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John Jacob Withrow
John Jacob Withrow (1833 – August 5, 1900) was a Toronto businessman and politician. He proposed the first edition of the Canadian National Exhibition and organised the annual event for several years. Withrow was born in York, Upper Canada, and opened a construction business. In 1873, he was elected as alderman for the Toronto City Council. He tried to convince the Provincial Fair Association to permanently establish their annual fair in Toronto. When they refused, he established an annual fair in Toronto, which later became the Canadian National Exhibition. He twice ran, unsuccessfully, to become mayor of Toronto. After leaving city council, he sat on the board of various businesses and philanthropic organisations. He declared bankruptcy after losing his investments in a depression in the 1890s. He died in Toronto after suffering from a stroke. Early life Withrow was born in 1833 in York, Upper Canada (later named Toronto). His parents were James Withrow and Ellen Sanderson ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
York, Upper Canada
York was a town and second capital of the colony of Upper Canada. It is the predecessor to the Old Toronto, old city of Toronto (1834–1998). It was established in 1793 by Lieutenant-Governor John Graves Simcoe as a "temporary" location for the capital of Upper Canada, while he made plans to build a capital near today's London, Ontario. Simcoe renamed the location York after Prince Frederick, Duke of York and Albany, George III of the United Kingdom, George III's second son. Simcoe gave up his plan to build a capital at London, and York became the permanent capital of Upper Canada on February 1, 1796. That year Simcoe returned to Britain and was temporarily replaced by Peter Russell (politician), Peter Russell. The original townsite was a compact ten blocks near the mouth of the Don River (Ontario), Don River and a Fort York, garrison was built at the channel to Toronto Harbour. Government buildings and a law court were established. Yonge Street was built, connecting York to th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
