A treasure trove of incredible lives lived.
â RICK MERCER, comedian and author
Muir sets out to restore the faces of women who worked and struggled in nineteenth-century Toronto. A fascinating read.
â WARREN CLEMENTS, author and publisher
Emphasizes the enormously influential role women had in laying the groundwork for life in the city today.
â DR. ROSE A. DYSON, author of Mind Abuse: Media Violence and Its Threat to Democracy
Women in nineteenth-century Toronto were integral to the life of the growing city. They contributed to the cityâs commerce and were owners of stores, factories, brickyards, market gardens, hotels, and taverns; as musicians, painters, and writers, they were a large part of the cityâs cultural life; and as nurses, doctors, religious workers, and activists, they strengthened the cityâs safety net for those who were most in need.
Their stories are told in this wide-ranging collection of biographies, the result of Muirâs research on early street directories and city histories, personal diaries, and other historical works. Muir references over four hundred women, many of whom are discussed in detail, and describes the work they undertook during a period of great change for Toronto.