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Toronto’s Market Gallery will present a
commemorative exhibition almost 200 years after Toronto - then
called the Town of York - was captured and burned by invading
American forces on April 27, 1813. “Finding the Fallen: The
Battle of York Remembered” will run from March 3 to September 8.
The exhibition identifies the Canadian, British, First Nations
and American combatants who died in the battle. Their names are
recorded in a newly commissioned Book of Remembrance and their
sacrifices are brought to life through artifacts,
custom-designed maps and first-person accounts.
“After 200 years of peace, it is time to honour all the
combatants at the Battle of York who lost their lives,” said
Councillor Michael Thompson (Ward 37 Scarborough Centre),
Co-chair of the War of 1812 Bicentennial Commemoration Steering
Committee. “It is also fitting that the exhibition will be the
first of many City programs for the War of 1812 Bicentennial.”
Historian Richard Gerrard led a team of researchers on an
investigative quest through archives, libraries and private
collections in Canada, the United States and England to identify
as many of the fallen combatants as possible.
As a result of that research, funded by a grant from the
Department of Canadian Heritage, 181 names have been inscribed
in a book called “A War of 1812 Book of Remembrance - York,
Upper Canada 1812-1815.” It is the exhibition’s centrepiece.
“Finding the Fallen: The Battle of York Remembered” presents a
rare opportunity to see archeologically discovered artifacts
from the actual battleground. Also on display is a newly
acquired painting.
“For Toronto, the commemoration of the War of 1812 is not about
glorification of war, nor about myth-making,” said Blake
Goldring, Chairman and CEO of AGF Management Ltd. and Co-chair
of the War of 1812 Bicentennial Commemoration Steering
Committee. “It’s about honouring those who fulfilled their
duties in that long ago conflict, making it possible for us to
exist as a nation today. The exhibition is a moving reminder of
the realities of war.”
This exhibition is one of more than a hundred inspiring
bicentennial commemorative events to be staged in Toronto as
part of the War of 1812 Bicentennial Commemoration in 2012 and
2013. In the two centuries following the war, Toronto has grown
to become Canada’s leader in finance, commerce, education,
transportation and manufacturing. From a garrison town of 700 to
a modern metropolis of 2.7 million, Toronto has earned a global
reputation as a progressive urban centre that celebrates its
past and works for a better future.
More information about the City’s bicentennial program is
available at
http://www.toronto.ca/1812.
The Market Gallery is a program of City of Toronto’s Cultural
Services. It presents exhibitions dedicated to Toronto’s art,
culture and history and offers educational programs for school
groups and adults. Located on the second floor of South St.
Lawrence Market, 95 Front St. E., the gallery is open Tuesday to
Friday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Saturday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
More information about the gallery is available at
http://www.toronto.ca/culture/the_market_gallery.htm.
Toronto is Canada’s largest city and sixth largest government,
and home to a diverse population of about 2.7 million people.
Toronto’s government is dedicated to delivering customer service
excellence, creating a transparent and accountable government,
reducing the size and cost of government and building a
transportation city. For information on non-emergency City
services and programs, Toronto residents, businesses and
visitors can dial 311, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
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