Scadding Estate Commemorative Plaque, 2020
File information | File dimensions | File size | Options |
Original JPG File | 1800 × 1200 pixels (2.16 MP) 15.2 cm × 10.2 cm @ 300 PPI |
2.3 MB | Restricted |
Screen | 1200 × 800 pixels (0.96 MP) 10.2 cm × 6.8 cm @ 300 PPI |
530 KB | Restricted |
Resource ID
8125
Access
Open
Address
501 Broadview Ave, Toronto, ON M4K 2N5
Date of Creation
2020
Historical Themes
Agricultural History, Indigenous Heritage, Parks and Natural Heritage
Program Category
Historical Plaques
Time Period
1794-1834
Caption
Scadding Estate Commemorative Plaque, 2020
Description
This area was once a landscape of hills, wetlands, and forests. The Don River, also known as Wonscotonach, or bright burning point, by the Mississaugas of the Credit, meandered through a valley of white pine, ash, and walnut trees. It was essential to First Nations for thousands of years. John Scadding managed the English estate of Lieutenant Governor John Graves Simcoe. After the signing of the Toronto Purchase treaty in 1787 between the Mississaugas and the British Crown, he followed Simcoe to Canada in 1792 and was granted land here. Scadding returned to England with Simcoe in 1796 and came back in 1818. His wife, Melicent Triggs, and their sons, John, Charles, and Henry, followed in 1821. The family planted grains and corn and had gardens of asparagus, melons, and rhubarb. They turned the marsh into pastures and a hop garden. After Scadding was killed by a falling tree in 1824, Melicent, with the help of her son John, ran the farm for the next 32 years. In 1856, the family sold a portion of the land to the City of Toronto to build the Don Jail and the House of Refuge. The remaining land north of the jail was turned into Riverdale Park in the 1880s. The Scadding sons went on to contribute to early Toronto. Charles worked in finance and Henry was a reverend and historian. He was a founding member and president of the York Pioneer and Historical Society. Produced with the support of the York Pioneer and Historical Society in its 150th year.
Marker lat / long: 43.669707, -79.353347 (WGS84)