Certainly when we think of historical sites, the general population (including History enthusiast/scholars) would picture an old and grand city such as London or Rome, and stop rarely to think about the rich history that exist in our own hometowns. Mississauga is one such hidden gem.
The amazing things I’ve discovered through my research at Heritage Mississauga is the importance of local history, and it has changed my entire perspective of the city. Initially, I began my research on connection the city of Mississauga to the Confederation of 1867, but almost immediately I found out that Mississauga did not exist in 1867 but was rather a collective of small villages. Mississauga was originally a county called ToroAsnto Township and composed of towns that are very much alive today, such as Streetsville, Cooksville, Port Credit, Meadowvale, and all the other names Mississaugans are so familiar with. These towns, prior to its unification, were all unique from one another, through their style of governance, what they produced, and of course their wealth. Each had its own specialized industry, producing goods such as textiles, apples, timber, and flour. When I looked closely into the history of each part of Mississauga, I realized the city cannot be thought of as a collective entity, but rather is composed of extremely diverse people who all have their own stories and histories within the city.
This interest in local history led me to an important Canadian, who was one of the fathers of Confederation, and a former resident of Cooksville. Sir William Pearce Howland was a member of the Canadian Parliament and a key figure in the creation of Canada as a country. However, my research on Howland also led me down a path of unfortunate discovery that led me to realize that the government of Mississauga has largely overlooked its own historical significance. The current Cooksville and home of Howland now is one of the most visually unappealing sites in the entire city. The intersection of Huontario and Dundas is filled with rundown shops, unfinished buildings, weeds, and recently a charred building from a fire that was never properly dealt with. That intersection also happens to be the location of an old park created in honor of Howland, but is now an empty strip of dying vegetation that sits across from an undeveloped condo site. Along with Heritage Mississauga, we work on attempting to restore Cooksville to its original glory, starting with the battle with city hall to restore Howland Park and restore a buried piece of Mississauga’s history.
If that was not enough to convince you of the exciting history of Mississauga. You should also know that there are still people actively trying to preserve the city’s history, and what better way to commemorate that than celebration? Every October, Heritage Mississauga hosts a “Haunted Mississauga” event, and this year it took place at the Streetsville Cemetery at St Joseph’s Church, where adults and children could come and watch reenactments of Timothy Street, the founder of Streetsville, on a spooky Halloween night.
As I dig deeper into my Confederation research, the more I’ve come to appreciate my city’s history and culture, and there are 101 reasons why every Mississaugan should too.