Torontoist » Women

Historicist: How (Not) to Marry a Millionaire

That time Toronto police shut down professional matchmaker Nelle Brooke Stull.

In January of 1936, Mrs. Nelle Brooke Stull came to Toronto with a rich Texan businessman, in the apparent hopes of finding him a bride. A week later, she found herself in police custody, awaiting trial for conspiracy to commit fraud. Nelle Brooke Stull’s professional career began in Elyria, Ohio, some time in the early [...]

Fighting to Give Women a Fighting Chance

Toronto's largest women's shelter, built on a heritage-listed site, is on the hunt for a new home. Recently, one unique fundraiser helped to raise money for it.

Last Friday 300 Muay Thai kick-boxing enthusiasts flocked to the Great Hall for the second Girl Fight this year, a bid to help raise money for the largest women’s crisis and relief centre in Toronto, Nellie’s. The notion of hosting a kickboxing night to shed light on women’s issues like domestic violence may seem a [...]

Historicist: “Complete Surrender to Boisterous Celebration”

Every Saturday at noon, Historicist looks back at the events, places, and characters—good and bad—that have shaped Toronto into the city we know today. Photo of VE-Day celebrations, May 1945. City of Toronto Archives, Fonds 1257, Series A, Item 195. Moments after the announcement came over the radio, the streets were filled with people. As [...]

Historicist: Sewing the Seeds of Discontent

Every Saturday at noon, Historicist looks back at the events, places, and characters—good and bad—that have shaped Toronto into the city we know today. Image from Eaton’s – Golden Jubilee (1869-1919) (T. Eaton Co Ltd, 1919). At exactly ten o’clock in the morning on February 25, 1931, more than five hundred women of the International [...]

Historicist: “Amateur Historians” and “Housewives”

Every Saturday at noon, Historicist looks back at the events, places, and characters—good and bad—that have shaped Toronto into the city we know today. Image of Mary Agnes FitzGibbon from Transaction No. 13. In a flowering of historical consciousness, legions of Ontario men and women collected and published primary documents, fought to preserve historical landmarks, [...]

Historicist: “Alderman or Alderlady?”

Every Saturday at noon, Historicist looks back at the events, places, and characters—good and bad—that have shaped Toronto into the city we know today. Adopting traditionally male roles during the war, women learn to shoot, Long Branch camp, 1915. City of Toronto Archives, Fonds 1244, Item 981. At the turn of the twentieth century, a [...]

Urban Planner: October 5, 2008

MUSIC: We can’t really think of a better way to nurse your Nuit Blanche hangover than spending an afternoon with Nardwuar. The Human Serviette himself will be performing at Trash Palace with his band, The Evaporators. He’ll also be presenting clips from his “Video Vault,” which feature interviews with Marilyn Manson, Iggy Pop, and Michael [...]

I Don’t Want to Work, I Just Want to…

Even in the drizzle they still managed to draw a crowd. Yesterday, soundaXis ’08 festival of New Music kicked off with a performance of Taiko drumming by RAW (Raging Asian Women). Taiko is an ancient Japanese practice in their folk and classical music traditions, and was a popular form of entertainment in royal courts as [...]

Spring Here, Chicks Not Digging Harper, We’re Still Good At Hockey

See, all that snow shovelling was just a waste of time. Toronto is expecting record-breaking heat over the next couple of days, with highs expected to hit 13 degrees. The heat wave is expected to give dumbass radio personalities a chance to say things like, “Hey, this global warming thing is OK by me!” Polls [...]