Events
From our great Speaker's Nights featuring experts on local and national history to specialty event programming, our goal is to entertain and educate. Here is a sample of some of the events being held in the coming months. Come join us!
NOTE: OUR SPEAKER's NIGHT SERIES IS AN EXCLUSIVE EVENT FOR MEMBERS OF THE ETOBICOKE HISTORICAL SOCIETY. TO LEARN MORE ABOUT BECOMING A MEMBER, PLEASE CLICK HERE.
NOTE: OUR SPEAKER's NIGHT SERIES IS AN EXCLUSIVE EVENT FOR MEMBERS OF THE ETOBICOKE HISTORICAL SOCIETY. TO LEARN MORE ABOUT BECOMING A MEMBER, PLEASE CLICK HERE.
Hybrid Speaker's Nights at Montgomery's Inn
Our Speaker's Nights returned to meeting in-person in the Community Room at Montgomery's Inn in February 2023. All meetings are now presented as hybrid meetings - the Speaker is present in-person at the Inn while simultaneously being broadcast live over Zoom webinar. So you can choose to either attend in-person at the Inn or stay home and join virtually online.
All EHS members will receive an email before each event with information for the option to attend online. To become a member and receive an invite, please CLICK HERE.
Our Speaker's Nights returned to meeting in-person in the Community Room at Montgomery's Inn in February 2023. All meetings are now presented as hybrid meetings - the Speaker is present in-person at the Inn while simultaneously being broadcast live over Zoom webinar. So you can choose to either attend in-person at the Inn or stay home and join virtually online.
All EHS members will receive an email before each event with information for the option to attend online. To become a member and receive an invite, please CLICK HERE.
Thursday, March 20, 2025 - Speaker's Night: The Etobicoke BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir and Community
Completed in 2007, the BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir in Etobicoke is a traditional Hindu place of worship that was built by the BAPS Swaminarayan Sanstha, a global spiritual organization within the Swaminarayan branch of Hinduism. The mandir was built in 18 months and consists of 24,000 pieces of hand-carved Italian carrara marble, Turkish limestone and Indian pink stone. The mandir is the largest of its kind in Canada and was constructed according to guidelines outlined in ancient Hindu scriptures.
Our speaker, Chaitanya Bhatt, will reveal the fascinating story of how this beautiful example of ancient Indian design and architecture was envisioned and eventually realized by an inspired and dedicated community.
Chaitanya Bhatt is the Senior Director of Data, AI, and Automation at Purolator, where he leads initiatives in data analytics, governance, artificial intelligence, advanced analytics, and automation. Beyond his professional role, Chaitanya has been a dedicated volunteer at the BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir in Etobicoke since 2004. Over the years, he has played a key role in overseeing youth activities and currently serves in the community outreach department, fostering engagement and service within the broader community.
Location: Montgomery's Inn, 4709 Dundas St W, Etobicoke, ON M9A 1A8
Start Time: 7:30pm (Refreshments served from 7pm onwards)
Completed in 2007, the BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir in Etobicoke is a traditional Hindu place of worship that was built by the BAPS Swaminarayan Sanstha, a global spiritual organization within the Swaminarayan branch of Hinduism. The mandir was built in 18 months and consists of 24,000 pieces of hand-carved Italian carrara marble, Turkish limestone and Indian pink stone. The mandir is the largest of its kind in Canada and was constructed according to guidelines outlined in ancient Hindu scriptures.
Our speaker, Chaitanya Bhatt, will reveal the fascinating story of how this beautiful example of ancient Indian design and architecture was envisioned and eventually realized by an inspired and dedicated community.
Chaitanya Bhatt is the Senior Director of Data, AI, and Automation at Purolator, where he leads initiatives in data analytics, governance, artificial intelligence, advanced analytics, and automation. Beyond his professional role, Chaitanya has been a dedicated volunteer at the BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir in Etobicoke since 2004. Over the years, he has played a key role in overseeing youth activities and currently serves in the community outreach department, fostering engagement and service within the broader community.
