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Nominated name: JOHN MCINTOSH LANE

Nominated by:
Jeannette Mazzocato

Suggested Location: City Lane Number: #1701
Described Location: Bound by: Christie St., Barton Ave., Clinton Street and Follis Ave. Runs East-west between Christie and Clinton Streets.
At Christie looking east At Clinton looking west

Rationale and References:

Prepared by Ms. Mazzocato:

Proposal: That the Laneway immediately north of Barton Avenue between Christie and Clinton Streets be named either "John McIntosh Lane" or McIntosh Apple Lane" in honour of the founder of the McIntosh Apple.

At 138 Barton Avenue lives Bonnie Gibbons whose ancestor was the McIntosh who gave his name to the McIntosh apple. This apple, with its distinctive red and green colouring, traces its roots to a tree found growing wild in 1796 on a farm in the eastern Ontario hamlet of Dundela, about 70 km southeast of Ottawa. John McIntosh was a United Empire Loyalist who was clearing his land when he discovered the tree and cultivated cuttings or grafts, out of which grew generations of McIntosh trees. The more than 300,000 McIntosh apple trees now growing in North America, and all the others in the world, are descendants of this single tree. The last-known first-generation graft taken from the original McIntosh apple tree died in 2011. John McIntosh was Bonnie's great-great-great-great grandfather.

The McIntoshs have lived in the Toronto area for 3 generations and in Seaton Village for about 25 years. Bonnie's grandfather, Clinton Everett McIntosh, first had a farm in the Downsview area. Every fall he would go to Dundela to pick up a barrel of apples for the family. When he had to sell the farm, the family moved to Spadina Avenue, and finally to Seaton Village in about 1936. Three generations; her grandfather, her mother and herself worked at the Clinton Hotel. When Bonnie was 27 years old, she married W.A. Gibbons and moved to her present home at 138 Barton Avenue. Her mother (born McIntosh) lived there with her until her death in 1992.

Bonnie celebrated her 90th birthday on Dec 18, 2012. She had two sons, one of whom was killed just north of Christie Pits at the age of 12. She has also survived the other son. She has two grandchildren and 4 great-grandchildren. She said she would feel "honoured" to have her ancestor commemorated with a name in the laneway.

The Provincial and Federal Plaques are both in a park in Dundela, on the north side of Road 18, just west of the centre of the village. The village appears to be about halfway between Brockville and Cornwall.

Further Information:
A McIntosh Street (Scarborough) and a McIntosh Ave.(Etobicoke) already exist in Toronto, so a Lane with this name might not be acceptable to the city, for fear of dispatch problems for the Emergency Services staff. However using "John McIntosh Lane" it is hoped, will be acceptable to the City's Transportation Dept.