>

Category: Vintage Canada

See Vintage Photos from the Canadian National Exhibition

One of my favourite things to do in the summer time in Toronto, is to attend the ‘Canadian National Exhibition AKA the CNE’. It’s been around since 1879 and it is just a giant fair filled with yummy foods, exhibits, rides, music and loads of people watching. Love it!

Due to my love on this topic, I have done several blog posts on the subject that you can see & read at the end of this post.

Today, I am delighted to present another round of captivating vintage photos from the CNE. After all, can anyone ever really have enough fun images from fairs and exhibitions? Let’s jump in and explore together!

1930s vintage sign: This sign, of the new glowing type, invites all to the 1938 Canadian National Exhibition-Diamond Jubilee Year 1938

Source: Toronto Public Library


History of the CNE

The Canadian Encyclopedia has a great easy to read article on the history of the CNE. I recommend taking a read when you have a chance.

Fun Fact! In 1879 the fair was originally called the Toronto Industrial Exhibition, and all but one of the 23 wooden buildings – the Crystal Palace – were devoted to agriculture. The fair was officially renamed the Canadian National Exhibition in 1912. At that time, the hope was to better reflect the scope of this always diverse fair (Source).


Vintage CNE Photos 1920s-1960s

1968-Bavarian Garden Restaurant that was under the Alpine Way ride at the CNE.

I adore this photo because my dad is from Germany and I love a good schnitzel.

1960s vintage photo from 1968 at Toronto's CNE-Canadian National Exhibition featuring an image of the Bavarian Garden Restaurant in 1968.

Photo Source: CNE Heritage has an amazing collection of images & advertisements from its archive.

A group of young men in 1959 holding their midway prizes for the photo. 3 stuffed animals and one marionette doll.

1950s vintage photo of CNE Visitors and their midway prizes in 1959. The image is a group of boys holding a doll and stuffed toys

Source-Pinterest: CNE

1920s vintage photo of the Canadian National Exhibition Dufferin St. Gate (designed by G. W. Gouinlock in 1910). So Grand!

The Dufferin Gate was the primary entrance to the CNE grounds until the 1927 opening of the Princes’ Gates on the east end of the grounds (Source).

1920s vintage photo of the Canadian National Exhibition Dufferin St. Gate

Source: Toronto Public Library

In the 1950s, the 1910 gate was demolished to make way for the construction of the Gardiner Expressway. This 1959 Gate was built 15 metres south of where the first two Dufferin Gates stood. 

The 1959 Dufferin Gate (below) is a parabolic arch built of reinforced concrete. Its design is similar to the St. Louis Arch, which, although technically built after the Dufferin Gate, had been designed earlier. It was built at a cost of $265,000 (Source).

1960s vintage photo of the Arch at the Dufferin Gate for the CNE-Canadian National Exhibition

Source: Archives of Ontario

Cotton Candy..pure sugar but oh so good! Fun photo from 1961 youth day of a young girl enjoying her own cotton candy on a stick.

1960s vintage photo from Toronto's CNE Canadian National Exhibition youth day in 1961 featuring a young girl eating cotton candy in a Bavarian hat

Source-Pinterest: CNE

1930s photo of different dogs that entered a contest at the exhibition. Which one is your favourite?

Further Reading: Vintage photos of people with their pets.

1930s vintage photo from Toronto's CNE (Canadian National Exhibition) featuring images of dogs in a dog contest.

Source-Pinterest: CNE

Hop on let’s check out the CNE! 1950s vintage photo of a group of older adults taking a ride on the tram around the park. Back of the photo has writing saying “Toronto Exhibition”.

 1950s vintage photo of a group of older adults taking a ride on the tram around the CNE-Canadian National Exhibition. Back of the photo has writing saying "Toronto Exhibition".

Source-eBay

1941 photo: C.N.E. crowds see first showing of ‘Britain at War’. Nearly an hour before the doors of The Star’s theatre on the balcony of the Automotive building opened for the premiere showing of the film Britain at War a great audience had gathered (Source).’

1940s vintage photo: 1941 photo: C.N.E. crowds see first showing of 'Britain at War' in Toronto (Canadian National Exhibition). The image features 2 women in nurses uniforms and 2 men in uniforms.

