Becoming a Teacher

While looking through my father’s papers I found a newspaper clipping from the Globe and Mail dated June 28th 1951. It was entitled  “Results of 1951 Examinations of Ontario of Education Are Announced. In the first paragraph was a familiar name: Gordon Russell Brooks, who was a successful candidate in the High School Assistants, Type A, Intramural examinations for Vocal and Instrumental Music. Interesting, I thought. Obviously I knew that my father was a teacher but what exactly was a High School Assistant, Type A and how did one become one?

My dad’s journey to becoming a teacher started much earlier. I had written earlier about how he obtained his Bachelor of Music degree thanks to the Veteran’s Charter. Russ loved music and had always dreamed of becoming a teacher. He enrolled in the new School Music program at the University of Toronto in 1947 after returning from service in Europe in 1946. 

The class was a small, select group of 21 students with 5 professors and 3 lecturers. The program was rigorous. In his 3rd year Russ would have studied the History of Music, Keyboard Harmony. Arranging, Choral Technique, Band and Orchestral Technique, Conducting and more. Students were also given “general instruction in programme planning and musical aptitude and achievement testing” to prepare them for their future teaching career. English and Physics were also required, the latter for acoustics. Fees of $210 were charged with an incidental fee of $39 which covered Hart House access, health services and the cost of the degree itself.

By the time he entered the Ontario College of Education in the fall of 1950 Russ was well positioned to become a teacher. He had met the qualifications for admission to the music teacher’s program by completing his Bachelor of Music degree. The fees for the year program were $125 for academic including the examination and $26 for incidentals including Hart House access, health service and the medical examination for admission to the College. The Faculty of Education was located in the building that now house UTS on Bloor Street West between Spadina and Huron. 

City of Toronto Archives, Fonds 1244, Item 3256

There were two streams for the Interim High School Assistant Type A certificate. the first covered Agriculture, Classics, English and French, English and Latin, English, Geography, History, French and German, French and Italian, French and Spanish, Latin and French, Latin and Greek, Mathematics, Mathematics and Physics, Science,  Physics and Chemistry, Physics and Biology, Chemistry and Biology, and Home Economics. The second stream including Physical Education, Arts and Crafts, Instrumental Music and Vocal music. This is the stream that my dad entered.  Examinations for the music stream were to be held as follows: 

Russ was successful in his studies and quickly obtained a job at Uxbridge and Port Perry High Schools

Schools and teachers in the Province of Ontario. Ontario Department of Education 1951. Internet Archive  

Interesting how the directory lists the teachers’ salaries. Russ earned the princely sum of $2,800 which works out to $29,000 in today’s money. Teachers did not earn high salaries in those pre union days. My parents rented an apartment on Brock Street in Uxbridge, a 5 minute drive to Uxbridge Secondary School on Planks Lane

and a 15 minute drive to Port Perry High School on Rosa Street in Port Perry.

Both schools had been erected in the 1920s and would soon have additions built to accommodate the baby boomer generation. But in 1951 the student body was a modest size, both around 200, and the faculty small. Both schools had 11 teachers including the principal.

Uxbridge staff 1951-52

It was at the Port Perry High School that my dad first staged one of his beloved Gilbert and Sullivan operettas starting a tradition that lasted throughout his career.

   

Russ worked at the two schools for 3 years until 1954 when he moved to Oakville to teach at Oakville Trafalgar High School. He then moved on to Newmarket High School where he finished his career as a music teacher.

So what was a High School Assistant, Type A, Intramural? The difference between Intramural and extramural isn’t defined in the calendar but it appears to refer to students completing their studies in class at U of T and those studying off campus. The definition of the certificates is noted here:

Sure enough, when I next find Russ in a teacher directory he is teaching at Oakville Trafalgar High School in 1956. He is described at a HSS (High School Specialist) with special certificate in Interim and Art and earning $4,800.

Mystery solved and congratulations to my dad on this major achievement, 70 years ago!

Convocation 1950

On this day 70 years ago my father marched across the back campus into Convocation Hall and received his Bachelor of Music degree from the University of Toronto. His degree was much valued and hard fought for.

Russ' elementary years were spent at Hartman Jones memorial School on Carlaw Avenue in East York. He moved on to East York Collegiate where he completed grade 12 or Junior Matriculation in 1939. It was there that Russ' formal education came to a screeching halt. His dream had always been to study music at the University of Toronto. He had prepared for this by engaging in years of study at the the Royal Conservatory of Music. At the time the RCM was located at the corner of College Street and University Avenue in downtown Toronto.

Taken in March 1920, Toronto Public Library, Baldwin Collection

Russ got his love of music from his mother Gertie who was an accomplished musician. He inherited her Heintzmann piano which still holds a place of honour in my mother’s home. Russ followed Gertie’s footsteps in becoming a skilled pianist. Unfortunately we do not have records of his achievements at the Conservatory but according to his was file he completed Grade Ten piano, Grade 4 Theory and the Teacher's Written examination qualifying for ATCM.

