Profiling: Ed Broadbent

By Jennifer Weymark and Lisa Terech

This was originally written as an article for the Oshawa Express in 2010. It has been updated and revised for this post.

The Honorable Dr. John Edward (Ed) Broadbent, CC, PC, was born in Oshawa on March 21, 1936, the second of three children to Percy and Mary Broadbent.  An alumnus of Oshawa Central Collegiate, he graduated first in his class from the University of Toronto in 1959. After graduating, he taught English at O’Neill CVI for one year before he went on to further his educational pursuits. Broadbent earned his Masters of Philosophy of Law from U of T in 1962 and would attain his PhD in political science at the prestigious London School of Economics and U of T.¹

Ed Broadbent, c. 1960; as appeared in the Oshawa Times, 22 Aug 1961 p.8

Broadbent shocked his parents in 1968 when he quit his teaching position at York University to run in the Oshawa-Whitby riding as the New Democrat candidate. What might have made his decision to run the more shocking is that his parents were, reportedly, staunch conservatives.² That said, his family were firmly behind him and “mobilized to support Ed”³ as he sought to win the Oshawa-Whitby riding, which had been represented by the Rt. Hon. Michael Starr, of the Progressive Conservatives, since 1952. The election was a tight race, and Broadbent beat Starr in a surprise victory, winning with a 15 vote margin.

At the beginning of his political career, Broadbent was aligned with the “Waffle,” a left-leaning faction in the NDP, but he would later break away from this group.⁴ In 1970 he tried his hand at authorship, penning the work The Liberal Rip Off.  After a failed attempt at the party leadership position in 1971, Ed was named leader of the New Democratic Party in 1975, a position he held until he resigned in 1989. He would remain the riding’s MP until the end of that year. During his time as leader of the NDP, “Broadbent argued for the abolition of capital punishment, and advocated for the rights of same-sex couples to marry. He also focused his efforts on Indigenous rights, women’s equality, child poverty, ethics in government, electoral reform and tax equality.”⁵

The early 1980s in Canada were noted as it was during this time that Prime Minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau sought to patriate the Canadian Constitution and formalize the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Broadbent supported this endeavour and, as a result, faced backlash from within his party. At the party convention in 1981, the NDP “endorsed his position, but some discontent remained.”⁶ Broadbent was named to the Privy Council of Canada in 1982.⁷

Reporter Judy Steed, who once referred to him as “Canada’s Premier Socialist” in an article in Report on Business Magazine, wrote a book about him, entitled Ed Broadbent: The Pursuit of Power, published in 1988.

In his final speech in the House of Commons after his first tenure as a parliamentarian, Ed called to eradicate child poverty by the year 2000. “For too long we have ignored the appalling poverty in the midst of affluence,” Broadbent said. “This is a national horror. This is a national shame. It is a horror and a shame that we should put an end to.” As lamented by the Toronto Star editorial board, “the shame persists to this day.”⁸

Ed Broadbent, keynote speaker at the Oshawa Historical Society’s 50th anniversary in 2007; photo: Oshawa Museum.

Retirement from politics was not a quiet time for Ed. In 1993, he was named an Officer in the Order of Canada, and in 2002, Ed was named a Companion of the Order of Canada.  Upon his retirement in 1990, Ed became the first President of the International Centre for Human Rights and Democratic Development,⁹ a fitting job for a left-wing socialist. The Centre had “an international mandate to promote, advocate and defend the democratic and human rights set out in the International Bill of Human Rights.”¹⁰ The Centre closed in 2012.

Broadbent left the Centre in 1996 and was a guest lecturer at numerous Universities across the world including, Simon Fraser University, the University of Oxford, and the University of New Delhi.  In 2001 Broadbent was asked to co-chair the Canadian Democracy and Corporate Accountability Commission, and he also published his second book entitled, Democratic Equality: What Went Wrong.

