From the Evening Record – February, 1914:
- The above is a cut of the factory and warehouse building to be erected on Pitt Street east, between McDougall and Mercer, for the J.T. Wing Co. The building will be 100 feet square, the greater part of the floor space being used for storage and manufacturing purposes. The front section of the ground floor will be comprised of offices, show room and store for retail trade. This section of the building is finished in oak, while the ceilings are treated with beaver board. The remainder of the building will be of steel construction the whole being carried on specifically designed re-inforced footing (sic) to provide for extremely heavy load. While only three stories are being erected now, the architect, Mr. J. Carlisle Pennington has provided for another storey, which will be added later.
Back in February of 1971, there was a fire at the J.T. Wing building and Len Bondy and off duty firefighter who came in on his off day to help fight this fire lost his life.
The site once occupied by the J.T. Wing building, now lies under Caesar’s Windsor.
100 square feet? Methinks there was a typo in the original article.
My brother in law is a retired windsor fire fighter he was at the fire that destroyed J T Wing and said it was the worst fire he ever had to fight like Len Bondy mentioned off duty fire fighters were called in to help
100 feet squared = 10,000 square feet (footprint)
Andrew, I shot many photos before they razed this building…. Deco details around the main doorway, etc. I will dig them up.
Any relation to the lumber schooner that was stuffed and mounted on Belle Isle?
My Dad’s father was a clerk at J.T. Wing. The day of the fire, my Mother’s father was a District Chief on duty (C.E. Defields). He was greatly affected by the death of Bondy and retired soon afterward.
I remember this building very well as i was in it not long before the fire i had snucked into it got chase out by law when i was young. But yep member the fire in 71 there could see it from alymer and university the smoke was alot.