Source: Toronto Public Library

TTC (Toronto Transit Commission) buses serving the CNE, August 1930.

Super late 1920s / early 1930s fashions on our ladies leaving the bus.

1930 vintage photo of a TTC Toronto Transit Commission dropping of people in late 1920s fashions at the CNE.

Source: CNE Heritage

Talking Budgies & Bingo! Welcome to the late 1960s (maybe even 1970s?) CNE!

1960s / 1970s vintage photo of Toronto's CNE-Canadian National Exhibition featuring an image of people standing outside of the Bingo Buidling.

Source: Etsy-ThatWasLife

1947 photo. Daredevils Aerialists, Betty and Benny Fox, brother and sister, are a breath-taking feature at the C.N.E. They are seen reading an edition of The Star on their 18-inch-wide platform. They are high paid air artists, getting $375 daily. 

1940s vintage photo from Toronto's Canadian National Exhibition-1947 photo. Daredevils Aerialists, Betty and Benny Fox, brother and sister, are a breath-taking feature at the C.N.E. They are seen reading an edition of The Star on their 18-inch-wide platform. Highest paid air artists, they get $375 daily. 

Source: Toronto Public Library

Family taking a break at the CNE in 1926. Love seeing the 1920s fashions in the background and on our resting family.

1920s vintage photo from Toronto's CNE Canadian National Exhibition of a family in 1920s fashions sitting down and taking a break in 1926

Source: CNE Heritage

An evening out at the CNE in the 1940s. This looks to be a fashion show in the stadium grounds but I’m not 100% sure. Love the 1940s fashions in this image.

1940s vintage photo from Toronto's Canadian National Exhibition featuring a stylish couple in 1940s fashions/ The man is in a tuxedo and the woman is wearing a fur jacket, black dress and a hat with a veil.

Source: CNE Heritage

Louis Armstrong and his stuffed koala buddy enjoying some taste testing at the 1954 CNE.

1950s vintage photo: Louis Armstrong and his Koala buddy enjoying some taste testing at the 1954 CNE (Canadian National Exhibition in Toronto). The woman holding the stuffed Kola Bear is a flight attendant.

Source-Pinterest: CNE

Possibly photo of Elfrieda Mais in the 1920s at the CNE. Elfrieda was an airplane wing walker and stunt driver who sadly met an early end doing what she loved.

Read all about her short but incredible life HERE.

1920s vintage photo at the CNE (Canadian National Exhibition in Toronto) featuring a woman in a race car. It is believed to possibly be Elfrieda Mais a female race car / stunt driver you have never heard of.

Source-Pinterest: CNE

Tap dancing demo in 1937. Some great 1930s fashions in this photo as well.

1930s Vintage Photo from 1937 at Toronto's CNE (Canadian National Exhibition) of a tap dancing demo. 1930s fashions on display.

Source: CNE Heritage

Kids on the CNE Midway, 1940. They look like they are having a wonderful time!

1940s vintage photo of Kids on the CNE Midway, 1940. Toronto's Canadian National Exhibition.

Source: CNE Heritage

Did you enjoy the photos? Will you be attending the CNE or a like exhibition /fair where you live? Share any comments you have about this topic in the section below. I love hearing from my readers.

Further Reading:

Thanks for dropping by!

Liz


Disclosure: Some of the links on my blog from Etsy , eBay, are Affiliate Links, meaning, at no additional cost to you, I will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase


Woodward’s Department Store -101 Years of Shopping for Western Canadians

Attention vintage fans – explore Canada’s vibrant past with its iconic department stores! From Hudson Bay, established in 1692, to Eaton’s (1869-1999) and Sears (1892-2018), our country’s history is steeped in retail traditions. But today, we’re shining the spotlight on Woodward’s, the beloved Vancouver and Western Canada institution, which graced the scene from 1892 until 1993. Join us on a trip down memory lane as we delve into Woodward’s rich legacy.