After a 14 year hiatus from the House of Commons, Broadbent returned as an MP in 2004, representing Ottawa Centre, under the NDP leadership of Jack Layton.¹¹ He did not seek reelection in 2006 as the health of his wife, Lucille, was failing. She passed away in 2006.¹²

Ed Broadbent, left, with members of the Oshawa Historical Society Board of Directors at the OHS 50th Anniversary Dinner, 2007; photo: Oshawa Museum.

In 2011, Ed founded the Broadbent Institute, “an Ottawa-based think-tank dedicated to progressive change focused on income inequality, democratic renewal, green economy and social democracy.”¹³

Ed was on hand in Oshawa in June 2023 for the opening of the Ed Broadbent Waterfront Park, a new greenspace at the lakefront, at the southeast corner of Simcoe St. S. and Harbour Road. This park includes “an amphitheatre, stage and seating; a network of concrete and asphalt pathways; green spaces; and a Garden of Human Rights.”¹⁴ His third book, entitled Seeking Social Democracy: Seven Decades in the Fight for Equality, was written with Frances Abele, Jonathan Sas, and Luke Savage and published in October 2023.

Ed Broadbent Waterfront Park, 12 Jan 2024. The flags are lowered to half mast, in honour of the memory of Broadbent.

Ed Broadbent died on January 11, 2024, at the age of 87. A state funeral will be held in Ottawa on January 28, 2024. “It will give Canadians an opportunity to salute Mr. Broadbent’s contributions to public life and offer their condolences.”¹⁵ Upon his passing, former city councillor Nester Pidwerbecki reflected that Broadbent “had a soft spot in his heart for people who didn’t have representation, like children. If you see the bill he brought forward in the House to eradicate child poverty, these were the primary things in his life; that was his goal to work hard to do it. His goal was to make life better for those who didn’t really have anybody speaking for them in the House.” Pidwerbecki worked as Broadbent’s Oshawa executive assistant from 1975-1989.¹⁶

When he first stepped aside from politics, Broadbent was quoted in the Oshawa This Week as saying the following, “It was a great pleasure for me to grow up in this town… I want to thank Oshawa for giving me a sense of what a community, what Canada and what politics should be all about… All of us have to make this planet a little better by the time we leave it than when we arrived.”¹⁷

From the Eric Sangwine Street Name Series, a “Street we’d like to see – Broadbent Dr.” Oshawa Museum archival collection A019.4.7

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1. “Broadbent’s Career Highlights,” Oshawa Times, 29 Sept 1989, 3.
2. Garth Stevenson, “Ed Broadbent,” The Canadian Encyclopedia, Historica Canada. Article published September 30, 2007; Last Edited January 12, 2024. Accessed 15 Jan 2024, via:
3. Myron Momryk, Mike Starr of Oshawa (Ottawa & Gatineau: University of Ottawa Press & Canadian Museum of History, 2017), 202.
4. John Goodwin, “The man who couldn’t be PM,” Oshawa Times, 29 Sept 1989, 3.
5. “About Ed Broadbent,” Government of Canada website, accessed 15 Jan 2024, via: https://canada.ca/en/canadian-heritage/commemoration/ed-broadbent/about.html
6. Ibid.
7. Stevenson, “Ed Broadbent.”
8. “Ed Broadbent was a tireless advocate for a fairer society,” Toronto Star, 12 January 2024; accessed 15 Jan 2024, via: https://www.thestar.com/opinion/editorials/ed-broadbent-was-a-tireless-advocate-for-a-fairer-society
9. Stevenson, “Ed Broadbent.”
10. “Mission Statement,” Former official website for the International Centre for Human Rights and Democratic Development, accessed via archive.org 15 Jan 2024, via: https://web.archive.org/web/20120317044044/http://www.dd-rd.ca/site/who_we_are/index.php?subsection=strategic_objectives&lang=en
11. “About Ed Broadbent.”
12. Stevenson, “Ed Broadbent.”
13. “About Ed Broadbent.”
14. “Ed Broadbent Waterfront Park officially opens” City of Oshawa News Alert, dated 2 June 2023; accessed 15 Jan 2004 via: https://www.oshawa.ca/en/news/ed-broadbent-waterfront-park-officially-opens.aspx
15. “Prime Minister announces state funeral for the Honourable Ed Broadbent,” Prime Minister of Canada website, accessed 15 Jan 2024, via: https://www.pm.gc.ca/en/news/news-releases/2024/01/15/prime-minister-announces-state-funeral-honourable-ed-broadbent
16. Tim Kelly, “Memories of Ed: ‘He never forgot where he came from,’ say those who knew political giant Ed Broadbent best in Oshawa,” Oshawa This Week, 13 Jan 2024; accessed 15 Jan 2024, via: https://www.durhamregion.com/news/memories-of-ed-he-never-forgot-where-he-came-from-say-those-who-knew-political
17. Ed Broadbent, as quoted in Joan Downey, “Ed thanks Oshawa,” Oshawa This Week, undated; Broadbent Genealogy file, Oshawa Museum archival collection.

