Thomas Bouckley Collection - Oshawa Town Hall 1909

The Permanent Collection

Village to City: Oshawa's Civic Buildings

Opens to public 28 August 2010

In celebration of the recent completion of the City Hall Revitalization Project, this collection of photographs from The Thomas Bouckley Collection looks back at the many changes the civic build­ings of Oshawa have undergone over the past century.

It was in January 1850 when the first municipal council meeting was held in the Village of Oshawa, but it wasn’t until 1851 that a Council Hall was built on the southeast corner of Athol Street and Centre Street. The Hall also served as a community hall, a lock up and a place of worship for all faiths. As the village grew, the Council Hall grew as well and had to find various homes throughout the down­town. In 1924 Oshawa became a City and by 1954 a city hall was built in the Civic Centre we know today.  This exhibition includes images that reflect the history of Oshawa through its civic buildings and explore the growth of the area from Village to City.  

The Thomas Bouckley Collection was donated to the RMG by the late Thomas Bouckley, historian of Oshawa. The com­puterized collection comprises nearly 3,000 historical photographs of Oshawa and Durham Region. About 100 works are displayed per year, featured in four seasonal exhibitions.

Curated by Sonya Jones.