Cities all over the world are undergoing radical changes in their built environment. Political and environmental ideologies and technological advancements of the modern world put pressure on the social and physical environs that have created and held local communities together since they were first built. Preserving parts of this urban history helps to provide a reference point form where a city has grown from and where it can grow to, giving a unique insight into the lives of local people that have helped to shape that very city. However, the historical importance of the local architecture and commitment of the local community to maintaining its identity are often overlooked at the panning and development stages for property redevelopment or gentrification. Therefore the built heritage of a city, district, or neighbourhood is an important element of what give that area a sense of community. Previous generations have often permitted irreversible changes to buildings of historical significance, leading to the establishment of irresponsible precedents for future generations. A prime example of this is "Foresters Hall" on the corner of Dundas and English Streets, in London, Ontario, which underwent a dramatic transformation sometime after 1937.
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| Foresters Hall 1937 |
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| Foresters Hall 2012 |
After the Second World War a change in economic thinking in addition to a radical change in building style and design led to significant changes to the street scape. This was followed by advances in building material changes within the urban sphere in the 1960s which often resulted in the segregation of communities, the appearance of residential tower blocks accompanied by large parking lot where small local businesses and communities once lived. It is this removal of the original and irreplaceable architecture and sometimes a disregard for a rich historic, social and commercial background that warrants preservation for future generations. Built heritage includes buildings, structures, and sites that contribute to an understanding of a particular community's heritage, and therefore must be valued for their representation of that heritage. Built heritage may reveal architectural, cultural, or social-political patterns of history, or may be associated with specific events or people who have shaped the history of local communities, cities, provinces and even countries.
The area of study for this project is a district of the city of London, Ontario, now know as Old East Village (henceforth OEV.) OEV has a vibrant history spanning over 130 years. Originally, incorporated in 1874 as London East, the area was an industrial community that had its origins in a foundry established in 1856 by Murray Anderson, London's first mayor. Imperial Oil was founded here in 1880 which ignited the development of the early refinery industry, the establishment of the railways and subsequent related industries. London East became an economic engine for the city of London. It was amalgamated into the city of London in 1885, but OEV still retains an independent nature and a strong sense of community as a neighbourhood. As such OEV has received much planning attention and study from groups such at the Old East Village Community Association, Old East Village Business Improvement Area, City of London, Planners Action Team, Ontaio Professional Planners Institute, Nexus Architects, and individuals such as Michael Evens and Virginia Sauvé. The research and studies resulted in the Old East Heritage Conservation District Conservation and Design Guidelines. The various reports and studies propose to re-structure and enhance traffic flow and street-scape, and present various options for funding to revitalize, restore and rejuvenate Dundas Street East's side variety of buildings. However some buildings have undergone a radical face-lift. For example 782-786 Dundas Street has received a twenty-first century makeover akin to "bulk" store designs.
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| 782-786 Dundas Street, 2003 |
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| 782-786 Dundas Street, 2012 |
This project examines the nature of change that took place along Dundas Street East from Adelaide Street to Rectory Street architectually, socially, and economically. By studying the City Directories, photographs, and previously published research on Dundas Street East, this project will combine the many individual sources and present them in a way that is accessible to the general public through the internet. It is hoped that his small study will provide some impetus to extend the boundary beyond Rectory Street to include the entirety of Dundas Street East in OEV and highlight some of the key people and businesses that lived in OEV.
Data Sources & Collection
The majority of the sources and data used in this project has been created and compiled between 1996 and 2006 through research and studies of Old East London by numerous people and were primarily available online through the City of London website. All of the mapping and the Fire Insurance Plans of London came through the hard work of Don Lafreniere through this intensive research into London in 1881.
- Eveans, Michael. "Resources for exploring the history of the Dundas Street East Commercial Corridor from 604 Dundas Street to 1050 Dundas Street on the North Side (Adelaide to Dorinda), and 609 Dundas Street to 971 Dundas Street on the South Side (Adelaide to Egerton)." 2005
- This intensively detailed document provided a concise and comprehensive study of the people who inhabited and worked in OEV from pre 1886 to 1985 relying on the City Directories of London.
- 1881 (revised 1888) Charles E. Goad & Co. Fire Insurance Plans for the City of London
- The 1881 Fire Insurance plans have been extensively used and have been georectified in ArcGIS thoroughly. They provide a good base point with which to establish a consistency in the street numbering and any ambiguities that occurred from references to buildings that were demolished post 1900.
- 1912 (revised 1915) Charles E. Goad & Co. Fire Insurance Plans for the City of London
- The 1912 Fire Insurance Plans provided a snap shot between 1881 and 1929 as they helped to clarify inconsistencies in addresses and revealed new buildings and street numbering that were established by 1929.
- 1912 (revised 1929) Underwriters' Survey Bureau Fire Insurance Plans for the City of London
- The 1929 Fire Insurance Plans were also geo-rectified and provided the major source of street address cross-referencing with the City Directories and helped to clarify any ambiguities in the raw data created by new street address numbers and the change in Dundas Street's physical and urban environment.
- London City Street Directories
- The street shape files had already been created in Arc GIS by Don Lafreniere through his extensive research. By combining the shapefiles created from the London City Street Directories it was possible to set up the Dundas Street FIP and then geo-rectify that information to give a base point with which to map out the street addresses for 1929.
