Miscellany Toronto Photographs: Then and Now

[AlbertHWagstaff]

It is a wonderful feeling; and we could all see more of our jewel if those hedges were trimmed back a smidge.

At least without the leaves right now you can actually see the house. I was in the area yesterday and took a look since it was a nice day. It's a good candidate for a sunny day winter photo.

 

[mattelderca]

This is very interesting - it appears that the rear part of the church is from the original building. You can definitely tell when walking around the building that it's older than the front portion.

Also I heard once that this building was a Synagogue at one point. Can anyone confirm this?

For some years that sign, visible from the Richmond St. exit, said something like "Prepare to meet thy god, call Jim....."
Jim was/is a relative of mine. IIRC Rev. Jim Chote was an uncle or cousin of my father. Our family history is a bit sketchy and I never really got the whole story from any relatives.

 

[DTowner]

Just a seque to a bit of numismatic history; up until 1944 Chartered Banks could issue their own paper money.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canadian_chartered_bank_notes

Notice how Newfoundland is left out! Weird to think that it didn't join confederacy until 1949

 

[FAC33]

Notice how Newfoundland is left out! Weird to think that it didn't join confederacy until 1949

Had their own currency, too, right up until they joined Confederation. Originally the Newfie dollar was tied to the West Indian dollar, a direct descendent of the Spanish pieces of 8, but in 1895 they tied it to the Canadian dollar.

 

[Mustapha]

Had their own currency, too, right up until they joined Confederation. Originally the Newfie dollar was tied to the West Indian dollar, a direct descendent of the Spanish pieces of 8, but in 1895 they tied it to the Canadian dollar.

My Guangdong province Chinese born grandfather (1899-1979.. who lived 62 of his 80 years here in Toronto) and his contemporaries called the Canadian 25cent piece a 'teen butt' [no snickers please] in their dialect of Chinese.

'Teen butt' translates as 'piece of 8'.

The reason: the Chinese dollar coin represented 7.2 ounces of silver [held, incorruptibly, most citizens hoped; by the Chinese central bank].

7.2 divided by 4 = 1.8 - therefore a quarter dollar - any country's quarter dollar, including ours; was a 'piece of 8'.

Unrelated to the Spanish piece of eight but one of those parallel coincidences I wanted to pass along to bore you all to tears.

And now you know... a turn-of-the-last-century's Chinese immigrant's description of the Canadian quarter coin.

 

[Mustapha]

Weekend nonsense time:

Old restaurant meals and prices through the years.

http://restaurant-ingthroughhistory.com/restaurant-prices/

 

[Mustapha]

Any folks here in the 80+ years age group? Do you have any memories of this?

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...anging-air-infant-crawl-in.html#ixzz21XStFl3H

 

[FAW]

My Guangdong province Chinese born grandfather (1899-1979.. who lived 62 of his 80 years here in Toronto) and his contemporaries called the Canadian 25cent piece .....

Mustapha, I absolutely love that you called it a 25 cent piece, as too many people apply the American names (penny, nickle, dime, quarter) for their coins to our medallions. Canada uses the medallion strike for its circulation pieces, the Americans use a coin strike. The only time we align with the U.S. in nomenclature is in the name at the top denomination, the dollar.

Paul

 

[Mustapha]

My Guangdong province Chinese born grandfather (1899-1979.. who lived 62 of his 80 years here in Toronto) and his contemporaries called the Canadian 25cent piece .....

Mustapha, I absolutely love that you called it a 25 cent piece, as too many people apply the American names (penny, nickle, dime, quarter) for their coins to our medallions. Canada uses the medallion strike for its circulation pieces, the Americans use a coin strike. The only time we align with the U.S. in nomenclature is in the name at the top denomination, the dollar.

Paul

Hi Paul,

Old coins are one of the few small items of durable history one can carry in a pocket (I know most collectors put them into albums. ) I carry coins representing signal event years in my life and look at them when I have a moment.

 

[FAW]

My entire collection is based on general circulation pieces, no proof level strikes, just what you would find in your pocket. I love the idea that some of them could have been in John A. Macdonalds or William Lyon Mackenzie's pockets.

Paul

 

[r937]

...just what you would find in your pocket.

awesome, i have a very similar collection

dunno about mackenzie, though -- i've never found in general circulation any coin from the 1800s, much less from the first half of that century

 

[FAW]

I should clarify then, general circulation issue, not what I've found in my pocket, although a few were found there.

Paul

 

[Earlscourt_Lad]

I should clarify then, general circulation issue, not what I've found in my pocket, although a few were found there.

Paul

It's amazing what you can find in your pocket nonetheless. When I was a younger lad I found a big jar of pre-decimalization English coins, which were left over from a relative's trip to England. In it were coins from the 1890's right up into the mid-60's. None were in the best shape, but it was fascinating to a kid (and still is now) that one could've had monarchs from Victoria through to Elizabeth II in one's pocket at the same time.

 

[DSC]

It's amazing what you can find in your pocket nonetheless. When I was a younger lad I found a big jar of pre-decimalization English coins, which were left over from a relative's trip to England. In it were coins from the 1890's right up into the mid-60's. None were in the best shape, but it was fascinating to a kid (and still is now) that one could've had monarchs from Victoria through to Elizabeth II in one's pocket at the same time.

Yes, I grew up in UK and remember the pre-decimal era (before 1971) very well. You certainly saw many coins with former monarchs - though none of the higher value ones as they had issued replacement coins without silver and the older ones had all been withdrawn or kept as souvenirs. Until about a decade ago it was not that uncommon to see a George VI cent in change here but I have not got one for quite a while now.

A similar thing in Britain is that their red mail boxes (pillar boxes) are very sturdy and are also embossed with the monarch's 'crest'. You can see many examples going back to Victoria in daily use. Also, because pillar boxes are usually set into the ground they are seldom moved and when I return to visit family I always get a (minor) thrill when I mail something in exactly the same box I used as a child.

 

[Mustapha]

This picture, nor the coins in it, are mine, but I have a handful of these nickels; they never fail to give me the same 'minor thrill' that DSC gets.

Note the morse code message spelled out on the edge of the 1943 and 1945 pieces.