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WHITBY FREE PRESS, '"OUR HISTORICAL FIFRITAGE, WEDNESDAY, JUNE 11, 19 ffl, PAGE 1 5 The firtetircame to W-hitby h 19 Wben thetlWarbof 1793hesteemnprodo p By EUGENE HENRY Some hitoriaits eay, that the first white men who trnveiied tbrough the green forest trails of the Whitby area, came this way, as early ns 1615. However, for this retrospective, birthdny look at the growth and develop- ment of our town, we wlli tart with the firet recorded settler. He wae la fact, one Ben- jamin Wilson who with hîs wife and two sons were the first arrivais ln these parts. They were Loyaiists from Putney, Vermont and they ianded from a shailow raft boat, Ln the south-east cor- ner of Whltby Township la 1793. They took up their land close to the shorelîne of Lake Ontario just east of Oshawa Harbour. This lîttie group bas, therefore, the distinction of belng our first settlers and this is where, the Whitby saga begîns. It wae then (1793) that Governor John Graves Simi- coe declded that Upper Thnk-you Mr. Henr y By MICHAEL KNELL Community Editor This supplement, "Our Historical Heritage" is the brain-child of Eugene M. Henry, the former chairman of the Local Architectural Conservation Advisory Committee (LACAC). Mr. Henry is Whitby's foremost historian who views history in na ,ause-and-effect mariner, that is, he at- tempts to find out why certain events in our history came about and then relate it in an easy-to-underst.afd and entertaining manner. Mr. Henry has been working continuosly over the past few months researching and writing the material that appears in this editon of the Free Press, today. Without him, this would have not been possible. For the last few months, he has been gaining a wide following as a columnist in the Free Press, writing about life ini Whitby in pre-confederation times. A native son , Mr. Henry and his wife, Margaret, returned to Whitby a few years ago after 25 years of living and working in the nation's capital, Ottawa. By profession, Mr. Henry is a business consultant and lives in the Row-McCrohan House on Charles Street. Mr. Henry rernains a concerned and knowledgable citizen with regard to nny and ail future developmeflts around Whitby Harbor. For his efforts to preserve and relate our local hîstory, Mr. Henry is deservirig of not the Free Press' but the community's gratitude. Thank-you, Mr. Henry, without you, this would not have happened. Canada needed military ronds between the main cen- tres of population, Including the route between York and Kingston. The Simcoe surveys and rond building projects la thîs generni area were perhaps the most influential factor la the growth and deveiopmen- t of Whitby. The York to Kingston Rond created the cross ronds trading centre at the "Four Corners" of our cen- tral business district nnd la due course provided Peter Perry with n prime location for ihe first store la hie chain, where the Canadian Imperini Bank of Commerce now stands. Durlng the War of 1812, the troops serving with Generai IBrock, used the York to Kingston Rond and one of their favorite resting spots, was the Lynde House that was built by Jahez Lynde on Lot 31, Second Concession la the Township of Whitby. It is now operated by the Whit- by Historical Society as the Whitby Museum at Dundas and D'Hiler Streets la the west end of town. Soon there were other set- tiers like Samuel Cochrane and store keepers Storey and Leesie who moved on to bproperty dloser to the cen- tre of town. over there was a wave of imigrantsIooklng for Free Farm land in this new coun- try. As a resuit, a filling ln proces started la the Pickering-Uxbridge-Whitby area that went on for 20 years or more. For a long time the summer siues nor- th of Whitby were black with the smoke of burning tim- ber, as the settiers cleared their land for the planting of grain. The days of first set- tiement came to an end around 1830. It was governor John Graves Simcoe who dominated the scene during per Canada. It was he who articulated and delivered the settlement policies that worked, that le for new citizens that would be loyal to the Crown and military ronds between population centres to defead the set- tiers and their new land. These first settiers of ours, iiteraiiy worked themselves to death as they toiied en- diessiy with their familles to clear and work their land. They were supremely motivated. They owned their own land. it was this basic fact that becamne the force for ail else in their lives ln the years ahead. CONSOLI DATED BUILDING FIRST CITY DEVELOPM IENTS LTD. A NEW & BETTER COMPANY nl C.B.C.have gained their enviable cial, industrial and residential projects across Canada. C.B.C.has been a major force in the creation Of new housing with over 30,000 homes to their credit. El Financial depth is essential, as are years Of successful experience in ail facets of real est ate develop ment. El First City Developments Ltd. was created in 1978 with the fusion of the various real estate activities of First City Trust and C.B. C. El The parent company, First City Trust, is a publicly owned Canadian Company providing a wide range of professional services to the financial community and general public, both nationally and in- ternationally. PROGRESS MEANS MORE THAN A BETTER COMPANY - IT MEANS, BETTER HOUSING IF THERE IS A BETTER WAY - WE'LL FIN D IT West Lynde-Whitby 4.,> Meadowvale-M ississauga Consolidated Building flKSit i DEVELOPM ENTS 99 Avenue Road Toronto, Ontario M5R 2G6 r-