William Damer tenure
According to the Toronto City Directories , William Damer lived in the house between 1879 and 1882. He is listed as a shoe manufacturer in the directories, and appears to have been a prominent merchant.
A 1914 issue of Shoe and Leather Journal mentions that between 1879 and 1880, Damer was working on a new sewing pattern that he believed would revolutionize the industry. There is a John Damer, shoe seller, in Toronto during this period, but they are not related.
The 1880 Goad Fire Insurance Map reveals that, at this point, there was a sizable separate structure behind the shed, possibly a shed or outhouse, and a greenhouse.
Sources:
- Directories – Toronto Public Library (http://www.torontopubliclibrary.ca/detail.jsp?R=DC-758720003; http://www.torontopubliclibrary.ca/detail.jsp?Entt=RDMDC-TCD1882&R=DC-TCD1882)
- Patent Information –Shoe and Leather Journal (https://archive.org/details/shoeandleatherjour1914)
- Fire Insurance Map – City of Toronto Archives (http://www1.toronto.ca/wps/portal/contentonly?vgnextoid=98da757ae6b31410VgnVCM10000071d60f89RCRD&vgnextchannel=9f53226b48c2