2005–2006 Speaker Series: Presentation Details

Listed by date of presentation.

Bob Bratina: The Globe Train

21 September 2005

Popular radio personality and Hamilton councillor Bob Bratina relives the history of the Globe Train. The Globe Train delivered the Toronto Globe newspaper in the 1880s along the Grand Trunk Rail Line from Toronto to London. You could pick up the Globe at about 4:30 in the afternoon in Dundas. Also on display for the evening will be Mr. Bratina's large scale model of the train.

Allyson Wenzowski: History of the Carnegie Gallery

19 October 2005

The talk will outline two crucial areas of development for the arts in the Dundas area: the establishment of Carnegie Gallery in 1980, and the earlier establishment of the Dundas Valley School of Art in 1964.

During his life (1835-1919), the American industrialist, philanthropist and visionary, Andrew Carnegie donated more than $56 million to build 2,509 libraries. Today, Carnegie’s legacy remains vibrantly alive in the friendly atmosphere of the Carnegie Gallery located at 10 King Street West in Dundas. The Carnegie opened in 1910 as Dundas’ first library; in 1980 it became the home of the Dundas Art and Craft Association.

With amalgamation, ownership of the Carnegie passed from the Town of Dundas to the City of Hamilton and the building was declared surplus. This past year has seen ongoing negotiations between the newly established Carnegie Gallery Foundation and city officials. In September 2005 Hamilton City Council agreed to sell the property to the Carnegie Gallery Foundation for $250,000.

Allyson Wenzowski

Allyson resides in Dundas. She is a graduate of McMaster University and has an Honours Degree in Art History. A storyteller for over twelve years, she is a member of Dundas Storyspinners and the Hamilton Storytelling Guild, and has taken part in numerous storytelling workshops, concerts, festivals, and conferences such as the Brock University International Conference on Storytelling, the 2002 Toronto International Storytelling Festival, the 2003 McMaster Lager Lecture Series, and the annual Arts Dundas weekend. She hosts The Story Circle, a weekly storytelling radio program on 93.3 CFMU and has co-authored a published paper on storytelling.

Allyson is on the Board of the Carnegie Gallery and is currently co-chairing Falling into Art at the Dundas Golf and Curling Club. She is a member of the Rotary Club of Dundas and Valley Town Toastmasters.

Allyson is a Public Relations Consultant and Principal of Publicity Works.

Gord Thede: Ludwick Wideman—Pioneer, Militiaman & Rebel

16 November 2005

Those studying genealogy have discovered that their ancestors were more than 'a name and two dates on a gravestone'. They were real people caught up in the turmoil as political and personal events unfolded all through their lifetimes.

Gordon Thede will speak about his great-great-great grandfather, Ludwick Wideman, who emigrated in 1800 from Pennsylvania as a pioneer to Hamilton Mountain. When the War of 1812 broke out he joined the York Militia and fought under General Brock at the Battle of Detroit, assisting in the capture of that fort. Later, as a rebel leader under William Lyon MacKenzie, he was present at the Battle of Montgomery's Tavern.

Gordon Thede

Gord is a resident of Dundas, an amateur historian and a genealogist who likes to connect his ancestors to the events of their times.

Russ Powers: Postcards from Paradise...Cootes, that is!

11 January, 2006

Long-time Dundas resident and well-known M.P. Russ Powers will give an illustrated presentation on his own collection of Dundas postcards with an introduction by Ken Elder, an Ottawa-based postcard collector with a sizable collection of historic postcards of the Hamilton area. Many of Mr. Elder's Hamilton postcards were digitized and entered into a searchable database on the Postcards from Hamilton's Past website created in 2003 by the Architectural Conservancy of Ontario (ACO), Hamilton Region Branch. The just-completed redesign of the website will be launched this evening.

Rick Hatt: Richard Hatt—Pioneering and Community

15 February, 2006

Richard Hatt is alive and well! Mr. Richard (Rick) Hatt's presentation will be about his famous great-great-great grandfather and namesake, considered the founder of Dundas. The presentation will outline Richard Hatt's life from 1760s England, through the move to Upper Canada, settling in Coote's Paradise, building an industry and a community, raising a family, the War of 1812, as a member of the Legislature—plus an update on the Cooley/Hatt Cemetery in Ancaster and #2 Hatt Street.

Rick Hatt

Rick Hatt was born on a baby beef farm in Lion's Head, Ontario (Bruce Peninsula) in 1947. At graduation from grade 13 in Wiarton, he "decided that I have shovelled enough STUFF" and was hired as a Lineman for Bell Canada in Toronto in 1968. Mr. Hatt retired in 1997 after close to 30 years in the communications business (including a 3 year stint in Saudi Arabia as a consultant). He is married to Cathy with 2 grown children, and currently operates a communications consulting business in Mississauga as well as a Home Inspection Business. He resides in Fonthill, Ontario.

Ted Smith: Hamilton Doctors 1932–1982
Public vs. Private Health Care—What the history of Hamilton's doctors can tell us about the contemporary debate

15 March, 2006

This talk will be based on Ted Smith's book "Hamilton's Doctors 1932-1982". The book covers a lot of ground over a fifty year period, but this talk will focus specifically on the impact of government on the practice of medicine, on how medical science has changed, and on the impact of the coming of the medical school and McMaster Hospital.

Edward "Ted" Smith

B.A., M.A. in Canadian History, McMaster University
Ph.D. in Canadian history, University of Guelph

Ted Smith has written:

• A History of the Hamilton Chamber of Commerce in their magazine 'Panorama' for their 150th anniversery in 1995
• By Design, the Role of the Engineer in the History of the Hamilton-Burlington Area (with Jerry Disher, P.Eng. )
• Hamilton's Doctors 1932-1982
• Doctors and Diseases, a history of Medicine in Burlington, Ontario 1791-1961 (with Dr. G.P. Sweeny, M.D.)

This is a second career for Mr. Smith, who worked at the head office of Westinghouse for 20 years prior to entering the academic world.

Margaret Houghton: Vanished Hamilton

19 April, 2006

"Everyone has their own special memories, particularly of people, events and places from the past. Quite often those memories are all that we have left as the people are gone, the events are over and the places have vanished. Some of those things that have vanished are not even in the living memories of anyone left today. Hamilton has always been a city of things that are unusual, fascinating and often quite unique. Many of the local historical societies have come together in this book to highlight some of the strange, weird and wonderful things, no longer with us, that have helped to make us what we are today."

—Margaret Houghton, editor of "Vanished Hamilton"

Hamilton Archivist Margaret Houghton will base her presentation around the popular book "Vanished Hamilton", which details many local landmarks that are long gone, but certainly not forgotten. Many bygone Dundas landmarks are included such as the Majestic Theatre, the House of Providence and some long-gone industries, such as the Canada Screw Company and Canada Crushed Stone.

Copies of the book will be available.

Archived Presentation Details

2004–2005

2003–2004