By:
On:
In: 400TX:365
With: 1 Comment

Located in the shadows of condo towers, the gentle rumble of traffic along the Gardiner Expressway lays Fort York, one of the few reminders to Toronto’s colonial past as muddy York, the seat of government for Upper Canada. For those who have been following my other photography project related to the War of 1812 have already seen this particular location so I took a different spin, rather than capturing wider angle shots I focused more on the fort’s details. Fort York was established in 1793 under the orders of John Graves Simcoe, and built by the Queen’s York Rangers. In April of 1813 American shipsRead More →

By:
On:
In: Project:1812
With: 1 Comment

This entry I’m writing specifically for my dear friend Erin, who like me, has a love for the War of 1812. In one of her recent blog posts, she mentioned her new job at an independent children’s book publisher, Pajama Press. The book, Acts of Courage, covers the story of Laura Secord. My entry today is not on Mrs. Secord, but rather the British officer she interacted with, James FitzGibbon. FitzGibbon, not one of the first heroes of the war that one would think about, his contributions overshadowed by Laura Secord and Issac Brock. Fitzgibbon’s story blends with them both. An Irishman raised from theRead More →

By:
On:
In: Project:1812
With: 6 Comments

A watershed event for the Canadians during the Anglo-American War of 1812. The tiny town of York, today’s Toronto, Ontario, was the colonial capital of Upper Canada, established in 1793 by John Graves Simcoe for the sole purpose of being further away from the American frontier. Despite the town’s status as the capital it was poorly regarded called Muddy York, a far cry from the seat of British power in North America, Quebec City. And while the town itself was far from a tactical target, it wasn’t a tactical target that US Army commander, Henry Dearborn, wanted following a series of American defeats in 1812.Read More →

By:
On:
In: Project:1812
With: 0 Comments

Fort York, Toronto’s taste of the 19th-Century. Against all the odds this little haven of Toronto’s colonial history has survived multiple attempts to sweep it away with the Gardner Expressway and even a Streetcar line. And while it seems a little odd to find a fort this far back from the lakeshore, you have to remember that over 200 years ago the lakeshore and the area we know as Toronto was a far different place. When Sir John Graves Simcoe received his appointment as the colonial governor of Upper Canada one of his early actions saw the colonial capital, the capital at the time, Newark,Read More →