Location: Montgomery's Inn, 4709 Dundas St W, Etobicoke, ON M9A 1A8
Start Time: 7:30pm (Refreshments served from 7pm onwards)
Thursday, April 17, 2025 - Speaker's Night: The Paranormal Roadshow, presented by After Dark Tours
Join “Ghost Guy” Steve Collie as he takes us to different hauntings throughout Toronto, Brampton and Exhibition Place. Steve will explain the stories behind these strange hauntings at locations such as historic museums, bars, government buildings and even Fort York. Many of these hauntings have never been told before.
Steve Collie, known to many as the "Ghost Guy," has been leading paranormal-focused tours or Ghost Walks at Exhibition Place since 2006. He is committed to documenting as many eyewitness accounts as possible and bringing visitors as close as possible to recorded paranormal sightings. Steve is the founder of After Dark Tours and has expanded his program to include tours of Brampton, downtown Toronto and other locations across Southern Ontario.
Location: Montgomery's Inn, 4709 Dundas St W, Etobicoke, ON M9A 1A8
Start Time: 7:30pm (Refreshments served from 7pm onwards)
Join “Ghost Guy” Steve Collie as he takes us to different hauntings throughout Toronto, Brampton and Exhibition Place. Steve will explain the stories behind these strange hauntings at locations such as historic museums, bars, government buildings and even Fort York. Many of these hauntings have never been told before.
Steve Collie, known to many as the "Ghost Guy," has been leading paranormal-focused tours or Ghost Walks at Exhibition Place since 2006. He is committed to documenting as many eyewitness accounts as possible and bringing visitors as close as possible to recorded paranormal sightings. Steve is the founder of After Dark Tours and has expanded his program to include tours of Brampton, downtown Toronto and other locations across Southern Ontario.
Location: Montgomery's Inn, 4709 Dundas St W, Etobicoke, ON M9A 1A8
Start Time: 7:30pm (Refreshments served from 7pm onwards)
Thursday, May 15, 2025 - Speaker's Night: A Century of the Bicycle's Ups and Downs - pride, prejudice and politics.
Throughout its history in Toronto, the bicycle’s place on the roads and in public esteem has fluctuated wildly. What is it about the simple bicycle that it can be so loved by some yet despised and detested by others? Albert Koehl will reveal the tumultuous 130-year history of this mode of transportation from the bicycle craze at the turn of the century, to the rise of the car and the motorway in the 1950s, to the intensifying cry for active transportation in the 1990s and into pandemic times. Drawing on archival materials, newspapers, and personal interviews, and full of fascinating vignettes from his book, Wheeling Through Toronto, Albert presents the story of how we got here and what Torontonians need to know as we pedal forward.
Albert Koehl has been an environmental and community lawyer, and a former adjunct professor of law, for over thirty years, dedicated to issues of climate change, energy (mis)use, and transportation. He is one of Toronto’s leading road safety and cycling advocates – his work inspired and sustained by a commitment to social justice and the belief that how we get around shouldn’t be based on power or wealth, but on fairness and respect for each other, our community, and our climate.
Location: Montgomery's Inn, 4709 Dundas St W, Etobicoke, ON M9A 1A8
Start Time: 7:30pm (Refreshments served from 7pm onwards)
Throughout its history in Toronto, the bicycle’s place on the roads and in public esteem has fluctuated wildly. What is it about the simple bicycle that it can be so loved by some yet despised and detested by others? Albert Koehl will reveal the tumultuous 130-year history of this mode of transportation from the bicycle craze at the turn of the century, to the rise of the car and the motorway in the 1950s, to the intensifying cry for active transportation in the 1990s and into pandemic times. Drawing on archival materials, newspapers, and personal interviews, and full of fascinating vignettes from his book, Wheeling Through Toronto, Albert presents the story of how we got here and what Torontonians need to know as we pedal forward.
Albert Koehl has been an environmental and community lawyer, and a former adjunct professor of law, for over thirty years, dedicated to issues of climate change, energy (mis)use, and transportation. He is one of Toronto’s leading road safety and cycling advocates – his work inspired and sustained by a commitment to social justice and the belief that how we get around shouldn’t be based on power or wealth, but on fairness and respect for each other, our community, and our climate.
Location: Montgomery's Inn, 4709 Dundas St W, Etobicoke, ON M9A 1A8
Start Time: 7:30pm (Refreshments served from 7pm onwards)