My Eye Exam and Christmas Memories

I would like to thank all of my blogging friends for praying that my eye examination this morning would go well. Praise God! It's the best I've had in a long time. My eye pressures were 14 and 17, which is VERY good. My vision is 20/20 with my bifocals on and the doctor informed me that the field test he did six months ago was excellent. I have not lost any periphial vision. This is great! I have a double risk of vision lost because I am a diabetic that suffers from glaucoma. I go back in April for another field test and then next September for a full eye examination like I had today.

Last night I watch the movie, Booky and the Secret Santa on CBC. It was a family movie that I really enjoyed. It takes place in Toronto during the Great Depression. Booky is a ten year old girl who tries her best to make Christmas a happy one for her family.

Booky's father worked for the T. Eaton Company as a harness maker in the horse stables. In November 1932, Eatons upgraded from horse drawn delivery wagons to trucks. This put Booky's father out of work just a month before Christmas.

Booky's aunt owned a nut shop in Toronto and gave Booky a job handing out samples every Saturday. While working, Booky becomes friends with Mr. Eaton who owns Eatons department store.

One day Booky sees a man with a gun force Mr. Eaton down an alley. She runs to help him and is successful in her attempt. Mr. Eaton grants her one wish and Booky uses it to help her friend's mother. In return, Mr. Eaton invites her family to his famous Christmas party.

This is a great family movie that is fiction based on fact. Eatons department store was a great Canadian icon. Here is a bit of history on the T. Eaton Co. Ltd., or as Canadians knew it, simply Eatons:

Above: The T. Eaton Company in Toronto.

Timothy Eaton was born in Ireland in 1834, the child of a widow. His father had died two months before he was born and his mother died when he was 14, leaving him an orphan. At this time Timothy left school to work and support himself. He saved enough to sail to Canada West (now Ontario) in 1854, where he worked for some time on his sister's farm in Georgetown.

Before long, Timothy was offered and took a position as bookeeper at a general store. This was at the time when the Grand Trunk Railroad was expanding into the area. Timothy and his brother saw an opportunity to supply travelers with goods and opened a general store in 1856.

In 1860, Timothy and James moved to St. Mary's, Ontario and opened a dry goods store. Timothy also opened the T. Eaton bakery. In 1868, he married Margaret Beattie and they moved to Toronto, Ontario, where Timothy purchased a dry goods store in 1869. The store was located at 178 Yonge Street.

Above: The Yonge Street entrance to the T. Eaton Company.

The Company did well under Timothy's direction and in 1883, he expanded and moved the store to 190 Yonge Street. The T. Eaton Co. Ltd., was Toronto's first department store. The following year, it distributed a 32 page catalogue so their customers could order goods and have them shipped through the mail. An empire had been born.

Above: The 1884 edition of the T. Eaton & Co. catalogue.

When I was young, we got both an Eaton's and a Sear's catalogue. I almost always purchased something from Eaton's after I began working. Mom preferred Eaton's as well. During the 1950s, the catalogue was 400 pages of everything you could ever need or want. I loved looking through the Eaton's catalogue.

The store stayed in the Eaton's family until 1999, when it sold all of its assets to Sears. I sure miss that store. It was my favorite for many years.

Last night's movie brought back many memories of Eaton's. When I received my first pay in 1965, I bought a pretty blue wool skirt at Eaton's for $6.00. I will always remember buying that skirt, as it was the first piece of clothing I'd ever purchased with my own money.

Eaton's always had a Santa at Christmas, and Mom would take us to town and let us stand in line to tell him what we'd like to receive for Christmas. The toy department was in the basement and that is where Santa could be found. Sweet memories of Christmas and Eatons.