Christian advocate, a respectable paper published by the Methodist Connexion, in the city of New-York."--Preface, t.p. verso. The Christian advocate was first published in 1826. See ULS. Caption title: Paul Gasford. In printed wrapper. "Advice from a bee."--poem, p. [16]. "English classics, for sale by M. Day, 374 Pearl-st."--p. [4] of wrapper.

The Political Economy of St. Catharines' Illicit Taxi Trade

The global restructuring of production has led to increasingly precarious working conditions around the world. Post-industrial work is characterized by poor working conditions, low wages, a lack of social protection and political representation and little job security. Unregulated forms of work that are defined as “irregular” or “illegal”, or in some cases “criminal,” are connected to sweeping transformations within the broader regulated (formal) economy. The connection between the formal and informal sectors can more accurately be described as co-optation and, as a subordinate integration of the informal to the formal. The city of St. Catharines within Niagara, along with much of Ontario’s industrial heartland, has been hard hit by deindustrialization. The rise of this illegal service is thus viewed against the backdrop of heavy economic restructuring, as opportunities for work in the manufacturing sector have become sparse. In addition, this research also explores the paradoxical co-optation of the growing illicit taxi economy and consequences for racialized and foreign credentialed labour in the taxi industry. The overall objective of this research is to explore the illicit cab industry as not only inseparable from the formal economy, but dialectically, how it is as an integrated and productive element of the public and private transportation industry. Furthermore the research examines what this co-optation means in the context of a labour market that is split by race.

Funeral Invitation - February 5, 1856

An invitation to the funeral of Mrs. John W. Ball. The invitation reads: Niagara, February 5th, 1856. Sir--- You are requested to attend the Funeral of the late Mrs. John W. Ball, from the Residence of her husband to the Place of Internment, on Thursday the 7th Instant, at the hour of Two O'Clock in the afternoon.

Music Program for St. Mark's Church "Song of the Bell" - 1884

A musical program for a concert at Music Hall Niagara for the St. Marks' Church organ fund. The program consists of 27 numbers from Schiller's "Song of the Bell. The event is dated Thursday, April 17th, 1884 and admission is 25 cents, 15 cents for children.

Summons for Court Upper Canada - 1841

A summons "in the court of Requests - Upper Canada" Niagara District Division for a debt of three pounds, one shillings and six pence. Summons to appear before the Court of Requests, Robert Osborn vs. John Shadwick, signed by Walter Sumner, clerk of the court, 1841.

Inniskillin fonds, 1970-2014, n.d.

Inniskillin Wines was founded by Karl Kaiser and Donald Ziraldo in 1975 in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario. They had met the previous year, when Karl Kaiser, a winemaker and chemist, purchased some grapes from Donald Ziraldo, who owned and operated Ziraldo Nurseries. The two shared a vision of producing better quality Canadian wines and formed a partnership, with Kaiser making the wine and Ziraldo serving as company President. In 1975, they were granted a winery license by the LCBO, the first one granted since 1929. The company name Inniskillin was derived from the Inniskilling Fusilliers, an Irish regiment whose Colonel once owned the land that Ziraldo Nurseries occupied. This was the original site of the winery, although in 1978 the winery moved to the Brae Burn Estate, their current location. In 1982 the winery expanded by 50 acres with the addition of the Montague Vineyard, and another 50 acres was acquired in 1991. The Niagara-on-the-Lake vineyard produces single vineyards bottlings of Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Merlot and Pinot Grigio/Pinot Gris. In 1984, Karl Kaiser began producing icewine from Vidal grapes frozen naturally on the vine. Inniskillin garnered international acclaim for the quality of their icewines, receiving the prestigious Grand Prix d’Honneur at VinExpo in 1991, for their 1989 Vidal icewine. This established Inniskillin as a producer of world class wines, while also raising the profile of Canadian wines in general. The company branched out their operations, first acquiring vineyards in the Napa Valley in 1989 to form Inniskillin Napa (producing wines under the Terra label), and in 1994 establishing Inniskillin Okanagan in the Okanagan Valley in British Columbia. The Napa valley venture ceased in the mid 90’s, while Inniskillin Okanagan continues to operate. In 2006, Karl Kaiser and Donald Ziraldo left Inniskillin. Kaiser retired, while Ziraldo became chair of the Vineland Research and Innovation Center (2006-2011), and remains involved in the wine industry. In 2007, Bruce Nicholson joined Inniskillin as winemaker. Nicholson continues to produce award-winning wines under the Inniskillin label, receiving the top award, the Premio Speciale Gran Award, at Vinitaly 2009 for his 2006 Gold Vidal and his 2006 Sparkling Vidal Icewine. In 2012, he received several awards for the 2008 Riesling Icewine, including gold at the International Wine and Spirits Competition in London, UK, the San Francisco International Wine Championships, and Selections Mondials des Vins Canada.

Donald Ziraldo Fonds, 1968-2012, n.d.

