Canada was a nation at war. The Great War, 'the war to end all wars' had begun just four months earlier on August 4, 1914 when Great Britain declared war on Germany.
The Prime Minister of Canada was Robert Borden; the Premier of Ontario was William Hearst and the Mayor of Toronto was Horatio C. Hocken.
Into this world of 1914, an immigrant couple living at 921 Carlaw Avenue, welcomed their firstborn, nudging the population of Toronto ever closer to 506,000. The new Dad hailed from England where he trained as a stationary engineer and plied the North Atlantic aboard the steamships of the Atlantic Transport Line, keeping the engines humming between London and New York City.
A gal in New York City stole his heart away and the two 26 year olds were married on November 11, 1911, ending his seafaring days. The newlyweds emigrated to Canada where the engineer took up a position with City of Toronto.
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| 921 Carlaw Ave., on the right (Image courtesy of Google®maps) |
One Hundred years ago today, December 4, 1914, Jim and Ella Cudbird of Carlaw Avenue welcomed a son into their world, my Dad.
Happy Birthday Dad!
Miss you like crazy.
©2014 April Hoeller
Really lovely entry, my friend. Someday I must write about my dad and his life, too. You inspire me to.
ReplyDeleteThank you Vaughn! If you don't write about your dad, who will? Go for it!
DeleteWhat a beautiful post....thanks, I too must write about my father who just turned 90!
ReplyDeleteA really interesting post, dear cousin. Thank you very much.
ReplyDelete