Woodward's Department Store logo

Disclosure: Some of the links on my blog from Etsy , eBay, are Affiliate Links, meaning, at no additional cost to you, I will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase


1940s vintage photo from 1948 of a Woodward's department store truck parked by a Trans-Canada Air Lines plane at the airport

Woodward’s truck parked by a Trans-Canada Air Lines plane at the airport-1948

Brief History of Woodward’s Department Store

  • Charles Woodward established the first Woodward store at the corner of Main and Georgia Streets in Vancouver in 1892 (Source).
  • Woodward’s established a mail-order department in 1896 and published its first catalogue in 1897. “The Great Mail Order House of the West.” (Source).
  • On September 12, 1902, Woodward Department Stores Ltd. was incorporated, and a new store was built on the corner of Hastings and Abbott Streets (Source).
  • In 1926 a store was opened in Edmonton and by the late 1940s the company operated numerous stores in British Columbia and Alberta.
  • The growth kept happening and Woodward’s would become a central feature of the retail scene in southwestern British Columbia for much of the twentieth century..
  • Woodward’s gambled that malls were the wave of the future, and this was the driving force behind their new location in the Park Royal Shopping Centre in West Vancouver, which opened in 1950.
  • Woodward’s filed for bankruptcy protection on December 11, 1992, after a decade of failing to keep up with the changing retail landscape.
  • In June 1993, Hudson’s Bay Company acquired 21 of the total 25 Woodward’s locations in a $235 millions takeover.
  • On December 8, 2009, the Woodward’s Food Floor reopened for the first time since the chain’s sale to Safeway (Source).

For a full read of the Woodward’s history, visit the HBC Heritage website. To explore vintage Woodward’s catalogue history, visit the Canadian Museum of History.

Vintage Photo of Woodward's Store at Hastings and Abbott in 1902.

Woodward’s store at Hastings and Abbott. Source-Canadian Museum of History

Woodward’s Department Store History Thru Vintage Photos, Advertisements & Catalogues

Inside Woodwards grocery department in Vancouver in 1904.

1900s vintage photo of Woodwards grocery depaertment in Vancouver in 1904

Source: dailyhive.com

“Pineapple Special! $0.35.” The fruit department of Woodward’s Department Store in 1905.

1900s vintage photo of the fruit department featuring a pineapple sale at Woodward's Department store in 1905

Source: dailyhive.com

The Woodward Beacon

In 1927, Percival Archibald Woodward (VP of Woodward) built a 75-foot-high beacon to act as a giant billboard advertisement for the department store. The tower held a searchlight that threw out a two million candlepower beam which revolved six times each minute and could be seen from Vancouver Island. When the war hit he was told to remove the tower and the 16-foot W took its place (Source).

Photo – 1938

1930s vintage photo: The Woodward Beacon. In 1927, Percival Archibald Woodward (VP of Woodward) built a 75-foot-high beacon to act as a giant billboard advertisement for the department store. The tower held a searchlight that threw out a two million candlepower beam which revolved six times each minute and could be seen from Vancouver Island.

Source: City of Vancouver Archives

Image of the “W” that was replaced during the war.

vintage photo of the Woodward/s department store W beacon sign

Source: hbcheritage.ca

Woodward’s Spring/Summer Catalogue, No. 60, 1927, cover.

Further Reading: Archived ‘Vintage Catalogue Blog Posts from the Vintage Inn Blog

1920s vintage catalog / catalogue: A Woodward's Spring/Summer Catalogue, No. 60, 1927, cover.

Source: historymuseum.ca

1920s vintage advertisement for Canada’s Woodward’s Department store from 1927. Published by the Vancouver Tourist Association.

1920s vintage advertisement for Canada's Woodward's Department store from 1927. As published by the Vancouver Tourist Association

Source: Pinterest

The Food Floor

The chain was distinctive in that stores included a large supermarket known as the “Food Floor”.

At Oakridge Centre and Chinook Centre (Calgary), the Woodward’s Food Floor had a conveyor system from the cash registers out to a structure in the parking lot. Upon request, the bag boys would pack customers’ groceries into numbered bins and send the bins through the conveyor system. Then customers would take tags with matching numbers out to the structure, and more bag boys would load the groceries from the matching bins into the customers’ cars. This service was called the Grocery Parcel Depot (Source).

