Let’s dive into some Milton history!
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 Hayward Crescent and Marcellus Avenue. This week, we’re focusing on Hemstreet Crescent and Marshall Crescent. Starting with Hemstreet, Challinor says it was named after a trio of hard working brothers. However, it was George Hemstreet who had the biggest impact on the community.
He adds that Milton has a long history of being represented by every day residents at the municipal level. Instead of lifelong or burgeoning career politicians, Milton’s Council tends to be made up of residents from every facet of life and industry. Whether it’s doctors, lawyers, factory workers or farmers, each Miltonian will find some form of representation in the Council Chambers.
Our other street is Marshall Crescent. Challinor says the Marshall family is one of Milton’s originals, and are still prevalent in town today.
The Milton Fall Fair has been active since 1853, which makes it one of the longest running fall fairs in Canada. That history starts with local farming families like the Marshalls.
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.
