Homeless in the Don Valley

“You refer to the unemployed men who lived in the valley. Some of them had shacks, but most of my acquaintances lived in grave-shaped holes covered with a few branches and an old piece of linoleum. The residents of the area seemed to be all decent young men with no means of support. My mother, who was a real “worry wart” never seemed concerned about me associating with them. I remember well setting out to visit them carrying  basket carrying potatoes, onions and an old pair of shoes.”

Letter from Calvin Niddery, Feb. 7, 1986 to Charles Sauriol, commenting on an article in the Cardinal about homelessness in the valley during the Great Depression.

City of Toronto Archives, Charles Sauriol Fonds, Series 103, File 32, 103027-6