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If you have some interesting history about the Corktown neighbourhood and you wish to share it with others, please send us an e-mail.

The Streets
of Corktown
Jackson Street

Jackson Street was originally called Tyburn Street and then Maiden Lane. It is now named after Edward Jackson (1799-1872) who founded the Hamilton Tin Factory in 1828. The factory office was on King Street East near Catharine and the foundry was located at Catharine near Robert Street. Jackson was a shareholder and director of the Gore Bank, director of the Hamilton and Lake Erie Railway and the provisional director of the Bank of Hamilton. He gave freely to associations established to assist freed slaves after the American Civil War.

Charlton Avenue

This street was named after Benjamin Ernest Charlton (1835 - 1901) who taught at Central Public School, then left to found the Hamilton Vinegar Company, located at King William and Wellington. He also enjoyed a political career serving as councillor, alderman and then mayor. He is buried in Hamilton Cemetery.

Corktown Neighbourhood settled in 1840s

By Julie Spicer

To reiterate what we stated in the inaugural issue of our newsletter, we are simply going to provide our readers with a brief history of the origins of the Corktown neighbourhood. The sign which stands at the Walnut Street side of Shamrock Park sets this out succinctly as follows:

“....Corktown is the traditional name of the area, which was settled by a number of Irish immigrants who had left their homeland to seek employment in Canada. Many were fleeing the Potato Famine of the late 1840s, during which time the seaport city of Cork, Ireland, was one of the busiest points of embarkation. Many of Corktown’s inhabitants were employed by the T. H. & B. Railway, which was located in the neighbourhood; some would work for Sir Allan MacNab, whose home was Dundurn Castle.”

In future, we will report on the history and heritage of our neighbourhood and its buildings, businesses and characters. If you have an interesting story or history of your home, business or family within Corktown, we would be very happy to hear from you!

The Corktown Neighbourhood

The Corktown Neighbourhood is bounded by James Street to the west, Main Street to the north, Wellington Street to the east and the Niagara Escarpment to the south. Please select the map image to the left to download a PDF version.