 

 

Post secondary education in music in Toronto at the time was coordinated by the Royal Conservatory of Music in conjunction with the University of Toronto, both headed by Sir Ernest McMillan. In 1946 the Faculty of Music intiated the MusBac, a 3 year school music program which would prepare students for teaching instrumental and vocal music at high school level. In its first year 21 students enrolled in the program. With help from the Department of Veteran's Affairs Russ began his studies in 1947. Students studied string, woodwinds and brass, conducting, choral music, music theory and history (Russ is on clarinet).

University calendars had a lot of personal information back in the day. The full class is listed in the 1949-1950 Academic Division Calendar

Further information on Russ' studies was found in 1950 Torontonensis yearbook

Russ completed his degree in the spring of 1950. Convocation was held on October 27th 1950. My mom and grandparents attended

The class was impressive and so is the diploma itself. I was quite jealous when I discovered that my diploma from U of T was not in Latin!

I believe my dad was the first person in his close family to complete a university program.  It was a major accomplishment 70 years ago as higher education was usually out of the reach of the average Canadian. I was proud to follow in his footsteps 31 years later. 

Archibald Thomson - A Canadian Success Story

This is Heritage Week and I thought it would be the perfect opportunity to write about my ancestor Archibald Thomson. Archibald's story is important not only to my personal heritage but also to that of the province of Ontario.

Archibald was born in the small town of Westerkirk in Dumfries Scotland in 1749, one of 8 children born to Andrew and Jannet Thomson. He was baptized in the parish church On May 7th.

Scotland's People Old Parish Registers. Westerkirk 854/00 0010 0057

In 1773 he crossed the ocean in search of a better life, settling in Harpersfield in Tryon County, New York State. He farmed with other young Scots, James Park, Daniel Rose and John Chisholm. In 1775 "his attachment to his sovereign caused him to leave what little property he had acquired (12 acres of land) behind him" siding with the British in the American Revolution. He ultimately filed 16 Land Petitions that provided me with details of his service to the Crown. Archibald was a carpenter by trade and initially completed repairs at Fort Oswegatchie and Niagara. He was later appointed Master Carpenter by Governor Abbott. In 1777 he served under Captain John MacDonnell in the Second Battalion of the King's Royal Regiment of New York. In 1778 Archibald joined Captain Joseph Brant and was allegedly arrested by the Rebels for detecting and defeating conspiracies. There he was placed "under sentence of death for joining the Indians and escaped the Americans". I hope to find more about this interesting part of Archibald's story! He and his colleagues served without pay for seven years until the end of the war and "suffered every extremity of distress" and "engaged in the most dangerous of enterprises" under the command of Captain Brant, serving with "all the Zeal and Bravery of Britons". He was ultimately granted a Lieutenant's commission by Lord Dorchester.

On 27 July 1781 Archibald married Elizabeth McKay in Quebec City. Elizabeth was the daughter of Hugh McKay another Scottish refugee from New York State who became the High Constable of Quebec.

Quebec Gazette 2 August 1781, page 2

The couple moved about the province acquiring and selling land in various areas that was acquired by their successful land petitions to the Crown. 

Ontario Archives RG 1-58 Township Papers, Scarborough MS 658 Reel 436

Elizabeth acquired land due to her status as a daughter and wife of a Loyalist. Archibald acquired a town lot in Kingston in 1790. He ran a timber yard, wharf and store from this property. In the same time period he also acquired land in Fredericksburg Township as well as in Thurlow Township. In 1793 he also acquired a town lot in Newark (later Niagara on the Lake)and property in Stamford Township. By 1797 he owned a coveted town lot in York (later Toronto) near the St. Lawrence Market. As you can see from this detail from a map from the time his neighbours included his brothers David and Andrew

Detail from the Peter Russell 1797 map of Toronto, Toronto Public Library

And here's where Archibald's importance to the province lies - in 1796 he had petitioned the crown for 400 acres of land for his brothers who wished to join him in Canada and settle in Scarborough. He was successful and the rest is history. His brother David and David's wife Mary were the first settlers in Scarborough.

By 1799 Archibald himself joined his siblings in Scarborough purchasing and leasing 4 plots of land. He ran a "house of entertainment" and a grist mill while farming and also acting as a Justice of the Peace. In 1815 he certified his son Edward's land petition. Here's his signature. I found it to be consistent on the various documents over the years.

Upper Canada Land Petitions, Library and Archives Canada RG 1, L 3, Volume 497 "T" Bundle 10

Archibald died on 22 January 1819. Elizabeth had died two years earlier and I believe the couple were originally buried on the family farm. They were reinterred at St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church in Scarborough, the first Presbyterian Church in Scarborough, erected on land donated by the Thomson family. The inscription is difficult to decipher but reads: "Their remains moved to this place on June 3 1854 by their descendants numbering 231".