Profiling: George Kenneth Lancaster

By Sara H., Summer Student

As my summer at the museum is wrapping up, it has been the perfect time to reflect on my time at the museum and how much I have learned about museums and Oshawa’s history.  My last blog post talked about past industries in Oshawa that were featured on the  Discover Historic Oshawa website.  When looking through the website to find places to talk about, I came across the entry for the Lancaster Hotel.       

Commercial Hotel, c. 1915; Oshawa Museum archival collection (A982.46.4)

Lancaster Hotel, c. 1978; Miles Digital Collection, Oshawa Museum archival collection

Last summer, I was the Heritage Engagement Intern at the McLaughlin Library.  When I was learning about the Oshawa City Directories, Nicole, the awesome Local History Librarian, gave me the name “Lancaster” to look up. The directories collection covers many years, but it was not until 1936 that I came across “Lancaster.”  Charles Lancaster was listed as the president of the Commercial Hotel, located at 27-29 King St. W.; his wife, Ellen was also listed, as well as Kenneth and Reginald G. who lived at the same address.  In 1941, Kathleen N. was listed as a stenographer at General Motors and as living at the same address.  Kenneth’s name disappeared between 1937-1943, but I didn’t think much of it as I assumed he moved away.  In 1944 however, his name was listed with a new title, RCAF (Royal Canadian Air Force).  In 1945, Kenneth’s name was gone but a new name was added, another Charles.  In 1946, Kenneth was still missing, but Charles had married M. Joyce, and Reginald had married Gertrude.  I kept looking through the rest of the directories and noticed other changes with the family, but Kenneth never reappeared.        

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1944 Directory (Lancaster entries from 1944 Vernon’s City of Oshawa Directory, Internet Archive) and 1946 Directory (Lancaster entries from 1946 Vernon’s City of Oshawa Directory)

George Kenneth Lancaster was born on May 29, 1918 in Birmingham, England.  His parents were Charles and Ellen Lancaster, and he had two brothers, Reginald Graham and Charles George, and one sister, Kathleen.  The family owned and operated the Commercial Hotel from 1936-1975, and changed the name to Lancaster Hotel in 1957.  Kenneth Lancaster attended Oshawa Collegiate & Vocational Institute from 1932-1937 for Junior Matriculation (high school diploma), and from 1937-1938 for a 1-year special commercial certificate. Kenneth was a professional magician and a member of the International Brotherhood of Magicians. His hobbies included skiing, swimming and photography.  He worked as a commercial traveller (travelling salesman) for Carlton Cards in Toronto from 1938 until October 1941 when he was called up to the R.C.A.F.

