A Walk Down Memory Lane

By: Lori Harito

I recently went to Mackenzie House for their exhibition: "A Walk Down Oak Street."

When I decided to go to this, I didn't quite know what to expect. But when I entered Mackenzie House on Bond Street the first thing I thought was, 'wow how did I not know this was here?' It's so quaint and quiet in there, and the outside look so serene and peaceful. The house looks like it was taken straight from the Victorian era and put in the midst of busy downtown Toronto. It's a weird concept, because you're taken from reality and pulled back into the old ages. Even the people who greet you and work there (only two at the time I went) were dressed in old-age costume.

As their newsletter says, the exhibition at Mackenzie House is a "chance to witness how Oak Street has changed over the years." And indeed it is, which for some of the residents who have grown up in Regent Park and lived there for many years, it may feel as if it is a walk down memory lane.

The exhibition housed at Mackenzie house, which isn't bigger than a normal house, and extremely quiet so that you can hear a pin drop is lined with an exhibition of pictures and a history of Oak Town to Regent Park. The transformation is amazing, and to be honest it amazes me that such a small area would have such a great history. Who knew there was so much to learn about this one place? The exhibition even has recordings from people who used to live there, some great quotes from actual residents, and a viewing at the very end of the exhibition with pictures of then and now. What I thought was quite funny was the song they chose to play as the pictures come up, a song that I'm assuming must have been specifically for this recording called "Tearing Down Regent Park." And it is literally this one line that keeps playing over and over again as images of torn down apartment buildings come up, and Mayor David Miller shaking hands with residents wearing a well-placed hard hat.

There are about six big boards that explain the history of Oak Town from "Oak Street Re-invented" to "The Rise and Fall of Regent Park." Each display shows a great deal of history of Oak Town, along with the feelings and sentiments of the residents there at that time, such as "While residents of the new developments faced serious challenges from inherent design flaws, they also found themselves singled out by the media and others as a problem community." How very interesting, since that is a major problem in Regent Park and they have been labeled and stereotyped as a problem community. And while that is the view for many people living outside of Regent Park, the residents in Regent Park feel that although it's faced with many challenges "most believe it is a vibrant and healthy community full of diversity and kinship."

During the depression era, the old black and white photos show that despite the depression many residents on Oak Street still maintained their homes and lawns and were proud of their community. The exhibition also stated that "despite 19th century perception of poor living standards, Oak St. was in reality a vibrant and healthy mix of income levels and cultures."
It's just interesting to see how everything has come about, and I enjoyed the atmosphere of the exhibition at Mackenzie house, because it has an old vibe to it.

The exhibition does teach you a lot in history, but not so much that it's overbearing and boring. While I'm a history buff and enjoy learning about the past, I think most people would cringe at the idea of going back into the past. And some people (ashamed to admit that it's me also) would think there's no history in Regent Park, but the exhibition shows you how wrong you are! It's a small exhibition, but an exhibition nonetheless. And with the price of $2.75, how can you go wrong?

Here's a link to the newsletter which explains what the exhibition is all about, and some some events happening around Cabbagetown.
http://www.cabbagetownpa.ca/media/07Nl0609-CPA.pdf