Let’s learn about a pair of Milton street names!
There’s a lot of history around Milton, namely found on the names of each street. Each week, we speak with Milton Historical Society President John Challinor II to gather information and details about the namesakes of our roads. If you weren’t aware, he and the late great historian, Jim Dills, wrote the book on Milton street names, writing Milton Streets back in 2007.
Recently, we covered Bowes Street and Heslop Road. This week, we’re focusing on Higgins Drive and Malick Street. Starting with Higgins, Challinor says he was a regular guy who decided to take on a leadership role within Milton.
He adds that it’s always important to have people from all walks of life serve on council as it provides different perspectives when discussing major issues within the town. Those include doctors, lawyers, farmers, police officers; and business owners just like Higgins. The more diverse a Council, the better it represents the diversity of a community.
Our other street this week is Malick Street. Challinor says Malick was a former doctor who specialized in senior residents.
Da Silva focused on naming the street after Malick due to his work with seniors. It was important to him to honour his dedication to the demographic when developing a senior living neighbourhood.
When asked if other street names and Milton figures could see similar tie ins, Challinor noted its possible. He’d like to see more done with previous Milton Mayors who have not been honoured in ways others have.
If you’re looking to understand how Milton’s streets are named, you should check out the book written by Challinor and Dills. Published by the Milton Historical Society back in 2007, it sold out in about six weeks and has since been long out of print. That said, according to Challinor, you can still find a copy at the Milton Public Library. With nearly 15-years having passed since the initial publication, and the extensive town growth in that time, an updated book is likely to come.
You can also take a walk with the late Jim Dills down Milton’s Main Street in 2002.
If you have a suggestion on what you’d like to learn about next week, let us know! We’re currently working on names that we find interesting. You can message our Facebook page, Twitter account, Instagram page, or even email us at News1013@LocalRadio.ca. Otherwise, we’ll just continue asking about local street names that we find interesting.
If you have a news tip or story idea, you can now send us a heads up via email at News1013@LocalRadio.ca. If you’d like to get ahold of me personally, shoot me a message at Cameron.Wilkinson@LocalRadio.ca. We’re in the business of content creation, so no idea is a bad idea.