G.K. Lancaster photo (Photo of George Kenneth Lancaster, submitted by Operation Picture Me on Canadian Virtual War Memorial)

I figured that Kenneth was probably in his early 20s and enlisted to fight in the Second World War.  I assumed he studied and maybe worked at the Lancaster Hotel for a bit before going off on his own and working at Carlton Cards.  His temporary absence from 1937-1943 worried me, but it made sense that he moved or started his training during that time.  Seeing his name again in 1943-1944 was a relief, but I did have a nagging feeling at the back of my mind that something else caused his disappearance. Once I searched his name, “George Kenneth Lancaster,” the first search result I was met with was a page from Canadian Virtual War Memorial.  Flying Officer George Kenneth Lancaster, son of Charles and Ellen Lancaster, was killed in action on June 13, 1944 at the age of 26.  Kenneth is buried at the Poix-de-Picardie Churchyard in France with the rest of the crew.  Their names are Flying Officer John Frederick Wyllie, Flying Officer John Samuel Ritchie, Flying Officer George Kenneth Lancaster, Pilot Officer Douglas Idris Davies, Pilot Officer James Edward Byers, Pilot Officer Mungo William Couper, and Sergeant William Duncan. 

I found a copy of Kenneth’s World War II Record and Service File on Ancestry, and through these I was able to create a more complete picture of his life.  I saw the forms he had filled out, complete with his signature, and one where he listed his hobbies useful to the R.C.A.F. as “professional magician and photography.”  I saw the forms where he listed his father as who to contact in case of causality and his mother as the sole beneficiary of his will.  I saw the forms that confirmed who his siblings were, who his parents were, where he attended school and where he lived.  And finally, I saw the report created concerning his death and the letters sent to his parents notifying them of the renumbering of Kenneth’s grave and awarding their son the Operational Wings and Certificate in recognition of the gallant services rendered by Kenneth. 

I found out that we both attended the same high school, albeit 81 years apart, and lived in Oshawa.  Kenneth was 26 when he died, and many of his crew members were around the same age, which is close to the age of my friends and I.  Even though I did the majority of my research last summer, reviewing it and finding out more information about Kenneth, the crew and his family made me think more about what life was like during the Second World War and how families, like mine and Kenneth’s, would have had to deal with it and the constant stream of loss.  Even though I have no connection to the Lancaster family, I still felt a great deal of sadness upon learning about Kenneth’s death and I cannot imagine what his family must have felt when they learned.  This experience made me realize that you can make connections with individuals even with the barrier of history in between; and even though the hotel is no longer standing, the lives and stories of the people who lived and worked there are still available to us.    

Lancaster Book of Remembrance Page (George Kenneth Lancaster’s page in Oshawa’s Book of Remembrance, Oshawa Public Libraries Heritage Collection)

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Resources consulted:

Ancestry.com. Canada, World War II Records and Service Files of War Dead, 1939-1947 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry Operations, Inc., 2015. Original data: Service Files of the Second World War―War Dead, 1939–1947. Library and Archives Canada, Ottawa, Canada. George Lancaster file, pages 153-210. Accessed from: https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/9145/images/44485_83024005549_0573-00153?treeid=&personid=&hintid=&queryId=17b1eb71bc87746257e717e899cac81f&usePUB=true&_phsrc=kIK8&_phstart=successSource&usePUBJs=true&_gl=1*16ykklw*_ga*MjAwMjk3NTQ2Ny4xNjU5NDQyOTM1*_ga_4QT8FMEX30*MTY1OTQ0MjkzNS4xLjEuMTY1OTQ0MzMwNC4w&_ga=2.22429499.1230264848.1659442937-2002975467.1659442935&pId=202

Canadian Virtual War Memorial – https://www.veterans.gc.ca/eng/remembrance/memorials/canadian-virtual-war-memorial/detail/2847022

Commonwealth War Graves – https://www.cwgc.org/find-records/find-war-dead/casualty-details/2847022/george-kenneth-lancaster/

Discover Historic Oshawa: Lancaster Hotel – http://discoverhistoricoshawa.com/listings/lancaster-hotel/

Find a Grave –
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/56199788/george-kenneth-lancaster
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/233697106/charles-lancaster
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/231977253/reginald-g-lancaster

