Tuesday Treasures

 Tom the backroads traveller hosts this weekly meme.

The Bank of Montreal was founded in 1817 and was the first chartered bank in Canada. It served as the central bank for the country until the founding of the Bank of Canada in 1935. Legislation in 1824 prevented the bank from serving the town of York but it got its break in 1840 when it took over The Bank of The People. This was a reformer bank started in 1835 to provide loans to farmers that the Bank of Upper Canada wouldn’t serve. The Family Compact didn’t like the direct competition of reformers and plotted to have the bank taken over by the Bank of Montreal. In 1885 they opened a branch at Yonge and Front Streets and this building is one of the few in this area that survived the great fire of 1904. The building was designated in 1976 for its heritage value as one of the finest examples of 19th century bank buildings in Canada. It is now home to The Hockey Hall of Fame.

Click here for Bank of Montreal (BMO) history as a branch, it is a most interesting article with extensive number of photos.

My main purpose visiting the Hockey Hall of Fame was to get these photos!!

Built within 10 years of the birth of hockey, the building that houses the Esso Great Hall is a quiet place in which to reflect on the richness of our past. Construction of the building began in 1885, during a period of great prosperity and optimism in Canada's future. Originally a bank, the building reflected the importance of banking in the formation of a country in much the same way that it now reflects the importance of hockey in the building of a culture.

This florid example of rococo architecture was designed by the Toronto firm of Darling and Curry, which also created the similarly august Toronto Club a few blocks away. Used by the Bank of Montreal as a head office until 1949, the building continued to serve as a branch until 1982, when it closed for the last time.

The building remained largely unused until its restoration by BCE Place (now Brookfield Place) for use as the Hockey Hall of Fame (except for the rumoured presence of Dorothy, the ghost of a former teller who took her own life after a failed love affair with the bank manager -see below).

Customers entered the Banking Room through the building's main doors on the southeast corner.

Entering the Esso Great Hall, you find yourself in a room that was once the largest bank branch in Canada. 

The banking room is three stories in height. The lower portion of the walls is covered in rich cherrywood. 

Richly modeled detail abounds in the Hall, framing the mezzanine on the west side. This was the former boardroom, behind which was the bank manager's private apartment. 

Measuring 70 by 70 feet, the room rises to a 45-foot-high stained glass dome. Rendered in the best traditions of classical symbolism, the dome is the largest of its kind in Toronto. Constructed by Joseph McCausland and Sons, it features 24 fanned panels that depict allegorical dragons guarding gold from eagles. Around the outside are a cornucopia of fruit and flowers. In the centre, eight circles bear emblems representing what were then the seven provinces and Canada. The task of restoring the stained glass to its original glory was given to Andrew McCausland, the great-great-grandson of builder Joseph McCausland, whose son Robert was responsible for the original design.

 Toronto - The suicide happened on March 11, 1953. Dorothea had come in much earlier than the other tellers and went straight to the upstairs bathroom where she stayed for a period of time. She eventually came down and went back up to the bathroom where she shot herself with the banks .38 calibre revolver. The 19-year-old was carried down in a Windsor-style chair and rushed to St. Michael’s Hospital. She died 22 hours after shooting herself in the head, which doctors considered a miracle.

For year’s nobody knew the true identity of the woman who killed herself and stories have been floating around for years on why she killed herself. People who have told the ghost story referred to the ghost as Dorothy. However, after some investigative digging by The Toronto Star the woman’s identity was finally revealed. Her name was Dorothea Mae Elliott.

According to source Dorothea was having an affair with either a married teller or branch manager. After confronting her lover and being rejected she shot herself in the upstairs bathroom. However, there have been a number of other rumours as to why she killed herself.

Click here to read more fascinating stories of Dorothy sightings. Now we want to know more about the BMO ADD department that operated out of that building in the 1980s!

Weekend Roundup

Welcome to The Weekend Roundup...hosted by Tom The Back Roads Traveler

1. Starts with "Z" Your choice
2. A Favorite
3. NEW YEAR'S- Chosen by Tom

Starts with Z (BIGGEST/SMALLEST/LONGEST/SHORTEST/OLDEST/FIRST)

The first ZAMBONI Ice Resurfacer used in the NHL in 1954, now in the Hockey Hall of Fame.

FAVOURITE

ZEBRA

NEW YEAR'S

Sam James Coffee Bar

 Linking up with Marg at The Intrepid Reader

Weekend Coffee Share
Sunday Salon

November 2024 - Toronto ON

Adelaide St. Toronto

We had our usual at home (hygge) weekend at home. 

I caught up to date on My Kitchen Rules Australia and now have to wait and watch in almost real time!

I baked on Sunday, easy gluten free apple cake (I didn't have enough cream cheese to make my usual, apples needed to be used) and gluten free lemon curd cookies (I didn't have to make the  curd, I had a jar in the fridge).

Apple cake is not a keeper, a little too dry. Cookies were good, quite shortbready but not going into my recipe box.

Monday Mural taken last week on Queen St. W.

Monday was Remembrance Day as we headed downtown.

A large crowd was entering the Legion on Lake Shore.

We had planned to go to the Hockey Hall of Fame but when we entered Brookfield Place they were setting up for the annual HHOF induction ceremonies, and I remembered that the Hall only closed on Christmas Day, New Year's Day and INDUCTION Day!!! 

