A man who helped Milton residents with credit, and a former Ontario Premier!
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 Given Lane and Sheaffe Place. This week, we’re focusing on Harkin Place and Rae Crescent.
Starting alphabetically with Harkin, Challinor says the namesake helped launch the area’s first credit union.
You can find Milton’s Tandia Credit Union at 6020 Main Street West.
Harkin was also involved with the church and was a key figure in starting soccer programs in the area.
Moving on to Rae Crescent, Challinor says many will know the namesake as one of Ontario’s former Premiers.
He calls Rae incredibly intelligent and commends his writing skills. In 1996, Bob Rae wrote ‘From Protest to Power’; which Challinor calls one of the greatest Canadian political autobiographies he has ever read.
I’m still waiting for Bob Rae to open a barbecue sauce company called “Sweet Bobby Rae’s“. Million dollar idea, Mr. Rae – I expect the cheque in the mail.
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.
