Buildings & Structures Archives | Sweat Equity – The Grimsby Homebuilding Co-operative 1953

List of co-ops in CO-OP-ORATOR, June 1955

Besides the co-ops listed here along with Sherbrien, Cathedral Heights and Lakedale, the newsletter included the names of 22 co-operatives that were underway in 1955 throughout the province […]

Silent video – Blake Footage – Shingling on Stewart Street

In this short clip, someone took John’s camera and filmed Wilf Worley (in white cap) and John Blake (end of clip) shingling houses . With the Niagara Escarpment […]

The Lindsay

On a visit to the Lindsay co-op, the Grimsby builders were inspired by the 4-bedroom house plan. In the co-op spirit, the plan was shared with them. In […]

Father Marrocco and fellow priests blessed each of the 14 homes.

On the completion of their neighbourhood, Father Marrocco and fellow priests blessed the 14 homes of the Family Home Builder Co-operative on Marysfield Dr. near Brampton. With the […]

Brother and sister on the steps

Children in the co-op neighbourhood were inevitably photographed on their front steps.

Back yard during construction

The back yard view as Maureen and her children, Bill and Joanne, look out on a sea of mud.

Co-op builders shingling the houses along Lakeside Drive in the early part of the build.

Although the co-operators did a lot of the grunt work, they learned and became very good at certain tasks. John Rowan with John Colleary (in white cap) who […]

The Lakedale Co-op worksite

They worked through the winter and by the summer of 1956, all the families would be moved into their co-operatively built homes. Workers would make frequent visits to […]

50th Anniversary of the Sherbrien, Cathedral Heights and Lakedale Co-op Homebuilders.

As they had on the 25th & 30th Anniversaries, they organized a gathering for their children, grandchildren and great grandchildren. They supplied and served sandwiches. It was a […]

Tompkinsville : North America’s first housing co-operative

The builders and their families named their community “Tompkinsville” to honour Father Jimmy Tompkins, the man who had encouraged their co-operative spirit. Theirs was the first housing co-operative […]

Co-op homebuilding, Reserve Mines, Nova Scotia

The co-operative homebuilders in Reserve Mines studied and prepared for two years, arranging the finances and finally building their first home together, and then the second. All 11 […]

Sherbrien and Cathedral Heights co-operators

Although John Blake captured most of the men at the work site on 8 mm film, this is a rare group photo. Don Gay (far right) is holding […]