30 



CA A' A D/A X HO A' TICi'L TURLST. 



Wm. Allan, father of the Hon. Geo. \V. 

 Allan ; the late Hon. Johvi Henry 

 Dunne, Receiver-General ; the late 

 Chief Justice Sir Wm. Campbell : the 

 late Bishop Strachan, and others. In 

 1830 he purchased, from the Rev. Jas. 

 Beatty, the old homestead at Streets- 

 ville, previously occupied by his father, 

 a portion of which he cleared and im- 

 proved. In 1837 he located perman- 

 ently in Toronto, leasing Russell Abbey 

 Square, bounded by Caroline, now 

 iSherbourne, King, Princess and Front 

 Streets, with all the buildings thereon, 

 using the ground for the growing of 

 shrubs, flowers, vegetables, etc. He 

 soon after established himself in busi- 

 ness as a grocer and seed merchant. 

 His first stock of seeds was brought 

 from London, P^ngland. In 1838 the 

 Gas Company erected their works just 

 south of the premises occupied by him, 

 and his store was the first building in 

 the city lighted with gas, crowds com- 



ing to view the new illuminant. He 

 subsequently transferred his business 

 to Yonge Street upon the present site 

 of the Bank of Commei'ce, where he re- 

 mained until 1845, when the city pur- 

 chased the property for the purpose of 

 opening up Oolborne Street, paying him 

 the sum of $5,000 in corporation de- 

 bentures. He then leased twenty acres 

 east of the Don river for a period of 

 21 years, where he began business as a 

 nurseryman, florist and gardener. He 

 sub.sequently purchased this and ad- 

 joining properties to meet the require- 

 ments of his business which increased 

 most rapidly. Our subject is at the 

 present time one of the oldest horticul- 

 turists in the Dominion, and has been 

 an active member of horticultural and 

 agiicultural societies for many years, 

 and is a life member and director of the 

 Horticultural Society and Botanical 

 Gardens of Toronto. During the 43 

 years that he has been established in 



