“Hamilton, in my mind, is one of the most remarkable cities on the American continent.”
J. M. Emerin, sales manager, D. J. McA’Nulty Company.
One of the largest real estate companies in Canada in the years just before the First World War, the D. J. McA’Nulty chose the north-east section of Hamilton as the location for a major sales campaign.
In the fall of 1911, the McA’Nulty Company sold a large number of lots in its subdivision located in the vicinity of the Hamilton Jockey Club grounds. A few lots remained to be sold, and a public auction was scheduled for Saturday, July 27, 1912.
Mr. Emerin, in Hamilton to help the sale, had returned to the city for the first time in six months and had noted the remarkable changes which had occurred. He lauded the “improvements in this city that I have noted in this short space of time cannot be appreciated by the local man.” Emerin was very confident that “Hamilton was destined to be one of the largest cities of Eastern Canada, and even now no place equals it in the number of modern and up-to-date homes.”
Two days before the auction, large advertisements appeared in all three Hamilton daily newspapers. The auction, as noted in the ads, would include free transportation to and from the property. Hundreds of prizes would be distributed during the progress of the sale. The gifts to be offered included silver tea sets, card trays, and water pitchers, An $800 Mason and Risch player piano headed the prize list.
On the day of the auction, prospective buyers on arrival at the grounds were provided with music played the city’s famous 91st Highlander Band, under the direction of Harry Stares. The band was widely noted for its stylistically wide ranging musical programme, described in the Hamilton Times as a programme capable of pleasing “everybody from the lover of William Tell to those who have a weakness for ‘Everybody’s Doing It.’
The McA’Nulty tall man, on his stilts was on the ground, “to show how a man 11 feet tall can execute the Turkey Trot and the Grizzly Bear if he really tries.”
With a crowd of approximately 3,000 people present under the large circus tent provided by the McA’Nulty Company, the auction was a major success. Over $160,000 worth of sales on 53 lots were realized in just a few hours.
Mr. C. A. Martin won the player piano prize, while Mr. T. H. C. Smith, of Stirton street, went home with the silver tray service. Everyone else present went home with at least a beautiful silver spoon, presented as they left the grounds after the auction.
It had been a watershed day in the history of Hamilton’s real estate history to that point in time, especially as regards the north-eastern section of the city.
Mr. Daniel J. McA’Nulty himself penned a brief article about Hamilton which was carried in the local press. In the article, he wrote as follows :
Hamilton’s growth is phenomenal but healthy. It is the busiest manufacturing centre of our young and growing nation. The plants that are already here are continually enlarging. New plants are continually coming. They continually demand more workers. Their influx means a constantly growing population, and more people means a demand for more homes. All in all of busy Hamilton – Hamilton Park is the most advanteously placed to benefit by the city’s expansion.”
The real estate expansion in 1912 and the sales in Hamilton Park on July 12, 1912, were a major landmark in that heady era.
No comments:
Post a Comment