Graves Registration Report, Commonwealth War Graves – https://www.cwgc.org/find-records/find-war-dead/casualty-details/2847022/george-kenneth-lancaster/#&gid=1&pid=1

Oshawa’s Book of Remembrance, Oshawa Public Libraries Heritage Collection – https://images.ourontario.ca/oshawa/details.asp?ID=3688171&n=1 

Oshawa City Directories –
https://archive.org/details/vernonscityofoshawadirectory1944/page/n145/mode/2up
https://archive.org/details/vernonscityofoshawadirectory1946/page/n171/mode/2up

Profiling: The Cowan Brothers

The Cowan family, including brothers John and William Fredrick Cowan, their mother, and younger siblings, left Ireland for America and landed at the New York pier in 1841. There, they met the father and husband that they had not seen for three long years. Their father, whose name is not known, had left his family and travelled to America searching for a suitable spot of land. With the arrival of the rest of the Cowans, they travelled to Toronto and settled. Sadly, the elder Cowan passed away of typhoid fever soon after their establishment in Canada, leaving his widow and children to survive on their own resources.

John (left) and William (right) Cowan, as appeared in TE Kaiser’s Historic Sketches of Oshawa

The elder Cowan had operated a mercantile business in the family’s home of Fenton, County Tyrone, Ireland. His two eldest sons, John and William, continued in their father’s line of work. They began as clerks in the dry goods firm of Alex Laurie & Co. but soon moved on into the employ of William MacFarlane. Their apprenticeship under the hands of others lasted 15 years before the Cowan brothers decided that they could make a business of their own. Their first shop, a dry goods firm, opened at the southwest corner of Yonge and Richmond Streets in 1856.

Success seemed to come easily, as it did in later life, and the brothers soon expanded their business. They opened two new branches within the next ten years – one in Port Albert, and the other in Oshawa, on King Street.

William was the first of the Cowans to settle in Oshawa. He came, with his wife Susan Groves, to manage the brother’s branch store on King Street in 1861. His older brother John followed four years later, closing their main store in Toronto and moving all of their business to the growing town of Oshawa.  Thus began a business foundation which would encompass the fields of finance and manufacturing and beget some of Oshawa’s major industries.

The Cowan Block, located at present day 13½ to 19½ King Street West, was built around 1865 for the brothers’ growing business. They had several tenants over the years, ranging from various other merchants, to druggists, to dentists. The buildings, which are virtually identical in all respects, except for some ground-level changes, are built in the Italianate style. This architectural style was popular for commercial buildings in Canada during the 1850s and 1860s.

The Cowans became friends with A.S. Whiting, and soon John found himself in a partnership with the American-born manufacturer. The firm of Whiting and Cowan, also known as the Cedar Dale Works, produced scythes, forks and other agricultural implements.

A.S. Whiting Manufacturing Co., from the Oshawa Community Archives

Five years passed before the brothers felt they could tackle a manufacturing business of their own. William retired from the management of the retail business, and John withdrew from the Cedar Dale Works.  Both men  had amassed a considerable  amount of  money during this time, and they now invested in the formation of the Ontario Malleable Iron Co. Ltd. John took up the post of president of the company, with William as vice-president, and stayed as such until his death.

William also became involved in a manufacturing venture of his own. Joining in partnership with J.D. Storie and H. T. Carswell, the trio organized the Oshawa Steam and Gas Fitting Company Limited, known later as Fittings Limited. During this time, the brothers turned their attention to banking. In the early 1870s, the Cowans participated in the formation of the Ontario Loan and Savings Company with the Gibbs brothers; this company, along with the Western Bank, was soon fully transferred into the hands of the Cowan family, caused by the financial downfall of the Gibbs’ fortunes. The Standard Bank, with its head office in Toronto, was soon organized during the same time period. While John concentrated most of his time and effort into Malleable, William became leader of the financial triplet. President of the Standard Bank for 45 years, he also served as a director at the Western Bank. When the two banks were amalgamated in 1909, they both came under full control of the Cowan dynasty.

