Past TOURS / / Women of the Ward - Digital Walking Tour
The Women of The Ward walking tours explore Toronto’s “first immigrant neighbourhood.” Breathing life into a lesser known chapter in Toronto’s past through theatrical presentations and an animated talk led by John Lorinc/Tatum Taylor. Experience the Ward through the lens of four resilient women whose stories contribute to the rich history of this former Toronto neighbourhood.
Below, you will find a digital version of the tour depicting the lives of several important women from The Ward: Cecilia Jane Reynolds, Elizabeth Neufeld, Annie Whelan and Jean Lumb. On a superimposed map of St.John’s Ward published in 1910, you are able to view the streets of The Ward—as well as some of the local landmarks—as clickable items on the map. You can follow the trajectory of the tour by following the sidebar menu on the right, and listen to recordings of about the lives of the women, as well as monologues performed by the actors themselves.
Click on the banner below to begin your walking tour.
Tour Introduction
The Performances
Cecilia Jane Reynolds escaped captivity as a slave in the American South and, in this riveting monologue, looks back at her escape and her life before freedom in Canada.
A young American social worker, Elizabeth Neufeld was the executive director of Central Neighbourhood House and advocated for the rights of children and the poor in The Ward.
Annie Whelan was born in Ireland in 1848 and moved to Canada at the age of twelve.Annie was one of a number of bootleggers in The Ward and ran a speakeasy during the temperance movement in the 1870s.
Owner of the Kwong Chow restaurant, Lumb ran one of the original “big four” Chinese restaurants in the 1950s, and purpotedly introduced Dim Sum to the City of Toronto.
