Accession Number
1998-6-2
Source
Archival Accessions
Accession Number
1998-6-2
Material Format
graphic material
Physical Description
18 photographs : b&w
Date
1934-1984
Scope and Content
This accession consists of eighteen black-and-white photographs that document Sol Shiner and Esther Shiner. They include early photographs of Sol Shiner and his friends and family as well as photographs of Esther Shiner during her political campaign.
Custodial History
Records were donated by Sol Shiner.
Administrative History
Esther Shiner was born in Toronto during the early 1930s. She graduated from Harbord Collegiate and completed a BSc at the University of Toronto. She married Sol Sheiner in 1947 and together they had four children. Sol operated a fur-cleaning and storage business, and Esther worked as a housewife during the early years.
In 1971, she became a driving force in the Go Spadina Committee, which fought to extend the Spadina Expressway. In 1972, she decided to run for office for City Council and won. She remained in office from 1972 until her death in 1987. During that time, she was responsible for having the Spadina Expressway re-named the William R. Allen Expressway. She also re-launched her Go Spadina Committee in 1986. In turn, she also campaigned to reduce the legal age of drinking in Ontario, for safer bumpers on Toronto street cars, and to include photographs of drivers on Ontario licenses. By the end of her career, she had attained the position of North York senior controller and deputy mayor
Descriptive Notes
Associated material note: Detailed documentation of Esther Shiner’s life and political career may be found at the City of Toronto Archives within Fonds 36, the Esther Shiner fonds, which contains over 10 m of textual and other records and includes several hundred photographs
Name Access
Mandolin Orchestra.
Ronald Propas.
Cantor Kirshblum.
Rabbi Schild.
Adath Israel.
Spadina.
Baycrest Hospital
Streetcar.
Allen Road.
Paul Anka.
Jerry Grafstein.
Mel Lastman.
Marilyn Lastman.
Engelbert Humperdink.
Huck Shiner.
King Edward School.
Roches Point.
Hyman Shiner.
Places
Belle Ewart (Ont.)
Source
Archival Accessions
Part Of
Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care fonds
Level
Fonds
ID
Fonds 14
Source
Archival Descriptions
Part Of
Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care fonds
Level
Fonds
Fonds
14
Material Format
textual record
graphic material
object
Date
1917-2011
Physical Description
2.82 m of textual records and other material
Admin History/Bio
As early as 1916 the Ezras Noshem Society (a mutual benefit society for Jewish women) started to raise funds to purchase and renovate what would become The Toronto Jewish Old Folks' Home (Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care’s forerunner) after its members recognized the need for a home in Toronto where the Jewish elderly could receive kosher meals and communicate with staff in their own language. Property at 31 Cecil Street was purchased in 1917 and sometime between September 1918 and January 1920 the Home officially opened there. The Home was run by a small staff and the women of Ezras Noshem who volunteered their time to make beds, cook kosher meals, do laundry and sponsor fundraising events. By 1938 the Home had expanded into its neighboring houses at 29, 33, and 35 Cecil Street and was caring for 115 residents. It provided residents with synagogue services, a hospital ward and social activities. At this time the Home also became a member of the United Jewish Welfare Fund.
In 1946, the need for a larger and more modern building prompted a fundraising campaign, which was headed by Abe Posluns, to purchase and build a new facility. In December 1954, the new building opened at 3650 Bathurst Street and consisted of two new institutions: The Jewish Home for the Aged and Baycrest Hospital. This location continued to expand over the years, including a new building for residents in 1968, an apartment building for seniors called the Baycrest Terrace in 1976, and a community centre known as The Joseph E. and Minnie Wagman Centre in 1977. These additions enabled Baycrest to expand its programs to include a day care program, recreational programs, and a Sheltered Workshop which was run in cooperation with the Jewish Vocational Service and provided residents with employment. In 1986 a new Baycrest Hospital was erected, and in 1989, the Rotman Research Institute, which is also affiliated with the University of Toronto, opened to create a research facility where top researchers could study and find new treatment methods for the elderly.
In recent years, Baycrest’s services and programs have continued to expand. In 2000, the Apotex Centre, the Jewish Home for the Aged and the Louis and Leah Posluns Centre for Stroke and Cognition opened to help residents with progressive dementia caused by vascular disorders. In 2001 a condominium building opened at 2 Neptune Drive for seniors, and in 2003 the Sam and Ida Ross Memory Clinic was established to provide out-patient services for seniors with memory disorders. Baycrest Centre also provides numerous cultural and religious programs for the inhabitants and the greater community, including a heritage museum, art exhibits and a Holocaust program.
Custodial History
Records were donated to the OJA in a series of accessions from a variety of sources, including the Baycrest Women's Auxiliary and the Multicultural Historical Society of Ontario.
Scope and Content
Fonds consists of records documenting the history, governance, and activities of the Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care. Included are meeting notices, agendas and minutes, correspondence, reports, speeches, photographs, artifacts, constitutions, publications, press releases, financial records, event invitations, programs, a scrapbook, a poster, lists, theatrical scripts, newspaper clippings, brochures and booklets, flyers, a land deed, certificates, schedules, annual calendars, cards, questionnaires, and lists.