The brothers each had their particular forte. John concerned himself with the minute details of day-to-day business, while William took care of general policy. While William married and had one son, John remained a bachelor for the rest of his life. He lived with his brother’s family and was a quiet unassuming philanthropist. He served as a trustee of the Children’s Shelter and the Public Library, and he was active on the Oshawa Hospital Board and the Board of Education. He gave generously to various charities in the area. Both he and his brother served as mayor of Oshawa: John in 1887 and William from 1889 to 1894. Both were involved in St. George’s Anglican Church, and William’s house, now known as Cowan House, was give to the church by his son to be used as church offices.

Cowan House, 2016; photographed by OM Staff

John died on April 12, 1915, at the age of 86, and is buried in St. James’ Cemetery in Toronto. William followed his brother three years later, ending the reign of the Cowan brothers in the financial, industrial, and retail heartland of Oshawa. Their name lives on with Cowan Park, located on Olive Avenue.

Cowan Park, October 1999; from the Dowsley Photograph Collection, Oshawa Museum archival collection

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This was originally written as an Oshawa Museum Historical Information Sheet and was edited and adapted for the blog.

References:

Historical Information Sheet: Fittings Limited. Prepared by Kathleen Brown, August 15, 2000. Published by the Oshawa Historical Society.

Historical Information Sheet: Ontario Malleable Iron Co. Ltd. Prepared by Karen Smith, May 8, 1998. Published by the Oshawa Historical Society.

Kaiser, T.E. Historical Sketches of Oshawa. Oshawa: The Reformer Printing and Publishing Co. Ltd, 1921.

Cedardale Works (A.S. Whiting) subject file: Oshawa Community Archives.

Cowan subject file: Oshawa Community Archives

Fitting Limited subject file: Oshawa Community Archives.

Ontario Loan and Savings subject file: Oshawa Community Archives.

Standard Bank subject file: Oshawa Community Archives.

Western Bank subject file: Oshawa Community Archives.

Profiling: Mike Starr

Hon. Michael Starr was born in 1910 as Michael Starchevski, to Ukrainian parents from the western region of Galicia. From Copper Cliff, Ontario, the family eventually moved to Montreal, to Toronto and then to Oshawa in 1921 where his mother had some Ukrainian friends. They settled in the south end of the city, close to factories as well as the Oshawa Creek. Michael attended Cederdale Public School, where his friend group was made up of others with Ukrainian or Eastern European background – many of whom also lived in the same area.

Michael entered the workforce in 1925 as a printer’s devil in order to help support his family (including his five younger siblings). However, his ambition for education remained high and he returned to complete an accelerated course at Oshawa Collegiate Institute (later named O’Neill CVI). This enabled him to work as a cost clerk at Pedlar People Limited, where he would gain increasing responsibilities over the years. As a result of his employer’s suggestion and with his father’s permission, he shortened his last name, Starchevski, to Starr in order for it to be more easily pronounced in English.

In 1933, during the Depression, he married Anne Zaritsky and they managed to live quite comfortably on his salary of just $15.00 per week.  They built a house at 25 Olive Ave. where they raised their son and daughter and continued to reside for the remainder of their lives.

In 1944, after several failed attempts, Starr was elected to the Oshawa City Council as an Alderman.  In the position, he is credited with making the City Board of Works into a modern and efficient department.  After five years on City Council, he sought and was elected as Mayor in 1949 and re-elected to this position in 1951.  During his three terms as Mayor, he oversaw many improvements in the City including the construction of the new municipal office-building, police station, fire hall and sewage disposal plant together with the annexation of a large section of East Whitby Township.  During this time, Mr. Starr managed to continue to work as Sales Manager for the Pedlar People Ltd.

