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4 Friday, February 25, 2022 brooklintowncrier.com When the Town of Whitby amalgamated with Whitby Township on Jan. 1, 1968, it created the fourth largest region in the area. However, it would mean changing the names of hamlets as well as the removal of signs, not to mention changing phone listings and mailing addresses, all of which created harsh feelings. So, a month later, about 300 Brooklin, Myrtle, and Ashburn residents, including members of Brooklin hockey, baseball, and lacrosse teams descended on Whitby Town Council in a fight to keep the names, identities and heritage of their communities from disappearing. Whitby Mayor Desmond Newman motioned to scrap the names and post offices in Brooklin, Myrtle, and Ashburn, towns that were proud of their community. "To create some order," he stated. Businessmen concerned However, Brooklin resident and former council member John Dryden presented a petition on behalf of concerns of the Brooklin Businessmen's Committee. "The proposed changes," he said, "may be a small thing to the council, but in the minds of the people, they are mountainous. Not only do we oppose the proposals, but we resent them." Dryden added that council was creating a wedge in the community along with feelings of animosity and distrust. He called for a motion that would put an immediate end to the proposals. Councillor Heber Down, who settled in Brooklin in 1889, went so far as to announce that he would "fight to the last ditch" for Brooklin's name. Erasing the community names not only threatened their heritage, but would also be a heavy blow to farmers and family-run businesses. Robert McCoy, president of the business committee, argued that "the benefit of our past advertising would be lost. If our names were not on the map, customers and suppliers would have to search the length of the municipality for us. Reprinting literature … would cost me more than $4,000 and proportionate amounts to others." Impact on farmers Another resident, Robert Heron, urged that the farmer was also a businessman who shouldn't be quickly dismissed, saying "his cattle, etc, may be known thousands of miles away," and that the decision would derail any improvements to business and farms which tried to build up their businesses over the years. Former Brooklin resident and Councilman John Goodwin was influential in getting the petition to oppose council's decision up and running. Once the motion was made, things became heated. Of those who protested the change, more than half included high school students. Luther Vipond arranged transportation for many of them and even drove a truckload to the meeting. Despite the cold weather, they didn't mind riding in the back of Vipond's open truck. Al Goldie was one of the students who spoke passionately on behalf of his friends and classmates, moving some residents to tears. The youngest protester was four year old Rick Mitchell. Cheers and jeers Speeches by residents and councilmen elicited cheers of support for Goodwin, John Dryden, and Heber Down with boos and hisses for others such as the Mayor and Reeve Gordon Hanna. An emotional Mayor Newman tried to appeal to protestors, asking "Do you not want to make a contribution to the new town?" The reply came loud and clear: "No!!!" The crowd became jubilant when Goodwin presented the final motion to council, "that the Town of Whitby take no further action to change the postal administration for the four hamlets, or the telephone exchange for Brooklin, or names of hamlets unless formally requested by petition of the rate payers of the communities involved." The mayor's motion was thrown out and today the names and history of Brooklin, Myrtle, Myrtle Station and Ashburn are proudly preserved. The spirit and actions of the protestors had won. How Brooklin & Hamlets Kept Their Names by Bradley McIlwain Call us at 905-655-6200 to book your appointment Family Friendly EyeCare