Fonds is arranged into eleven series: 1. Board of Directors and Executive Committee; 2. Annual General Meetings and Annual Reports; 3. Committees and meetings; 4. Women's Auxiliary; 5. Men's Service Group; 6. Toronto Jewish Old Folks Home; 7. Programs and services; 8. Religious services; 9. Fundraising; 10. Publications and publicity; and, 11. Events. Records are described to the file level with some item level descriptions.
Notes
Physical description note: Includes 1102 photographs, 4 coins, 2 posters, 1 badge, 1 pin, 1 key chain, 1 postcard, and 1 pen.
Associated material note: related material at Library and Archives Canada includes a small Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care fonds, and the Eric Exton fonds. For architectural records see the Irving D. Boigon fonds 243 at the City of Toronto Archives (Boigon was an architect who designed many of Baycrest's buildings between the 1970s and 1990s). Contact Baycrest Centre's Heritage Museum for committee records from the 1930s, and consult Baycrest's website to access electronic copies of current issues of Baycrest's publications.
Name Access
Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care
Baycrest Hospital
Ezras Noshem Society (Toronto, Ont.)
Jewish Home for the Aged (Toronto, Ont.)
Jewish Old Folks Home (Toronto, Ont.)
Subjects
Hospitals
Old age homes
Related Material
See Gordon Mendly Fonds 18, series 3-4; Jewish Vocational Services of Toronto fonds 75; United Jewish Welfare Fund fonds 67; accession # 2009-6-2; Dora Till Fonds 52; J. Irving Oelbaum Fonds 24; Jewish Community Centre of Toronto fonds 61, series 1-1; Gilbert Studios fonds 37; Ben Kayfetz fonds 62, series 3, file 3; JFWB fonds 87, series 6, files 5 and 6; JIAS fonds 9, series 7, file 1; Harold S. Kaplan fonds 27, series 1-4, and Morris Norman fonds 22.
Creator
Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care, 1917-
Accession Number
1982-11-1
1983-11-2
1988-2-7
1979-9-17
1979-9-23
1987-9-7
2004-5-50
MG 2 O 1A
Source
Archival Descriptions
Name
Dora Till
Material Format
sound recording
Interview Date
4 May 1983
Source
Oral Histories
Name
Dora Till
Number
OH 151
Subject
Immigrants--Canada
Families
Labor
Labor unions
Women
Occupations
Interview Date
4 May 1983
Quantity
1
Interviewer
Stephen Speisman
Total Running Time
46 minutes
Conservation
Copied August 2003
Use Restrictions
Copyright is held by the Ontario Jewish Archives. Please contact the archives to obtain permission prior to use.
Biography
Dora Till (née Tobias) was born in New York City in 1896. She came to Toronto in 1900. She married Morris Till in 1918. They had one daughter, Cecile. As a youth, Dora was involved with Herzl Girls and the Boot and Shoe Society. Dora was active in community service and contributed greatly to social service work. She was co-founder and first president for the Mothers' and Babes' Summer Rest Home, vice president of the Hebrew Maternity Aid Society, a board member for the Jewish Family and Child Services, an executive for the Federation of Jewish Philanthropies, honorary vice president of United Jewish Welfare Fund, on the board of Canadian Jewish Congress and past president of the Naomi Chapter of Hadassah-WIZO.
Material Format
sound recording
Name Access
Herzl Girls Boot and Shoe Society, 1920
Mothers and Babes Summer Rest Home
Baycrest Hospital
United Jewish Welfare Fund
Beth Tzedec Synagogue
Timothy Eaton Company
Till, Dora
Geographic Access
Toronto
Bronte
Original Format
Audio cassette
Copy Format
Audio cassette
Digital file
Source
Oral Histories

In this clip, Dora Till discusses some of the services provided by Hebrew Maternity Aid.

Dora Till was co-founder and first president for Mothers and Babes Summer Rest Home. In this clip, Dora describes the efforts to solicit and fundraise on behalf of the Mothers and Babes Summer Rest Home.

Level
Item
ID
Item 5022
Source
Archival Descriptions
Level
Item
Item
5022
Material Format
graphic material
Date
27 Oct. 1961
Physical Description
1 photograph : b&w ; 21 x 26 cm
Scope and Content
Item is a photograph of Sam Ruth showing a model of the new Jewish Home for the Aged and Baycrest Hospital to two women.
Notes
Graphic Artists.
Name Access
Baycrest Hospital
Jewish Home for the Aged (Toronto, Ont.)
Ruth, Sam
Subjects
Architecture
Places
Bathurst Street (Toronto, Ont.)
Accession Number
1990-1-5
Source
Archival Descriptions
Part Of
Zionist Organization of Canada fonds
Toronto Zionist Council sous-fonds
Level
File
ID
Fonds 28-2; File 12
Source
Archival Descriptions
Part Of
Zionist Organization of Canada fonds
Toronto Zionist Council sous-fonds
Level
File
Fonds
28-2
File
12
Material Format
textual record
Date
1962-1964
Physical Description
1 folder of textual records
Scope and Content
The file consists of lists of Toronto Zionist Council members and officers; correspondence and memos; and a listing of the Board of Directors of the New Mount Sinai Hospital; the Board of Directors for the Jewish Home for the Aged and Baycrest Hospital.
