Have you ever been curious as to how Milton’s street names got their names?
myFM is continuing its running weekly series where we dive into the history behind each Milton street name. Last week, we covered a pair of streets in Babcock Crescent and White Drive. We’re looking at two more streets this week: the requested Appleby Line, as well as the strangely named Commercial Street.
The President of the Milton Historical Society, John Challinor, literally wrote the book on Milton street names, having written Milton Streets back in 2007 with the late local historian, Jim Dills. He says that Appleby Line was actually named after a nearby hamlet (which no longer exists).
He adds that it was pretty common for settlers to name communities after municipalities in their old country. He says immigrants from England, Scotland and Ireland would come to Canada, settle down, and establish a community. Sometimes it’s easier to go with what you know.
The other street we’re looking at this week is Milton’s Commercial Street. At first glance, it’s a pretty standard name. However, when you venture down the road, you quickly notice that the majority of the buildings on Commercial Street are actually residential buildings. So it begs the question, why was it named Commercial Street?
So, as Milton continued to grow and expand, the need for housing overtook the need for businesses on Commercial Street. Eventually, the road between Main and Derry ended up being a mostly residential area.
If you’re looking to understand how Milton’s streets are named, you should check out the book written by Challinor and Dills. Published by the Milton Historical Society back in 2007, it sold out in about six weeks and has since been long out of print. That said, according to Challinor, you can still find a copy at the Milton Public Library. With nearly 15-years having passed since the initial publication, and the extensive town growth in that time, an updated book is likely to come.
You can also take a walk with the late Jim Dills down Milton’s Main Street in 2002.
If you have a suggestion on what you’d like to learn about next week, let us know! We’re currently working on names that we find interesting. You can message our Facebook page, Twitter account, Instagram page, or even email us at News1013@mbcmedia.ca. Otherwise, we’ll just continue asking about local street names that we find interesting.
