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Nominated name: Cream Top LANE

Nominated by: Ed Janiszewski for the Community History Project

Suggested Location: City Lane Number: #602
Described Location: Runs south from Dupont St. to lanes #0602 and #0603, first lane east of Manning Ave.

Looking south from Dupont St. Looking north from Lane # 0601-# 0603
Rationale and References:

From the files of the Community History Project:
To commemorate the many Dairies that served Toronto from this area. Willard's Cream Top Dairy, operated at 588-602 Dupont Street from 1925-1928, as a dairy division of Willard's Chocolates Ltd. In 1929 it was bought out by Silverwood's Dairies Ltd. A 1913 Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Toronto listed other local dairies as: Acme Dairy, 21 Essex St. (later, Acme Farmers Dairy at Walmer and Bridgman Sts.) Richardson's Brothers, 85 Yarmouth Rd., Walmer Dairy, 179 Kendal Ave., and Briar Hill Dairy, 314 Dupont St.

Willards had held the Cream Top bottle distribution rights for Ontario from the Cream Top Bottle Corporation of Albany New York which was the bottle's originator. Silverwood's Dairies had many dairies in Ontario but only in 1928 did it partner with Carruthers Whole Milk Dairy Company of Davenport Road to acquire the ice cream and dairy departments of Willard's Chocolates Ltd. and entered the Toronto market. Carruthers Silverwood's Dairy Company (becoming Silverwood's Dairies Ltd in 1936) operated out of the Dupont plant until 1983. The 98 year old structure was sold and is no longer extant. Silverwood's eventually took over the Mac' Milk Store enterprise, Borden's Dairies, and the Baskin Robbins ice cream franchise. In the 1980's Silverwood's was itself taken over by Ault Foods Ltd. a division of John Labatt Ltd.

Further Information:

See: When Milk Came in Bottles: A History of Toronto Dairies Paperback - 1997 by Dave;Marchant, Bob Thomas (Author). Toronto Star pages courtesy of Vintage Toronto -Dairies of Toronto Website.