Archive Record
Images
Metadata
Catalog Number |
BE2001.1.540 |
Object Name |
Invitation |
Scope & Content |
An invitation card addressed to 'The Misses Harris', which is written in black ink in the top left corner. There is black printed text on the card, reading 'Mrs. J. K. Macdonald, At Home, on Saturday, January the nineteenth, from 4:30 to 7 o'clock. Confederation Life Building.' The print is in fancy script. On the back of the card is handwriting in pencil. The handwriting is hard to read but appears to be a recipe for an alcoholic beverage. The words 'champagne' and 'brandy' are legible, with measurements on the left. |
History |
This item was originally an invitation that was most likely sent to Arthur's sisters Bessie and Lucy Harris. The paper was later reused to write down the information of a recipe for what looks to be an alcoholic beverage that included champagne and brandy. Bessie (1835-1910) and Lucy (1844-1925) were the daughters of Elizabeth (née Molony) (1829-1884) and Captain James Beveridge Harris (1797-1884). The two never married. Both girls lived at Benares until the 1880s when a series of inheritances allowed them to buy a house on St. George Street in Toronto. Some of their furniture from Toronto is in the Benares collection. Lucy and Bessie were invited to a party hosted by the wife of John Kay Macdonald; Charlotte Emily Perley. Mr. and Mrs. Macdonald resided in a home located at 33 Charles Street East that they named 'Cona Lodge'. Mr. Macdonald was a businessman who helped create the Confederation Life Association in 1871; he would go on to manage the life assurance company Confederation Life and was involved with the erection of the Confederation Life Building at Yonge and Richmond Streets during the late 1880s and early 1890s. According to an article published in the Toronto Daily Star in Jan of 1901, Mrs. Macdonald entertained a large group of people in the assembly room of the Confederation Life Building which was believed to be in honour of her son's Duncan marriage. She entertained guests in the building where her husband worked and later led them nearby to the family's home, Cona Lodge. References: Social Events. The Globe. January 19th, 1901 John Kay Macdonald. Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online |
People |
Harris, Lucy Harris, Bessie |