Remembering the victims and survivors

 

Location: Humber College Lakeshore Campus

Date photo taken: 10 July 2021

The sprawling Humber College Lakeshore campus is situated on the grounds of the former Lakeshore Psychiatric Hospital. Opened in 1889 as the Mimico Asylum, this institution operated, under various names, for 90 years, closing its doors and transferring the last of its patients in 1979. This sculpture, created by Rocky Dobey and installed on campus in 2019, memorializes the former patients of the hospital. The roof is etched with a repeating pattern of words: We Remember. The roof also holds a small plaque on which the following is inscribed:

1889 - 1979

Lakeshore Psychiatric Hospital

We will always remember the victims and the survivors

If you want to learn more about the hospital, several websites exist. Two that I found particularly interesting are: 

Lakeshore Psychiatric Hospital - a site about the history

The Hospital History Project - where staff and volunteers of the Lakeshore Grounds Interpretive Centre share their findings as they comb through archival resources relating to the institutions located on the site.

75th Canadian Infantry Battalion Memorial

 

Location: 70 Birmingham Street
Date photo taken: 5 September 2021

Walking along Birmingham Street in the New Toronto area of Etobicoke, I was surprised to encounter a World War II era vehicle parked next to a winding path. When I went for a closer look, I noticed that the building behind the carrier had a plaque affixed to an exterior wall. It turns out the building is the home of the Toronto Scottish Regiment, a Primary Reserve infantry regiment, which means that it's part of the Canadian Armed Forces but members serve mostly part-time while holding regular civilian jobs. The plaque is dedicated to members of the 75th Battalion, a predecessor of the Toronto Scottish Regiment. The 75th Battalion was formed during World War I and during the course of the war, over 5,500 soldiers served in its ranks. It was awarded 16 Battle Honours and one member, Captain Bellenden Hutcheson, a Medical Officer, was awarded the Victoria Cross. The home of the Regiment now bears his name. 

Text on the plaque:

France      Belgium
1916    1917    1918

To honour the memory of one thousand and eighty two officers, N.C.O.s and men of the Seventy-Fifth Canadian Infantry Battalion B E F [British Expeditionary Force] who gave their lives in the Great War. 

The 75th Overseas Battalion is perpetuated in the Canadian Militia as The Toronto Scottish Regiment. 

Street art in Alex Faulkner Lane

 

Location: Alex Faulkner Lane, between Islington and Sixth

Date photo taken: 24 March 2022

This bit of wildstyle is just a small piece of the colourful street art that covers two sides of the Toronto Tree Care building at the corner of Sixth Street and Alex Faulkner Lane in New Toronto. Many of the lanes in this part of town are similarly colourful, making it a fun place to explore.

Bell Box - Angel Carrillo

 

Location: Morrison Street

Date photo taken: 24 March 2022

Image #16 in the Bellbox Series

Here's another painted Bell box courtesy of the Bell Boxes Murals Project, a nonprofit street art program. This one is in New Toronto and was done in 2021. The artist is Angel Carrillo and if you love the style, he also happens to be a tattoo artist and co-owner of Southside Ink. 

New Toronto Toad

 

Location: Laneway between Fifth and Sixth streets in New Toronto

Date photo taken: 24 April 2022

Walking in New Toronto recently I was drawn down an alley by a riot of colour. Among the murals was this handsome fellow. The work of cruz1 and Zegar, it was part of a Wallnoize project in 2021.