In 1952, he was elected as the Member of Parliament representing the Progressive-Conservative party. In July 1957, Mr. Starr was appointed Minister of Labour in the Diefenbaker government.  This appointment made him the first Canadian of Ukrainian descent to be appointed to the federal Cabinet.   In September 1967, Robert Stanfield appointed Mr. Starr as interim opposition leader of the Party and House Leader until Stanfield took his seat.  In the federal election of 1968, Mr. Starr was defeated by a very narrow margin by Ed Broadbent, later national leader of the New Democratic Party.  With this election, Mr. Starr’s political career in elected politics ended.

The Starchevski family took part in Ukrainian social life in Oshawa, which included the Prosvita Society – a reading association where Michael’s father Matthew served as president. Other organizations were political groups such as the Ukrainian Labour/Farmer Temple and the Canadian Sitch Organization, which all served as centres for cultural activities such as musical and dramatic productions. The Prosvita Hall, for instance, sponsored a Ukrainian Athletic Club which excelled in softball. Mike Starr, the organizer, was willing to play any position and later served as coach and manager. 

The newer generation of Ukrainian immigrants revitalized community institutions, like churches and halls, and established their own. Still, the older community and the newer interacted, with the former helping the latter. Starr, who at this time was serving as Mayor of Oshawa, would welcome newcomers to the city. He would also present them with certificates upon successful completion of their contracts and help with finding other jobs or housing – overall leaving a very positive impression.

Victoria Szeczepanski, another participant in the Museum’s project who emigrated from Poland at this time, had a few remarks about her first impressions of Oshawa. She said the following:

My husband took English lessons at Central Collegiate, where Michael Starr welcomed us to Oshawa. He asked that the citizens of Oshawa treat the newcomers with respect. Some people treated us well, and with respect. Others looked at us as newcomers and would occasionally call us DP.

Looking around at certain landmarks – like the Michael Starr Building or the Michael Starr trail – it is easy to guess at his overall lasting impact on Oshawa. However, when hearing from members of the Ukrainian community, or from other cultural groups, it becomes even clearer. Each political success was considered a success for the whole community, especially since he was the first federal Cabinet Minister of Ukrainian descent. Indeed, his overall contributions to the political landscape – throughout his journey from City Alderman to Mayor to Minister of Labour in the Diefenbaker government, are fondly remembered.

Michael Starr died March 16, 2000 at the age of 89. He is buried at St. Wolodymyr and St. Olha Ukrainian Cemetery, located in south Courtice.

No matter where he was, it was said that Michael Starr was always thinking about the future of Oshawa.  In 1997, he told a story to the archivist for the Oshawa Museum. While driving along Highway 2, Starr said to his wife, “Anne, someday when you are driving through here it will all be lit up with houses and factories and everything.”  She said to him years later, “How in the world did you know this?”

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Much of the text for this article was originally written by summer student, Mia, for a video podcast: Listen to Mia tell the story of Mike Starr here:

Profiling: John Terech

By Lisa Terech, Community Engagement

This is a departure from the usual ‘Profiling’ Series on our blog.  Our past profiles have been for people like James O. Guy, Dr. McKay, Frederick Fowke, and George McLaughlin – typically well known and certainly well-researched and well-written about individuals. With plans and preparations ongoing for our latest feature exhibit, Leaving Home, Finding Home in Oshawa, it made me reflect on my own Polish heritage and roots in our community, so this profile is of someone whose name will likely never be stumbled upon in history books, my great-grandfather, John (Jan) Terech.

John was born in 1885 in Mała Wieś, Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship, Poland, one of five known children born to Vincenty (Wincenty) Terech and Ewa Karwacki (Karwacka). His brother Joseph (Jozef) (1891-1963) resided in Canada for a number of years before ultimately settling in the United States.  One sister, Antonia (1894-1945), married a man named John Novak.  She is laid to rest in St. Catharines, ON.  Sisters Julianna (born 1881), and Sofia (married name Porębska) apparently remained in Poland.

