WILLIAM (BILLY) McKAY JR. 1862-1943

WILLIAM (BILLY) McKAY JR. 1862-1943

William McKay was an early supporter of the development of the Township of East York. In 1891, McKay bought about 16 hectares (40 acres) for a farm between present-day Sammon, Cosburn, Durant, and Glebemount Avenues. In the 1920s, McKay aided the township’s growth by donating and selling portions of his land at an affordable price, providing space for the original East York Municipal Building, R.H. McGregor School, and Toronto East General Hospital (Michael Garron Hospital). These buildings were vital to East York’s development. By the late 1920s, however, the township saw McKay’s remaining land as an obstacle to its expansion. The township believed McKay was no longer maintaining a farm and reclassified his property, raising his taxes beyond his ability to pay. This action started a long-running dispute. As McKay aged, he became unable to properly maintain his property, and in 1937 he was placed in Lakeshore Psychiatric Hospital. In 1939, the Township of East York took ownership of the rest of McKay’s land due to unpaid taxes and subdivided it for homes McKay died in 1943 and is buried in St. John’s Norway Cemetery.

HERITAGE TORONTO 2020

Sarah J. McCabe

October 2, 2022