Picture taken by the writer

Archibald's demise was noted in the Upper Canada Gazette on the 28th of January 1819. He received a fine tribute:

Upper Canada Gazette, 28 January 1819, page 2

Archibald had packed a lot into his 70 years probably beyond what he expected as a young boy in Dumfries. He left behind a legacy that was build on by his many descendants. Archibald and Elizabeth had 12 children all of whom lived to adulthood. Two of his sons Hugh Christopher Thomson (1791-1834) and Colonel Edward William Thomson (1794-1865) have entries in the Dictionary of Canadian Biography. Roy Thomson, Lord Thomson of Fleet, and his son Ken are descended from Archibald's youngest child George. Actress Norman Shearer (descended from Colonel Edward) and writer Farley Mowat (descended from Hugh) are also Thomsons. 

And I'm a Thomson too! I'm descended from Archibald's fifth child Elizabeth McKay Thomson who married Thomas Forfar in 1806. I was pleased this year to be able to prove my descent from Archibald and receive my certification from the United Empire Loyalist's Association of Canada. Here's the back of Elizabeth's Land Petition referencing her father's UEL status:

Upper Canada Land Petitions, Library and Archives Canada RG 1, L 3, Volume 187 "F" Bundle 8

Archibald was recognized as a United Empire Loyalist as he demonstrated Loyalty to the Crown. In recognition of his service in defence of "Unity of Empire" I can now use the letters UE after my name. Archibald Thomson rose from a refugee to a founding member of Upper Canada due to his perseverance and hard work. 

Coming Home 1919

On November 11th 1918 the First World War was officially over when Armistice was signed. However, the war continued well into 1919 for many Canadian soldiers. At the end of the war there were approximately 300,000 Canadians in Britain and Europe. Bringing everyone home was a huge endeavour. One this date 100 years ago my grandfather William Thomas Brooks was one of these Canadians anxiously waiting to come home. Here is his official service photo. 

I had written about his war service in an early blog post: click here to read Bill had spent the war in the Canadian Service Corps using his skills as a stenographer. On Armistice Day he was stationed in France at the CASC Depot at Beaurainville He finished the war with the rank of Corporal with his promotion going through on March 24 1919. 

He returned to England and was assigned to General Head Quarters. He celebrated Easter there on April 20th 1919.

Shortly after, in May, he was transferred to Rhyl, located on the north shore of Wales. There he worked as a Clerk.

The Town of Rhyl did its best to deal with the troops while they were stationed there. Due to shortage of large ships and post war strikes by working class Britons it took some time to ship the Canadians home. Rhyl experienced rioting in March 1919 before Bill's arrival. A mutiny at a camp for Canadian soldiers resulted in several deaths. 

From 2019 exhibit at the Canadian War Museum

Here are some adverts for entertainment that took place during Bill's stay in May of 1919. Since he kept these flyers he likely attended at least some of these events!

On June 2nd 1919 it was Bill's turn to return home:

This is the ship he sailed on, S.S. Lapland. When she returned to being a passenger ship after the war she could carry roughly 2000 first, second and third class passengers. As a troop ship she would have carried about the same number. On this voyage the Lapland carried 79 regular passengers and the remainder of the ship was filled with returning soldiers. 

From 2019 exhibit at the Canadian War Museum

On the page listing Corporal Brooks there were 178 soldiers listed so the ship was overflowing. Unfortunately the list with my grandfather's name is covered with another page but I spotted his number 510813: 

The Lapland docked in Halifax on June 6th 1919 and Bill was home. He was discharged on June 11th 1919. 

Bill was one of the lucky ones - he made it home without sustaining major injuries, though the experience was still likely difficult. Others were not so lucky - you can read about the experiences of Frederick Moorecroft 

From 2019 exhibit at the Canadian War Museum

and Percival, Arthur and Herman Moorecroft  

From 2019 exhibit at the Canadian War Museum

There were welcome home parades and a lot of excitement at the return of the soldiers.

From 2019 exhibit at the Canadian War Museum

These photos were taken by my grandmother Gertrude Kingswell at a welcome home parade in her hometown Kingston Ontario, exact date unknown.

In Toronto the celebrations continued into the summer with the CNE celebrating both Victory and a 40 year anniversary

But once all the parades were over it was time to try and return to normal life. The former soldiers were provided with assistance. This pamphlet, published by local churches, provided useful information:


And local businesses offered discounts:

It's possible that my grandfather took advantage of Mr. Walker's offer. He quickly found work and a place to live. The 1920 Toronto City Directory (which was compiled in 1919) listed him

My grandfather's war ended well with a job, and soon after a wife and family. He might not have spoken about his experiences during the Great War but no doubt they shaped the rest of his life. One hundred years later I'm glad that he returned home safely.