An excerpt from The Beaverton Presents Glorious and/or Free: The True History of Canada. Available where books are sold.
November 29th, 1834
TORONTO — Indignant citizens of the newly renamed Toronto were annoyed to hear that the Mackenzie family had plans to build a towering two-storey building, a structure that will surely cast a long shadow and obscure the views of many nearby residences.
Construction of the six-room house on Yonge Street is set to begin next month, yet many locals have petitioned City Council and Mayor Robert Sullivan to put an immediate halt to the site now dubbed Toronto’s Tower of Babylon.
One resident, Caleb John Chadwick of #24 Spadina, who has dwelled in the city for the past 12 years, said the monstrous building will obscure his Lake Ontario and brick factory vista.
“My shack has a wonderful view of those smokestacks and the horizon. I purchased the property for £3, 15 shillings, but now with the proposed tower, it may not even be worth £2.”
In response to the outcry, Mayor Sullivan has reassured the populace that none of the rooms in the massive structure would be sold or rented to an Irishman.
Order the book here.
