History Archives - Birch Cliff News

29 Mar 2021

The day Birch Cliff almost burned to the ground

October 15, 2021
By Hedy Korbee
1910, fire

Today in History: March 29, 1910. A 200-acre brushfire came close to razing Birch Cliff, as reported by the Toronto Evening Telegram 111 years ago today.

11 Nov 2020

History, News

Remembering Birch Cliff’s war dead

November 11, 2020
By Hedy Korbee
Harold Melville Tarver, Remembrance Day, veterans, World War II

From insurance salesman to WW II Flying Officer with the “Demon Squadron”, Birch Cliff”s Harold Melville Tarver made the ultimate sacrifice during WWII.

23 Aug 2020

History, News

Birch Cliff honours military veteran

Robert Adams was the guest of honour at his own personal Warriors’ Day parade, riding through the streets of Birch Cliff in a military jeep, accompanied by bagpipers, drummers, a colour party, military vehicles and a spontaneous crowd of supporters.

21 May 2019

Birch Cliff Public School, History, News

Remembering John Belcher

October 15, 2021
By Hedy Korbee
Birch Cliff Public School, history, John Belcher, teacher

By Hedy Korbee John Belcher, a beloved former Birch Cliff Public School teacher who influenced a generation of students, died on May 17 at the end of a courageous journey with cancer. He was 69. Belcher began...

11 Nov 2018

History, News

2019 historical calendars

November 11, 2018
By Hedy Korbee
calendars, Cliffside, Fallingbrook, hunt club, Ray Cochrane

Realtor Ray Cochrane's historical calendar is quickly becoming an annual favourite, and a must-have for history buffs living in the Scarborough Bluffs. The 2019 edition of Cochrane's popular calendar celebrates the rich histories of three...

17 Nov 2017

History, News

Calendars celebrate Bluffs history

October 15, 2021
By Hedy Korbee
2018 calendar, Cliffside, Fallingbrook, hunt club, Ray Cochrane

If you’re interested in local history, you want to get a copy of the free 2018 calendar being distributed by real estate agent Ray Cochrane. The calendar celebrates the rich history of communities in the...

12 Oct 2016

History, Real Estate

From farmland to suburbia

October 18, 2021
By Hedy Korbee
Kalmar Heights, Kingsbury Park, real estate, Scarborough, subdivision

Have you ever wondered when your house was built and what it might have cost back in the day when Birch Cliff was first being settled? Well, now you can get an idea thanks to...

05 Sep 2016

History

Today in History: 1992

Sept. 5, 1992 marked the end of public health scare at Birch Cliff Public School that had parents so frightened that many kept their children home from school. Twenty-four years ago today a contracting firm...

02 Sep 2016

History

Today in History: 1999

On Sept. 2, 1999 residents of Birch Cliff learned that the City of Toronto planned to open a homeless shelter at 1673 Kingston Rd., just west of Birchmount Rd., through an article published in...

10 Aug 2016

History

Today in History: 1918

October 12, 2016
By Hedy Korbee
A.H. Mitchell Store, Birch Cliff post office

It can be interesting to look at the kinds of stories that newspapers published a century ago. On Aug. 9, 1918, The Toronto Daily Star ran a short piece commemorating the fact that the Birch Cliff Post...