Government building.

Details of Site Location: The west side of Yonge Street, between Sheppard and Finch, directly east of Gibson House Museum.

Boundary History: On a commercial building lot of less than a quarter of an acre, fronting on Yonge.

Current Use of Property: Parking lot.

Historical Description: Surveyor David Gibson (1804-1864) petitioned the government to open a post office and suggested the name, Willow Dale (also the name of his house), because of the large number of willow trees in the district. Born in Glamis Parish, Forfarshire, Scotland, Gibson had come to Canada in 1825. He became involved with Mackenzie and the Rebellion and had to flee to the United States. His home was burned down by soldiers. In 1848, he received a complete pardon and returned to Canada. In 1953 he was appointed Crown Land Commissioner, Inspector of Crown Land Agencies, and Superintendent of Colonization Roads. His second house, standing behind the Willow-dale Post Office, was finished in 1851. The post office was established on 28 March 1855 in the tinsmith’s shop of Jacob Cummer, who was appointed the first postmaster. Cummer, born in 1800, was a jack-of-all-trades and had previously cut lumber on the Gibson property, hauling it to Yonge Street for use in Gibson’s house. In 1834, Gibson gave a half-acre on the east side of Yonge at Church Street to the community for church purposes. A log Methodist Episcopal meeting house was built, with Jacob Cummer doing most of the work. In the 1840s, Cummer built a shingle mill, using 2,300 bricks left over from building Gibson’s house. Later, with his son Joseph, Cummer built a small shop on Yonge and carried on a business of tin and copper smithing, selling such items as pots, pans, and stovepipes. Here is where the post office began. Cummer’s building burned down in 1865. David Gibson immediately went to Toronto to see the Post Office Inspector and obtain duplicate post office papers in order to continue mail service. A couple of days after the fire, a benefit social was held at the Golden Lion Hotel for the Cummers. The proceeds amounted to $27. Jacob Cummer continued to be postmaster until his death in June 1880. His son Samuel then became postmaster until March 1882. The post office building at this corner was replaced a number of times; the last one was torn down in the 1980s. A smaller post office has been set up in a mall across the street and down a block.

Relative Importance: The first post office and Jacob Cummer both deserve to be remembered as essential to the growth and development of Willowdale.

Planning Implications: The area is historic with plenty of room at present for a plaque, which should recite the progression of buildings, and the Cummer family and their connection with David Gibson.

Reference Sources: Patricia W. Hart, Pioneering in North York (1968); files of North York Historical Society.

Acknowledgements: Maps Project; Gibson House Museum.