Name Access
Baycrest Hospital
Jewish Home for the Aged (Toronto, Ont.)
Mount Sinai Hospital (Toronto, Ont.)
Source
Archival Descriptions
Part Of
Gilbert Studios fonds
Jewish community events series
Level
Item
ID
Fonds 37; Series 7; Item 2
Source
Archival Descriptions
Part Of
Gilbert Studios fonds
Jewish community events series
Level
Item
Fonds
37
Series
7
Item
2
Material Format
graphic material
Date
[1954?]
Physical Description
1 negative : b&w ; 11 x 13 cm
Scope and Content
Photograph is of a groundbreaking ceremony that is likely for Baycrest Hospital, as the man standing third from the left is Abe Posluns, president of the Jewish Home for the Aged and Baycrest Hospital.
Standing on the far left is J. Irving Oelbaum.
Name Access
Baycrest Hospital
Oelbaum, J. Irving, 1899-1966
Posluns, Abe
Subjects
Building
Hospitals
Portraits, Group
Repro Restriction
Copyright may not be held by the Ontario Jewish Archives. It is the responsibility of the researcher to obtain permission prior to use.
Source
Archival Descriptions
Part Of
Gilbert Studios fonds
Jewish community events series
Level
Item
ID
Fonds 37; Series 7; Item 6
Source
Archival Descriptions
Part Of
Gilbert Studios fonds
Jewish community events series
Level
Item
Fonds
37
Series
7
Item
6
Material Format
graphic material
Date
[ca. 1951]
Physical Description
1 negative : b&w ; 11 x 13 cm
Admin History/Bio
In 1913 a charitable organization called the Ezras Noshim Society was formed to help elderly women. Ezras Noshim start collecting funds in 1917 to purchase a home that would be converted into Toronto's first Jewish Old Folks Home. The forerunner to Baycrest Centre opened in 1919 as the Toronto Jewish Old Folks Home on Cecil Street in downtown Toronto, where the women of Ezras Noshim made beds, cooked kosher meals, washed sheets, and sponsored fundraising events.
In 1954, the Jewish Home for the Aged opened on Bathurst Street to accomodate their expanding needs and a new feature: Baycrest Hospital.
This location continued to expand including a new building for residents in 1968, the Baycrest Terrace and The Joseph E. and Minnie Wagman Centre in 1976. These additions enabled Baycrest to expand their services to include a community centre, an enhanced apartment building, a home for the aged, a day care service and a hospital.
In 1986 a new Baycrest Hospital was erected, and in 1989, the Rotman Research Institute, which is also affiliated with the University of Toronto, opened to create a research facility enabling top researchers to study and find new treatment methods for the elderly.
In recent years, Baycrest's research activities have expanded to include the Clinical Epidemiology and Evaluation Unit (est. 1995), which evaluates clinical programs and conducts long-term studies of health issues affecting older adults and the Kunin Lunenfeld Clinical Research Unit (est. 1996), which links researchers with Baycrest clinical departments to enable prompt implementation of research findings. These two programs merged in 1998 to become the Kunin-Lunenfeld Applied Research Unit.
Apotex Centre, the Jewish Home for the Aged and the Louis and Leah Posluns Centre for Stroke and Cognition opened in 2000. This centre is responsible for residents with progressive dementia and vascular dementia.
Baycrest Centre also provides numerous cultural and religious programs for the inhabitants and the greater community, including a heritage museum, art exhibits and a Holocaust program.
Scope and Content
Photograph of the groundbreaking ceremony for Baycrest Hospital on Bathurst Street, which was erected along with the new building of the Jewish Home for the Aged.
Abe Posluns is on the far right.
Name Access
Baycrest Hospital
Posluns, Abe
Subjects
Building
Hospitals
Portraits, Group
Repro Restriction
Copyright may not be held by the Ontario Jewish Archives. It is the responsibility of the researcher to obtain permission prior to use.
Places
Bathurst Street (Toronto, Ont.)
Source
Archival Descriptions
Part Of
Ellis I. and Fanny Shapiro fonds
Level
Item
ID
Fonds 94; Item 6
Source
Archival Descriptions
Part Of
Ellis I. and Fanny Shapiro fonds
Level
Item
Fonds
94
Item
6
Material Format
graphic material
Date
4 Nov. 1977
Physical Description
1 photograph : b&w ; 8 x 5 cm
Scope and Content
Item is a passport photograph of Fanny Shaprio.
Name Access
Shapiro, Fanny
United Jewish Welfare Fund
Women's Service Council
Jewish Home for the Aged (Toronto, Ont.)
Mount Sinai Hospital
Baycrest Hospital
Mothers and Babes Summer Rest Home
National Council of Jewish Women
Repro Restriction
Copyright is held by the Ontario Jewish Archives. Please contact the archives to obtain permission prior to use.
Accession Number
2005-8-1
Source
Archival Descriptions