On Saturday, May 28, 2016, the Small Arms Jane’s Walk will visit the Long Branch Rifle Ranges in Mississauga

Walking south along Waterfront Trail toward Lake Ontario shoreline, from Small Arms Building, during May 3, 2105 Small Arms Jane’s Walk led by City of Mississauga Ward One Councillor Jim Tovey (second from left, holding coffee mug). Wooden baffles at Long Branch Rifle Ranges are visible in background. Jaan Pill photo

You are cordially invited to join us on Saturday, May 28, 2016 for a Jane’s Walk led by Ward One, City of Mississauga Councillor Jim Tovey.

The walk begins at 1:00 pm on May 28 at the Small Arms Building at the foot of Dixie Road and Lakeshore Road East.

You can access details about the walk at the Jane’s Walk – Mississauga webpage:

Small Arms Building – Then and Now

We had a similar walk last year on May 3, 2015. Again, the walk was led by Jim Tovey, former president of the Lakeview Ratepayers Association.

Jim Tovey was key player in the launch of Inspiration Lakeview and the Lakeview Waterfront Connection Project, and a leader of the community effort (which reached its objective in 2009) to designate the Small Arms Building under the Ontario Heritage Act.

At the above-noted Jane’s Walk link, which is posted at the Jane’s Walk website, under the category of walks in Mississauga, you will find the following description of one of the stops along the May 28, 2016 walk:

Walking west along the Waterfront Trail during a May 6, 2012 Jane’s Walk in Long Branch. The walkers are heading in the direction of Applewood Creek in Mississauga. The trail that you see is where the southern branch of Etobicoke Creek used to flow – in a direction parallel to the trail, and south of it – on its way to Lake Ontario during the Country Cottage era. Mike Foley photo

Another stopping point: Shoreline of Lake Ontario at Applewood Creek

Stop C. Long Branch Rifle Ranges

The rifle ranges in this area, although named after Long Branch, do not have a direct, geographical connection to the historic Village of Long Branch located to the east of the Mississauga-Toronto border. People just liked to name things after Long Branch.

The wooden baffles, built before the First World War, remain as remnants of the rifle ranges. Details are available at an online resource, entitled “Long Branch Outdoor Rifle Range,” published in September 2013, which describes the related history.

The document, which outlines a Cultural Heritage Assessment of the site, is published by the Culture Division, Community Services, Corporation of the City of Mississauga.

Occasionally, the site is called the Long Branch Rifle Range (singular) and sometimes it’s called the Long Branch Rifle Ranges (plural). We like the plural form but it’s a matter of choice.

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Participants in May 3, 2014 Jane’s Walk on their way along the sand beach from Etobicoke Creek – in the background – to Applewood Creek, where the Mississauga-Toronto boundary is located. The boundary is based on where the western and southern branches of Etobicoke Creek used to run in the Cottage Country era before they were filled in during the 1950s. Jaan Pill photo

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Stop D. Lakeview Waterfront Connection Project

At the Lake Ontario shoreline, we review the community-initiated Lakeview Waterfront Connection Project. Do you know where the Mississauga-Toronto border, at the shoreline, is located? Is the border located to the east or west of Applewood Creek? Answer: The border is a short distance east of the creek; as well, the land on both sides of Applewood Creek, at the shoreline, belongs to TRCA (TRCA, 2016).

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Applewood Creek at Mississauga-Toronto border at shoreline of Lake Ontario. The border is located just to the east of the creek. Jaan Pill photo

TRCA & CVC social media accounts

Click here for a listing of TRCA social media accounts >

CVC has one direct handle which covers all CVC content and environmental topics:

Facebook: Credit Valley Conservation
Twitter: @CVC_CA
Instagram: @CVC_CA
LinkedIn: Credit Valley Conservation
Flickr: Credit Valley Conservation

Why are so many places outside of Long Branch, such as in Mississauga, named after Long Branch?

This is a great question. The opening paragraphs at the following longread post answers the question:

A History of Long Branch (Toronto) – Draft 4

Click on the photos to enlarge them