Historic Archives | Page 4 of 5 | Sweat Equity – The Grimsby Homebuilding Co-operative 1953

Lakeview Public School students

Lakeview was aptly named, as Lake Ontario was visible from its front doors. Many of the co-op kids would see one another again at Grimsby Secondary School. Some […]

Expert shingler John Colleary

Although John was a plasterer by trade, he was very good at shingling during the build. And so he was honoured as the King of the Shingleers.

Teamwork was key

Working 30 hours on the co-op site per week, over and above their regular jobs, the builders focused first on grunt work. Eventually, they took on some of […]

North end homes, with the Niagara Escarpment to the south

Within view of both the Niagara Escarpment and Lake Ontario, this beautifully situated neighbourhood was aptly named Lakemount Terrace Subdivision. As houses passed inspection, the CMHC would release […]

Sweat equity begins with land clearing

The men were so anxious to begin the building phase, they cleared the land themselves. Later, they would mix their own concrete, haul and lay bricks for basements […]

Queen Elizabeth Way (QEW) facing east, 1947

The QEW, built in the late 1930s and upgraded in the late 1940s, had sped up travel from Hamilton to Grimsby, but it was still a 25-minute commute. […]

Father O’Brien and Father Sherlock

O’Brien and Sherlock had been introduced to co-operative methods a few years earlier, as students at St. Augustine’s Seminary, when Father Marrocco had come to lecture. After the […]

A Guide to Co-operative Housing: Chapter 3 Financing Co-operative Housing

page 5 The National Housing Act is a Federal Act of Parliament, designed to help more people obtain money for home construction under NHA, loans can be made […]

Mary Arnold with co-op builders in Reserve Mines, Nova Scotia

Arnold, a Quaker and an American activist in housing co-operatives, went to study the work being done at St. Francis Xavier University’s Extension Department in 1937. She remained […]

Father Moses Coady

Father Moses Coady was a cousin of Tompkins. Like Tompkins, he was relentless in spreading the message that, through education and co-operation, people could better their lives and […]

Co-operative fisheries, Pictou, Nova Scotia

It took a few years, but eventually Father Tompkins encouraged the fishermen to work together. They needed to understand what was causing their poor circumstances and learn how […]

Co-operative fisheries, Caribou, Nova Scotia

It took a few years, but eventually Father Tompkins encouraged the fishermen to work together to understand their financial situation and to learn how to improve it. Economic […]