Further Reading: This book chronicles what it was like to work at Vancouver’s legendary Woodward’s Food Floor in the sixties

Vintage Postcard for Woodward’s Dept Store Vancouver British Columbia Canada featuring 'Canada's Largest Food Floor".

Source: eBay

Woodward’s Grocery Buyers’ Guide for Spring, No. 64, 1929, cover.

Interesting Fact:  In 1902, after opening its first food centre, the company also started to issue separate food catalogues (Source).

1920s vintage catalogue: Woodward's Grocery Buyers' Guide for Spring, No. 64, 1929, cover.

Source: historymuseum.ca

Woodward’s Fall/Winter Catalogue, No. 71, 1932-33, cover.

1930s vintage catalog cover-Woodward's Fall/Winter Catalogue, No. 71, 1932-33, cover.

Source: historymuseum.ca

Woodward’s, Ltd. – “We Sell Everything”, international “S” series panel trucks appear ready to deliver their goods back on September 24, 1931 (Source).

1930s Vintage Photo: Woodward’s, Ltd. – “We Sell Everything”, international “S” series panel trucks appear ready to deliver their goods back on September 24, 1931

Source: Pinterest

1944 photo of women and a man buying war stamps at jeep shaped booth inside Woodward’s store.

1940s vintage photo of people in 1940s hairstyles and 1940s fashions buy war stamps at Woodward's department store in Canada -1944

Source: City of Vancouver Archives

Photo of shoppers inside a Woodward’s in 1945, going up the escalator and looking at items for sale.

1940s vintage photo of shoppers in a Woodward's Department store in Canada, 1945 shopping and going up an escalator.

Source: Pinterest

Woodward’s Beacon “The guide to better value” parade float. 1940s vintage photo.

Woodward's Beacon "The guide to better value" parade float. 1940s vintage photo featuring women and young girls on the float for the Canadian department store.

Source: hbcheritage.ca

Women’s bathing suit window display from 1946.

1940s vintage photo of a Woodward's department store window display of women's 1940s swimsuits from 1946

Source: City of Vancouver Archives

Woodward’s Fall/Winter Catalogue, No. 100, 1947–48, inside front cover.

1940s vintage catalog: Woodward's Fall/Winter Catalogue, No. 100, 1947–48, inside front cover.

Source: historymuseum.ca

1940s vintage photo: Clover Leaf canned clams sampling display.

1940s vintage photo: Clover Leaf canned clams sampling display at Woodward's department store in Canada.

Source: City of Vancouver Archives

1953 vintage postcard from a Woodward’s window display in Vancouver, BC featuring a recreation of the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II.

Further Reading: Fashion Window Displays of the 1940s & 1950s

1953 vintage postcard from a Woodward's window display in Vancouver, BC featuring a recreation of the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II.

Source: eBay

“Woodward’s Christmas Gifts” as seen in a 1954 Christmas Catalog.

1950s vintage Christmas Catalog from Woodward's Department Store in Vancouver Canada. "Woodward's Christmas Gifts" and features a mother and daughter in matching robes and an illustration of Santa and a doll.

Source: Pinterest

1963 35mm slide of the parking lot and entrance of Woodward’s Department Store. So fun!

1960s vintage photo-1963 35mm slide of the parking lot and entrance of Woodward's Department Store.

Source: eBay

Pumping gas, at Woodward’s in Vancouver Canada 1966.

1960s vintage photo of a 1960s Gas Station at Woodward's Department Store. Image showcases a man pumping gas at the pump.

Source: Pinterest

I hope you enjoyed learning about this Canadian department store, as much as I did. I knew nothing about them until I did this post so it was a lot of fun to put together.

Liz Observation: I did notice that there was not a lot of content for this post compared to the big department stores I mentioned at the start of the post. The 1950s was especially hard to find and I was surprised on the lack of advertising. If anyone has any light to shed on this, please let me know!

Question Time: Did you shop at Woodward’s? Or have any memories you wish to share? Please comment below as I love hearing from my readers.

Further Reading:

Thanks for dropping by!

Liz