But I could hear bagpipes, looked at the time and it was just gone 11 on Remembrance Day so we caught the ceremony in Brookfield Place. There was a large crowd in attendance.

We went for lunch in the Commerce Court food hall. I had lobster roll from Buster's, a great deal for $21. She gave me extra fries since I only wanted 1 side. I realized afterwards that they now have a caprese salad, so I would add that the next time. John went to Zteca, Mexican and it was as good a value. He had three tacos (chicken, shrimp and chorizo) for the same price. He also didn't like the chicken at all. John managed to knock the water bottle over my lap!

Tuesday John did a Costco run.

 I went down to the Rogers Centre, as it was very windy, I went inside.

Taylor Swift is everywhere!

Outside the aquarium.

Work in progress.

Taylor Swift music is playing from the stadium as people lined up to buy concert merchandise.

Part of the indoor PATH I took. I took another path back along Bremner as I was going to Longo's.

Not sure where he was going with his camera crew.

Wednesday we attempted Hockey Hall of Fame 2.0 and were successful.

The Original Six were the only teams in the National Hockey League (NHL) from 1942 to 1967. In 1967, six new franchises were added to the NHL.

Vintage Hockey Hub houses the largest jewel in the HHOF collection — the first Zamboni Ice Resurfacer used in the NHL in 1954, as well as other artifacts from the famous original six arenas.

With 90 iconic goalie masks on display, The Mask presented by Mustang Pucks is an unparalleled tribute to puck stoppers past and present and offers a historical retrospect into the evolution of facial protection from safety to self‐expression.

The highlight of any visit to the Hockey Hall of Fame is the Esso Great Hall, the cathedral to the icons of hockey. Inside, double glass walls hold portraits and biographical sketches of each Honoured Member. On the north wall, plaques listing the Elmer Ferguson Memorial Award and Foster Hewitt Memorial Award winners, selected by the Professional Hockey Writers' and NHL Broadcasters' Association respectively, are displayed.Originally built in 1885, this historic building also serves as home to the greatest collection of silverware in the world of sports, featuring all major NHL trophies, including the most famous and coveted of them all, the Stanley Cup.

The Stanley Cup!

John with the Cup many years ago!

John tried butter chicken dosa from Charcoal Biryani which he enjoyed.

Dosa are basically crispy or soft crepes made with ground and fermented lentil and rice batter, therefore gluten free.

I had dumplings from China Wok, they were lukewarm.

Rogers Centre from the bus.

Thursday I went for a hair cut and Swiftie-watched waiting for the bus.

When I got home I found out that she had driven by!

Taylor Swift flew into Toronto this afternoon for night 1 of 6 concerts. A police escort was provided  and Highway 427 and the Gardner Expressway were closed to traffic for her mini-motorcade and there were hundreds of motorcycle cops surrounding Roger’s Centre stadium capacity 68,237. 

Taylor Swift looks to have had a more impressive motorcade protecting her concert venue than any world leader who visited Toronto in recent memory. Image captured from Book of Faces.

The first concert was Thursday night. I loved this photo I snagged from social media.

Friday John golfed and I prepped food for lunch/dinner tomorrow. Then I went downtown to get a few things for our guests to enjoy. I also made dessert later.

I came home and then decided to scout out the Rogers Centre.

Handing out samples.

Taylor Swift's highly anticipated six-show run at Toronto's Rogers Centre, starting tonight, requires an impressive logistical effort. Her production team reveals that two fully independent stages and stage crews are employed, each supported by 90 semi-tractor trailers. This setup allows for simultaneous operations in different locations, ensuring a seamless experience for fans. In total, 180 semi-tractor trailers are dedicated to this production.

In case you are worried about the carbon footprint, the production buys carbon offsets to mitigate the large carbon footprint a show of this size creates.

COOKING

I am continuing to reduce our freezer/fridge inventories. John did make a Costco run as we were having company on the weekend.

Saturday Chinese curry chicken

Sunday hamburger stew

Monday leftover stew and broccolini

Tuesday rotisserie chicken and mushroom Alfredo

Wednesday hot chicken sandwiches and frozen French (finished) fries in duck fat

Thursday lamb chops, roast potatoes and Brussel sprouts

Friday steak ( 16 oz rib eye market) frites. I also made a chili jam to use up the frozen peppers.

WATCHING

Finished The Diplomat. We watched the latest Yellowstone.

I was disappointed in the movie Wicked Little Letters. Wicked Little Letters is a 2023 British black comedy mystery film starring Olivia Colman. Based on the real-life Littlehampton libels, it follows an investigation into the anonymous author of numerous crudely insulting letters sent to the residents of the seaside town of Littlehampton.

We started Murder in a Small Town.

I started watching Cheaters BBC Series- A chance meeting after a cancelled flight leads to an unlikely hookup between late-twenties strangers Fola and Josh, both already in other relationships. Karl Alberg moves to a quiet coastal town to soothe a psyche that has been battered by big-city police work, but finds himself needing to call upon all his skills to solve the murders that continue to wash up on his shore.

WEEKLY THROWBACK

Day 13 - Williams to Parachilna Australia

READING

I stuck with The Couple on Maple Drive because I was curious about the outcome, but found myself skimming over many parts as she waffled about.