Brian Roulston
Hello everyone, since 2015, I’ve been lucky to be among the many great volunteers and writers at the North End Breezes. It’s been fun researching and reading about our North End and the city in which we live, Hamilton, Ontario.
The Hollywood Villain from Hamilton: The Life and Career of Douglass Dumbrille
While exploring Hamilton, you might come across a film or commercial production being set up and, if you are lucky, you may even witness an ongoing shoot in action. Filming in Hamilton was nearly unheard of 40 or 50 years ago, but now, with studios like the Hamilton...
The Hotel That Floated
By Brian Roulston When Hamiltonians gaze up at the clear blue sky on a lovely summer day, we consider ourselves fortunate that the 83-year-old Lancaster Bomber is still ripping through the skies. However, we often overlook the diverse array of other aircraft...
The Hamilton & Gore Mechanic’s Institute
by Brian Roulston In today's world, the term ‘technician’ has come to imply something very specific. A technician is a person who has a high degree of expertise in a particular field, and who can solve problems and provide solutions in that field. Technicians are...
Hamilton’s Coney Island
Submitted by Brian Roulston For many years from the early 1890s, Simon James Driving Park (also known as James Track), a 1/2 mile oval equal in size to Flamboro Downs, staged three races a day in both thoroughbred and harness racing during the summer. Racegoers...
The Roaring Game
Submitted by Brian Roulston As Wiarton Willie and his cousins across the land make their best prognostics for an early spring, old man winter continues to deliver us his best shivering sting. Rejoice, another popular winterish activity is being enjoyed across...
Memories of The Barton Street Arena
Submitted by Brian Roulston Another January is upon us, and Hamilton is in the midst of another winter. Jack Frost is nipping at our noses, snow shovels are swinging, and dreams of getting drafted into the NHL or competing in figure skating at the Olympics are being...
Traditions that make our Christmas Special
Submitted by Brian Roulston It may be difficult to believe now, but there was a time in England when Christmas was not celebrated at all. According to the University of Warwick, in 1647 the Puritan government believed that Christmas was being used to justify...
Remembrance Day: Animals in War
Submitted by Brian Roulston For as long as there have been wars, animals have aided military personnel with transportation, communications, and companionship. They too deserve to be recognized and remembered for their heroic efforts, just as we remember our fallen...
An Exhibition, a Prince, and a Crystal Palace
By Brian Roulston Let's go back in time to one of Hamilton's greatest accomplishments, Hamilton's famed Crystal Palace and the first royal visit to our city. Beset by financial problems, the Desjardins train catastrophe and a cholera outbreak, local politicians felt...
The Hamilton Area’s First Doctors
Submitted by Brian Roulston The practice of medicine in colonial Canada was governed by the French or British authorities. Medicine and surgery were two distinct branches of the profession. Physicians were regarded as the elite; they believed it was beneath them to...
