Legion Branch 11 says goodbye to building at 9 Dawes Rd. in advance of upcoming demolition
By ALAN SHACKLETON
This will be the last weekend for the Royal Canadian Legion Branch 11 on Dawes Road for many years.
To mark the occasion, there will be an open house starting at 2 p.m. on Saturday, March 30, for any residents and members who want to take one last look at and through the 9 Dawes Rd. building before it is demolished and replaced by a condominium building.
However, this weekend does not mark the end of Branch 11 as part of the Royal Canadian Legion. It is just goodbye to the current building.
Once the new condo is built, Branch 11 will have a large new space on the ground floor and second floor to continue its service to Canadian veterans and the community as a whole.
It’s going to be a number of years, though, before that new condo is completed and Branch 11 can move back into its space on Dawes Road. While waiting for the new space to be finished, Branch 11 is being hosted by the members of Royal Canadian Legion Branch 22 on Woodbine Avenue.
Branch 11 has called the Dawes Road building just south of Danforth Avenue home since 1971. It is a big building that has hosted more community and social events than anyone can remember. There’s a large main hall with a stage on the ground floor and a big clubroom (bar) for members with its own entrance on the lower level that backs out onto a small patio and the parking lot. Offices are upstairs in the building.
Prior to opening at 9 Dawes Rd., Branch 11 had been located at the corner of Dawes Road and Coleman Avenue (one block north of Danforth Avenue) since 1927. For almost 10 years before that though, a group of First World War veterans from the immediate area had established the East Toronto Branch of the Great War Veterans Association of Canada.
“During the early years meetings were held in individual members’ houses and subsequently at Secord Public School,” reads the Branch 11 history. “In January 1924 the original McPherson Presbyterian Church building at 65 Dawes Road was purchased for $9,500.00. The first meeting at the new hall – renamed the East Toronto Veterans Memorial Hall – was held on November 11, 1924. On September 17, 1927 the corner stone for a two storey extension at the rear of the old church building was laid by the Hon. Sir Edward Kemp. The civic address for this extension was 103 Coleman Avenue.”
The 1927 cornerstone for the Canadian Legion Post 11 B.E.S.L. (British Empire Service League) building that was located at the corner of Coleman Avenue and Dawes Road.
In February of 1927, the Branch was granted a charter as “East Toronto (Ontario No. 11) Branch of the Canadian Legion, B.E.S.L. (British Empire Service League). In 1952, the designation Royal was given to Canadian Legions and they have since been referred to as the Royal Canadian Legion with Branches in communities across the country.
Coleman and Dawes was where the Branch remained until the move south of the Danforth to 9 Dawes Rd. However, plans for a new bigger branch were in the works long before the building of the 9 Dawes Rd. location.
“In 1964 an agreement was signed with Mr. Harry Densburg, owner of the Danforth Hotel to purchase the property at 9 Dawes Road, formerly the British Empire Coal Co. After prolonged negotiations with the city, planning permission was obtained to build a three storey structure at 9 Dawes Road,” reads the Branch 11 history.
“The corner stone was laid on November 14, 1970 by Comrade Doug McDonald, Provincial President, and Ontario Command of the Royal Canadian Legion. The corner stone of the original building was incorporated into the new building. The official opening and dedication of the new building by Zone Padre Wm. S. Watt was held on May 1, 1971 under the Presidency of Lew Killick.”
Other dignitaries that attended the opening and dedication of the 9 Dawes Rd. building in 1971 included Toronto Mayor William Dennison and local Alderman Tom Wardle.
Jeff Paulin, President of Branch 11, said the cornerstones from both of the previous Branch 11 buildings will be incorporated into the new site when it is built. Paulin also assured members that all of the memorabilia that the Branch has, including paintings photos, plaques, awards, uniforms and military equipment will be kept safely in storage until Branch 11 returns to its new home.
Beach Metro Community News met with a number of members including current and former Branch 11 presidents to talk about some of their memories of the building on 9 Dawes Rd. prior to the keys being handed over and its ultimate demolition.
What many of them remembered was the busy days and nights in the clubroom in the 1970s and 1980s, and just how much the majority of people back then smoked.
“The smoke was just terrible,” remembered June Smith. “You could not see from one end of the room to the other.”
The clubroom would also be packed full of members, and Doug Smith said he would go out to get some fresh air from the smoke and then have trouble getting back in.
In those days, there will were still Branch members alive who were Second World War (or even First World War) veterans and for many of them smoking was the same as breathing. During the First World War, schools would organize campaigns to buy cigarettes for soldiers – donating their pennies to such things as the Children’s Cigarette Fund.
In the 1990s, Ontario and other provinces started banning smoking in public places such as bars and restaurants and it is now possible to go out for an evening and be able to see across a room clearly and not come home smelling like an ashtray.
Like most other Legions (and taverns in general), the clubroom at Branch 11 had a clear divide as to who could be where. The veterans had their own area and you had to be one to be able to sit there. Also, there was an area for ladies and their escorts, and an area for the women’s auxiliary. Many taverns were once also separated between the area for men and the area for ladies and escorts (thought there was not a special section just for veterans).
“The old school had their ways and that was the way it was back then,” said Joe Calderone. “If I went the wrong way or went to the wrong place, I’d hear about it.”
However, the modern Royal Canadian Legion is nothing like that. Membership is open to all, there are no separated areas in the clubrooms and of course there’s no smoking.
The focus, however, does remain on supporting veterans and playing an active role in the community.
Branch 11 is extremely active in those roles, supporting numerous charities including those supporting younger veterans facing homelessness or unemployment issues.
“We have a Veterans Service Officer who is there to provide help for those needing it,” said Paulin.
Branch 11 also holds public speaking contests for young people; Remembrance Day essay and art contests; the Poppy Campaign, and a Veterans Week display for school children to visit. That will be continuing while they are hosted at Branch 22.
Also continuing will be the Ulster Accordion Band which is connected to Branch 11. The band has a history going back more than 70 years and takes part in both the Branch 11 Remembrance Day parade and the Remembrance Day service at the Beach cenotaph in Kew Gardens.
Over the years Paulin said Branch 11 has received wonderful support from local politicians including former East York Mayor Michael Prue; former Beaches-East York Councillor Janet Davis; former Beaches-East York MP Maria Minna; and current Beaches-East York representatives Brad Bradford (councillor); Mary-Margaret McMahon (MPP): and Nathaniel Erskine-Smith (MP).
June Smith remembered that Prue was famous for making banana bread for the annual Christmas bake sale that was extremely popular with those attending.
“He would come over with the banana bread and it was still warm from the oven. People were waiting for it and it would be gone like that,” she said.
The Royal Canadian Legion Branch 11 at 9 Dawes Rd. just south of Danforth Avenue.
Those who want to remember the fun times at 9 Dawes Rd., and look forward to them again in the coming years, are welcome at the March 30 open house.
For more information on Branch 11, please visit the website at https://rcl11.com/
