Join Us for the WTJHS 2nd Annual Holiday Sale! 

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Greetings WTJHS members and supporters of local history. Please join us on Saturday, December 16th for our Holiday Sale at the Annette Library from 11 am to 2 pm. We will have our books on special holiday pricing!

In addition, we will be selling our splendid T-shirts, including plenty of Youth sizes (ok grandparents, this is your big opportunity to get the kids something cool for the Holidays!). New this year is a range of greeting cards featuring the winning designs from the WTJHS-sponsored 2020 and 2021 Art Competitions for local high school students!

Of course, you are welcome to drop by and renew your membership for 2024 (yes, it is that time of the year again)!
We are also setting up our photographic displays so everyone can come and learn a bit more about the history of the Junction. The kids (and adults too) love the old photos: the clothes, the vehicles, the street scenes, and the horses!

Please join us on Saturday, December 16th at the Annette Library!

WTJHS Pre-Christmas Sales

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Unwrap the gift of the rich History of the Junction this holiday season with our exclusive Pre-Christmas Sale! Visit ‘Our Publications’ page for a sleigh full of details on our exclusive pre-Christmas sale – where stories of the Junction’s heritage come alive!

St. John’s West Toronto and The Junction

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“St. John’s West Toronto and The Junction: A Century of Faith, Community and History on Humberside”

Join a special meeting of the West Toronto Junction Historical Society, in partnership with St. John’s West Toronto Anglican Church, to celebrate its centenary on Humberside Ave and 142 years in the Junction.

Historian Christopher Rutty will present on St. John’s story, evolution, and community impact within the Junction.

Over the past year, Christopher has led an effort to collect, document and share the history of St. John’s West Toronto, focusing on the story of its third church building over the past century, located at 288 Humberside Ave. at the corner of Quebec Ave, just west of High Park Ave.

Through the historical lens of St. John’s, one can explore the development of the Anglican Church in Toronto and St. John’s pioneering role in it, against the backdrop of the Junction’s evolution.

This occasion will be more than just another meeting of the WTJHS, the last few of which have been held in an in-person-Zoom hybrid format at St. John’s. It will be an opportunity for a historical and social event for members of St. John’s, the WTJHS, and the local community to celebrate the 100th anniversary of St. John’s home on Humberside.

There will be food available along with some surprises, with admission by donation.

To learn more about the history of St. John’s West Toronto, visit http://sjwt.ca/100th

Date & Time: Thurs., Dec. 7, 6:30 – 9:00 pm
Location: St. John’s West Toronto, 288 Humberside Ave (corner of Quebec Ave.), Toronto, ON
This event will be held both, in-person and on Zoom

Register for Zoom

Aazhgemog-Crossroads with Andrew McConnell – November 2nd 2023

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The land of the Junction was a crossroads long before the railroads were built. Many Anishinaabe have passed through this land, whether it was defending their allies, moving between early settlements, or passing from one lake to another.

Rev. Peter Jones or Kahkewaquonaby, 1802 – 1856. Indian chief and missionary in Canada | Scottish National Portrait Gallery

Please join us in the lead-up to Ontario’s Treaties Recognition Week as Andrew McConnell presents on some of the more famous people from the time of early English settlement, through the beginning of Anishinaabe resistance, to encroachment on their lands and unfair treatment by government agents. It will look at how this place is also a crossroads between the past and the present Anishinaabe settlements north and west of Toronto, a testament to the continuous presence of Indigenous people on these lands.

Burlington Bay, June 11, 1796 | Archives of Ontario

Andrew McConnell is a member of Nipissing First Nation living in the Bloor-West area, and has been teaching for almost 20 years. He is the coordinator for Indigenous education at the York Region District School Board where he directly supports the work of the Indigenous Education team, liaises with the education staff from Georgina Island First Nation, and the Anishinaabek Education System while constantly advocating for the inclusion of Indigenous content across the board. Before becoming a teacher, Andrew worked in the media, first at Aboriginal Voices, a Native arts magazine based in Toronto, and then at CTV News, where he worked in production for 7 years.

Date & Time: November 2nd, 2023 at 7 pm
Location: St. John’s Anglican Church, corner of Humberside Ave. and Quebec Ave.
This event will be on Zoom as well as in-person.

*** Light refreshments will be served ***

George Copway c.1847 | National Portrait Gallery
WTJHS 11/02/2023 General Meeting MinutesDownload