In celebration of Canada Day, we are jumping ahead in the Huron Institute’s photograph collection to showcase a series of parade photographs from July 1, 1927.
The Huron Institute collected 37 photographs that comprise the series 1706-1742, described as “Views of the parade of the celebration of the Diamond Jubilee of the Canadian Confederation, Collingwood, July 1, 1927.”
The numbered photographs feature numerous rooftop vantage points, reminiscent of the scene in Photograph 1, as well as street-level perspectives as represented in Photograph 2.
Today’s rooftop photograph showcases a busy street with floats and parading groups originating at the north end of Hurontario Street. The same float that appears at the right side of this photograph is the focus of Photograph 2. Unfortunately, the words along the float’s port side are largely illegible. The last three words are “DON DE DIEU” which translate to “gift from God”. What’s interesting about these photographs is that they were taken only moments apart by different photographers.
Dr. Ethan Leo Connolly’s Drug Store at 129 Hurontario Street, the present day location of Robinson’s Paint and Wallpaper, is prominent at the right side of both photographs.
Photograph 3 features an elaborately decorated Federal Building which is among the best photographs of the building in the Collingwood Museum’s collection. The large columns have been carefully wrapped for the celebration. Moreover, the balcony is draped in a similar fashion. A Union Jack adorns the building’s flag pole.
A number of other photographs have been added to this parade series since the Collingwood Museum formally assumed the Huron Institute’s collection in the 1960s.
If you have a story to share about today’s featured photograph, please contact museum staff at [email protected].
Huron Institute 1709, 1708, 1714; Collingwood Museum Collection X970.689.1, X970.681.1, X971.566.1
Remember This is a weekly series of historic photographs submitted by the Collingwood Museum to CollingwoodToday.ca. These photographs were originally collected and documented by the Huron Institute in an historical catalogue entitled Huron Institute Paper and Records: Volume III. Much of Collingwood’s early history has been preserved due to the dedication and foresight of the early museum’s founders, namely its secretary-curator David Williams, upon its establishment in 1904.
