Our Stories

Sepia-toned outdoor group portrait of an extended family posed in front of a house covered in climbing ivy. The group includes adults and children arranged in seated and standing rows. Women wear long dresses with high collars and decorative detailing, while men wear dark suits with ties. A central older woman sits in front, flanked by seated men, with younger and older family members standing behind. The setting and formal attire convey a posed family gathering from the early 20th century.

Richard Amos Ball: Faith, Music and the Fight for Freedom

1845–1925 Prospect Cemetery Section 22 Lot 624 Richard Amos Ball was a pioneering minister in the British Methodist Episcopal Church (BMEC) and a
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boulder with trees and shrubs

The Children’s Garden: A Place of Memory and Peace 

very old bus

John Hollinger: East York’s Transit Pioneer

panoramic scene of a park with blue sky

Thomas W. Thompson: Champion of Toronto’s Green Spaces

hockey player from many years ago surrounded by fans

Charlie Conacher: The Big Bomber of Maple Leaf Gardens

two plaques with text

Thornton and Lucie Blackburn: Toronto’s First Taxi and Champions of Freedom

Illustrated portrait of J. J. Kelso wearing a suit jacket, high‑collared shirt, and tie, shown from the chest up in a newspaper‑style line drawing with fine cross‑hatching

John Joseph Kelso: Champion for Children and Animals

Black-and-white studio portrait of Private Walter Leigh Rayfield, V.C., seated in uniform wearing a service cap and a buttoned military tunic with chevrons on the sleeve, posed against a plain backdrop.

Walter Leigh Rayfield, VC: Hero of Arras

A black and white photos of Gus Harris during his time as a reeve in Scarborough. He is wearing a plaid suit jacket, white-coloured shirt, and dark-coloured tie. His hair is cropped short and slightly wavy and his expression is neutral but pleasant.

Gus Harris: A Lasting Mark in Scarborough

Snow‑covered cemetery scene showing three adjacent grave markers bearing the names Massey and Hewitt. The stones are partially buried in snow and set among dense winter shrubs and leafless trees, creating a quiet, enclosed landscape.

Foster Hewitt: The Voice that Made Hockey Canadian

short graves surrounded by trees

City of Toronto Soldiers’ Lot: A Tribute to Service and Sacrifice

A street scene featuring colorful storefronts, including Sam the Record Man and Steele’s Tavern. Pedestrians walk across the street in the foreground, while others stand near the shop entrances. Bright signage and busy façades create a lively urban atmosphere.

Steele Basil: The Man Behind Toronto’s Legendary Tavern

The artist named Sigi Puchta stands beside the sundial. It is a circular stone feature surrounded by red flowers in an open cemetery landscape, with graves, trees, and grassy fields extending into the distance.

Tracing Time: The Sundial Collection at Mount Pleasant Group of Cemeteries

Historic black-and-white photograph of a veterans’ burial plot with rows of small grave markers spread across a grassy field, centered on a tall Cross of Sacrifice with a flag. Mature trees line the background

Canada’s Oldest Veterans’ Service

Two performers stand on an outdoor stage; one is singing into a microphone with an arm raised, while the other plays an acoustic guitar beside an additional microphone stand. A canopy and metal stage scaffolding are visible overhead against a sunny sky.

Lois Lilienstein: A Legacy of Joy

big brick house by train tracks

Allan Royce: From English Roots to Toronto Legacy

bald man with grey mustache

Jack Layton: A Legacy of Hope and Leadership

Snow‑covered cemetery landscape with an upright headstone in the foreground bearing the name “Clark Heweston.” The stone is surrounded by trees and additional grave markers, with evergreen and bare branches visible in winter light

Rosa and Spencer Clark: Preserving Beauty in a Changing City

headstone covered in snow

James Henry Fleming: Toronto’s Gentleman Ornithologist

Aerial view of downtown Toronto on a clear day, showing a dense cluster of high-rise buildings, the CN Tower, the Rogers Centre, and Lake Ontario stretching out in the background.

John A. Pearson: Building Toronto’s Skyline

A vintage black‑and‑white portrait of Jennie Smilie Robertson shown from the waist up, wearing a high‑collared lace blouse and a dark jacket, framed within an oval border against a plain background.

Jennie Smillie Robertson: Canada’s First Woman Surgeon