Thomas Foster Memorial in Uxbridge Township, Ontario Canada

Thomas Foster (1852 - 1945)

Thomas Foster was born near Toronto, and raised in Scott Township north of Uxbridge where his father ran the Leaskdale Hotel. He became a butcher in Cabbagetown in Toronto, was elected M.P., and served as mayor of Toronto from 1925 to 1927. He also made a large fortune from real estate.

The Thomas Foster Memorial

Foster visited India in his late seventies. After seeing the famous Taj Mahal, Foster was inspired to build a memorial in his boyhood community, with a Christian adaptation. The Memorial was erected in 1935-36, and cost $250,000. It contains three crypts for Mr. Foster, his wife and daughter.

J.H. Craig, (1889 - 1954), was the principal architect of the temple. Together with artchitect H.H. Madill (1889 - 1988), they worked on an entirely new and original design based on Byzantine architecture.

An Unusual Contest

Thomas Foster held a contest to find the lady who could have the most children in 10 years.

An Unusual Will

Included in Thomas Foster's will were funds:

to feed Toronto birds in winter.

for needy newsboys in Toronto.

to plant trees on roads leading into Toronto.

to apprehend poachers around Toronto.

for an annual inner-city school picnic.

for cancer research.

for the Leaskdale Sunday School.

to maintain the Memorial.

Enter the Memorial

On September 21, 1996, a special historical designation ceremony was held at the Memorial. The Local Architectural Conservation Advisory Committee (LACAC) unveiled the plaque from the province acknowledging the domed mausoleum's uniqueness.

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