Donald J. P. Ziraldo, C.M., BSc., LLD was born in St. Catharines, Ontario on October 13, 1948 to Fredrick and Irma (Schiratti) Ziraldo. He graduated Denis Morris High School in St. Catharines in 1967, and received his B.Sc. in Agriculture at the University of Guelph in 1971. In 1974, Ziraldo was running Ziraldo Nurseries when he met Austrian born schoolteacher, chemist and winemaker Karl J. Kaiser. They realized that there was a gap in the premium varietal wine market and decided to plant a premium traditional European variety of grape vine species, the Vitis vinifera. This was an innovation in the Niagara region because the current wine producers were not using premium European grapes at the time. Ziraldo and Kaiser founded and then formally incorporated Inniskillin Wines Inc. in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario on July 31, 1975. Ziraldo successfully lobbied General George Kitching, CEO of the LCBO, for a winery license. In 1975, Kitching granted him a winery license, the first in Ontario since Prohibition ended. From the beginning, there was a division of labour where Kaiser focused on the winemaking and Ziraldo focused on the marketing and promotion of the wines. Ziraldo also became president of the company. Ziraldo and Kaiser worked on improving their winemaking techniques and promoting their products and company. Ziraldo has been called ‘one of the founding fathers of the Canadian wine industry’, and it is widely acknowledged that both men played a large role in the success and growth of the Canadian wine industry. Together they pioneered the estate winery movement in Canada. A major turning point Inniskillin came in 1984 when Karl Kaiser successfully harvested the first Icewine crop from frozen grapes on the vine and bottled Eiswein Vidal (Icewine). In 1990, Inniskillin received worldwide recognition for this Icewine when their 1989 Vidal Icewine won the most prestigious award in the wine world, the Grand Prix d’Honneur, given at Vinexpo in France. This victory has been called ‘the award heard round the world’ and it launched Inniskillin into the international wine arena. At the same time, this helped lift the profile of Canadian wines in general. Inniskillin not only became Canada’s leading producer of Icewine, but it also became known for producing ‘one of the world’s great wines’. After the 1990 award, Ziraldo began a major public relations campaign to promote Inniskillin and build Icewine into a worldwide brand. He travelled broadly every year to promote the brand and products and networked extensively with politicians, celebrities, chefs, sommeliers, etc. To ensure worldwide and long-term success, Ziraldo introduced Icewine to Asia and the United States which were new markets. He developed a new Icewine glass with George Riedel. Tony Aspler has called Ziraldo ‘Canada’s Wine Ambassador’. Ziraldo was President of Inniskillin Wines Inc. (Niagara) from 1975 to 2006. In 1992, Inniskillin merged with Cartier Wines, and in 1993 Cartier Inniskillin Vintners Inc. merged with T.G. Bright & Co. Limited, forming the new company Vincor International Inc. Inniskillin wines was now a subsidiary of Vincor. Ziraldo became a Director at Vincor International Inc. from 1993 to 2004. From 1989 to the mid 1990s, Ziraldo also became President of Inniskillin Napa, in Napa Valley, California. Inniskillin purchased Napa Valley vineyards and produced wines under the Terra label. In 1994, Ziraldo set up a subsidiary estate winery of Inniskillin in Oliver, British Columbia which was called Inniskillin Okanagan Vineyards Inc. He became President of the winery. This started as a partnership between Inniskillin and the local Inkameep Indian Band in the Okanagan. In 2006, Ziraldo left Inniskillin and since that time he has been involved in other Icewine related ventures such as running Ziraldo Estate Winery and producing Ziraldo Riesling Icewine 2007. He also is in partnership with the Niagara based Equifera Estate Winery to produce Equifera Icewine. His most recent projects include planting Picolit grapes in his parent’s hometown, in a project called Picolit Di Fagagna and becoming Managing Director of the Senhora Do Convento Port Winery in Portugal. Donald Ziraldo was instrumental in the creation of the Vintners Quality Alliance (VQA) in Ontario and was its founding Chair from 1988-1995. The VQA was established as a regulatory and appellation system which secured the quality and origin of Canadian wines made under this system. The VQA designation and bottle label gave the consumer confidence that the wines they were purchasing were 100% local products. The VQA system was set up first in Ontario and then in British Columbia.

A Case Study of the "Who is NOBODY?" Project: A Character Development Program for Children with Learning Disabilities

This research study explored a support system for children with learning disabilities. The Learning Disabilities Association of Niagara Region (LDANR) recently expanded its Better Emotional and Social Times (B.E.S.T.) program to incorporate an innovative, character education initiative called the “Who is NOBODY?” program. The objective of this qualitative case study was two-fold. First, the study aimed to support the LDANR in assessing the efficacy of the “Who is NOBODY?” program, providing the LDANR with empirical support for their programs. Second, the study enabled a more in-depth understanding of how to best support children with LD in regards to their social and emotional well-being. The study explored the “Who is NOBODY?” program through three lenses: design, implementation, and experiences of participating children. Three primary themes emerged from these three data lenses: positive character traits, prosocial behaviour, and strong self-efficacy – leading to the promotion of strong character development and self-esteem. Taken together, the “Who is NOBODY?” program was shown to be a successful remediation program for supporting vulnerable children with LD.

Letter - John Ralston Saul to Donald Ziraldo, 2002

A letter from His Excellency John Ralston Saul 2 May, 2002. He comments on the efforts made by Mr. Ziraldo to protect the agricultural land of Niagara. He also discusses the role of Canadian wine in the international market and tourism in the area.

Letter - Donald Ziraldo to Jacques Marie, 1988

A letter from the chairman of the VQA, Donald Ziraldo, to Jacques Marie, a professor at George Brown College. The letter is dated 9 December 1988 and requests Marie as a Board Member for the newly formed VQA. The first meeting is scheduled for 19 December, 1988.

Letter - Michael D. Harris to Donald Ziraldo, 2000

A letter from Premier Mike Harris to Donald Ziraldo 15 June, 2000. The correspondence discusses the possibility of agricultural preserve in Niagara.

Letter - Premier Dalton McGuinty to Donald Ziraldo, 2004

A letter from Premier Dalton McGuinty responding to a letter from Donald Ziraldo, concerning the agricultural preserve in Niagara. The letter is dated May 14, 2004.