- Dundas Street North and Dundas Street South shapefiles
- The two shapefiles were created individually, one for the North side of Dundas Street and the other for the South side. This enabled research to be conducted independently of each other. By digitizing each address point in ArcGIS, a point was placed at the front of each address with second story addresses being set slightly behind the main address. In all cases the point were placed at the front door as closely as possible.
- 1929 Dundas Street Shapefile
- The completed 1929 Dundas Street shapefile was created by joining the Dundas Street North shapefile and the Dundas Street South shapefile together. This file created a comprehensive list of buildings on both sides of Dundas to Rectory Street. The data provides information on who lived and worked in the buildings and how the architectural style was modified or disappeared over time between 1929 and 2011.
Methods
Immediately to the East of the Village Core is the Village Annex, which continues on Dundas Street and ends at Rectory Street. The revitalization plan recognized the Village Annex as not as cohesive an area as the Core, with commercial buildings frequently interrupted by residential structures and vacant lots, but it was seen to have future growth potential dependant on the success of growth in the Core. The Annex is also anchored on the South side by the Aeolian Hall at the corner of Dundas and Rectory, which makes it an identifiable stopping point. The Core and Village Annex therefore form the natural boundaries for this project as they are the main focus for the revitalization of the commercial area of OEV.
Numerous factors come into consideration when choosing which historical year to highlight for the project. Initially, the required time period had to be significant enough to highlight the appropriate architectural heritage of OEV and to be of historical interest, not only to those directly involved in the revitalization process but to the community as well. Choosing the year also had to reflect not only the buildings that still remain, but also emphasize some of the architectural treasures that had already been lost. Since this was meant to be an account not only of the current architectural state of the buildings, but the past as well, it was advantageous to select a period from which enough photographic evidence was available to note the changes in commercial façades. From a data collection and technical perspective, it was also important to have accurate primary documentation. Thus the 1929 fire insurance plans of the City of London, as well as the City Directories were important sources to consider when making this decision. The late 1920's were also a period of change economically as they saw the end of a prosperous period before the disastrous tock market crash and subsequent depression in the 1930's.
ArcGIS Online was chosen as the platform for disseminating the architectural and historical data to the public. This project was not only intended to provide a snapshot of the OEV commercial corridor in 1929 and how it has changed for those involved in research or revitalization of the area, but it was also intended to be interactive and of interest to the general public. ArcGIS Online is a user friendly program with which you can share content, create interactive maps, and publish and share them in a secure 'cloud'. The unique maps created with this program can be shared in multiple ways, including customizable ArcGIS Online home pages, embedding the program within a separate website, or in a custom application. With these capabilities, the data collected for this project could easily be used to create a historic walking tour of the OEV, as recommended in the Old East Heritage Conservation District Study.[2]
Conclusions
Old East Village, or more specifically Dundas Street East, has the historical potential that would enhance the urban fabric of London. The possibilities are there to showcase how an area of a city that has a diverse urban landscape yet still maintains its own identity can be developed and regenerated to balance new urban growth, while maintaining a distinct historical reference and strong heritage foundation. This part of London provides a unique perspective to the entire growth of the city with its diverse economic growth and local architectural diamonds. The Planners Action Team (PACT) has been collaborating since 2001 in regards to the revitalization of OEV and have issued proposals to help hone their approach to a huge project that will not only require very careful thought and planning, but also a tight relationship with the community.
Although the team is made up of a large section of the community and they bring a wide diversity of skills to the table there are some issues that have come to light through the completion of this study:
- Any new development needs to take into account the rhythm of the street and its architectural and community history. Providing a basic outline based on modern fundamental architectural principles will not create the effect or urban architectural quality of building that this area deserves.
- Historic buildings, where allocated, need to be preserved properly with respected care and attention they deserve.
- Any new buildings should be wisely and architecturally pleasing to the street-scape with the use of modern ideas and materials. They should be open to community scrutiny, as often modern architecture is built with no regard to the community.
- Any building signage that is not in compliance with the theme of the street should be removed, specifically where there are heritage buildings beneath.
- The ideas of re-creating Old East should also consider the local communities income structure. Building just to drive up property taxes or to force low income families to re-locate is not justifiable.
- The London Advisory Committee on Heritage (LACH) should be consulted on how to proceed with historical designation, evaluation and re-gentrification.
- Where appropriate local firms should be used to renovate or re-build the structural and cosmetic changes proposed by planning groups.
This project has provided a valuable insight into how a street functions economically, socially, and physically within its environs and how that very street has contributed to the growth of London in its urbanity and architecture. In order to compliment the history that this street provides, great care and attention should reflected in the architecture of the proposed new developments and how it influences the spatial control of both its internal and external environment. It would be catastrophic if Dundas Street East became part of modern 'suburbia' resulting in a complete disregard for the people who helped mould and develop Old East Village into the vibrant urban setting it has always been.
[1] Planners Action Team, Ontario Planners Institute, Re-establishing Value: A Plan for the Old East Village, (April, 2003), p. 25.
[2] Michael Baker, Stantec, Nexus Architects. Old East Heritage Conservation District Study: Final Report, (October, 2004), 71.