The exact year he arrived in Canada is unknown, but it was likely between 1906 and 1910, settling in Toronto where he met Stella (Stanislava) Urban; they were married on the 23^rd of November, 1912 at St. Stanislaus Kostka Church in Toronto. This church is the oldest Polish parish in Toronto.  While living in Toronto, the family grew but suffered loss. Twins Mary and Josepha were born in 1913, but Josepha died a short two days after her birth; Cecylia was born in March 1915 but died that November; both sisters are buried in Toronto’s Mount Hope Catholic Cemetery. Daughters Anne, Jean, Charlotte (Lottie), and Frances were born in 1916, 1919, 1921, and 1923, respectively, with the family living at 418 Prospect Street, Oshawa, by 1921. By the time their last child, Edward, was born in 1926, John was so pleased that, as family stories go, he was handing out drinks to passers by of 116 Olive Avenue, where the family lived since 1924, because he was overjoyed by the birth of a son. Family stories also state that he was so pleased that he registered the name not as Edward, as my grandfather and his mother believed, but as Stanislaus; Grandpa had his name legally changed to Edward years later.

John, Stella, and family, c. 1921

Stories from my Grandpa and great-aunts were of many happy years living in the Olive Avenue rowhouses, a neighbourhood of Oshawa which, at that time, was heavily settled by eastern European immigrants. The rowhouses were hot in the summer, and some nights were spent by the children sleeping across the road in Cowan Park for relief from the heat. My great-grandparent’s home on Olive was, at that time, a double unit. The size of the home, although still modest, would have been well used by the six children, a few of whom would live in the family home after getting married with their new spouses. In 1947, John, Stella, and Eddie moved to 299 Verdun Road, a short 10-minute walk from the rowhouses.

John worked for Malleable and Fittings, two industries where many eastern European immigrants found employment. Work in these plants were hard and dirty, and John suffered many negative health effects from working in these industries. He reportedly worked until he retired in 1948, and my grandfather stopped his formal education at a young age, instead seeking work to help support the family. Grandpa spent most of his working life at Duplate (later known as PPG), which is where he met my grandmother, Mary, and my step-grandmother, Doreen.

John and Stella received their Certificates of Naturalization in 1929. A cousin shared with me that John (“dziadek – proper Polish but we called him jaja the Western version”) never learned English, although another cousin believed that he did understand the language but preferred conversing in Polish. Stella, “on the other hand self taught herself [English]; she would study the school books that [Lottie] and others brought home.”  John and Stella were active within the local Polish community. Both were involved in Branch 21 of the Polish Alliance of Canada and were supportive of the establishment of St. Hedwig’s parish.

Their Catholic faith was important to them. Before the establishment of St. Hedwig’s and Holy Cross, the family would venture from Olive Avenue to St. Gregory The Great at Simcoe and (today) Adelaide to attend services. Information from St. Hedwig’s notes that by 1928, the Polish community were starting discussions of establishing a Polish Catholic church, and in November 1928, a weekly mass at St. Gregory’s began being held for the Polish community.

John and Stella celebrated their 50^th wedding anniversary in 1962 with a banquet and dance in St. Hedwig’s parish hall. As reported in the Oshawa Times, there was a nuptial mass with vow renewal, greetings presented, toasts, dancing, feasting, and, of course, the singing of ‘Sto Lat, Sto Lat.’

The Oshawa Times, Thursday, November 29, 1962

John passed away in 1964 and Stella died in 1969. Both are laid to rest at Resurrection Catholic Cemetery in Whitby.

Oshawa was often where Displaced Persons settled after World War II – the availability of industries was a draw, but the establishment of communities, churches, and groups like the Polish Alliance increased the appeal of our City. It would be a big, daunting undertaking to leave home and move to a new country, but settling somewhere amongst others who spoke your languages, knew your traditions, and cooked the same food, certainly would have helped with this big life transition. The contributions of those who arrived at the turn of the century and in the following decades helped pave the way for the waves of immigrants who arrived in the late 1940s and onwards.