Flora McCrea Eaton, Lady Eaton (1880–1970) was the wife of Toronto

Toronto

Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...

 department store president and heir Sir John Craig Eaton.

Life and career

Raised in a large family in Omemee, Ontario

Kawartha Lakes, Ontario

The city of Kawartha Lakes is a unitary municipality in Central Ontario, Canada. Although called a city, Kawartha Lakes is the size of a typical Ontarian county and is mostly rural....

, Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

, Flora McCrea moved to Toronto to become a nurse at Rotherham House, a private hospital on Sherbourne street. While working as a nurse, Flora met a young patient, John Craig Eaton, who was the son of Eaton's

Eaton's

The T. Eaton Co. Limited was once Canada's largest department store retailer. It was founded in 1869 in Toronto by Timothy Eaton, an Irish immigrant. Eaton's grew to become a retail and social institution in Canada, with stores across the country, buying offices across the globe, and a catalogue...

 department store founder Timothy Eaton

Timothy Eaton

Timothy Eaton was a Canadian businessman who founded the Eaton's department store, one of the most important retail businesses in Canada's history.-Early life and family:...

. The two eventually fell in love, and were married. They built a massive mansion in 1911 to accommodate themselves and their growing family. Named Ardwold

Ardwold

Ardwold was the residence of Sir John Craig Eaton and Lady Eaton of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Sir John was the youngest son of Timothy Eaton, the founder of the T. Eaton Company Department Store, or Eaton's, and he inherited the business and became its president upon his father's death in 1907...

, the home was one of the most lavish ever constructed in Toronto. They were the parents of four boys and one girl with one adopted daughter.

In 1915, John Craig Eaton was knighted, and became Sir John Craig Eaton, and his wife, Lady Eaton.

After her husband's death in 1922, Lady Eaton continued to live in the Ardwold mansion until the mid-1930s when she decided to retire to her summer residence, Eaton Hall

Eaton Hall (King City)

Eaton Hall is a large house in King City, Ontario, Canada, built in the Norman style for Lady Eaton in 1937 on a 700 acre parcel of land . Lady Eaton and her husband, Sir John Craig Eaton acquired the land in 1919 on recommendation from their friend Sir Henry Pellatt, who owned the nearby Mary...

 in King City

King City, Ontario

King City is an affluent, unincorporated village in King Township, Ontario, Canada, located just north of Toronto. It is the largest community in King Township, with 1,629 dwellings and a population of 4,902.-History:...

, north of Toronto. The contents of Ardwold were then auctioned off and the mansion was demolished.

Lady Eaton was a member of the Board of Directors of Eaton's of Canada and took an active role in the company, overseeing the development of restaurants in the Eaton's stores. She was also very active with local charities and allowed Eaton Hall to be used as a military hospital for Canadian soldiers during the war.

Legacy

In addition to Eaton Hall, once part of Seneca College

Seneca College

Seneca College of Applied Arts and Technology is a Canadian public college in the greater Toronto area. Seneca College is currently Canada's largest college with approximately 108,000 students.-History:...

 and now a public hotel, Lady Eaton Elementary School in Omemee, and Lady Eaton College at Trent University

Trent University

Trent University is a liberal arts and science-oriented institution located along the Otonabee River in Peterborough, Ontario, Canada.The enabling legislation is the Trent University Act, 1962-63. The University was founded through the efforts of a citizens' committee interested in creating a...

, Peterborough

Peterborough, Ontario

Peterborough is a city on the Otonabee River in southern Ontario, Canada, 125 kilometres northeast of Toronto. The population of the City of Peterborough was 74,898 as of the 2006 census, while the census metropolitan area has a population of 121,428 as of a 2009 estimate. It presently ranks...

, are named in her honour. The Eaton family donated several buildings to the village of Omemee including the United Church Rectory, and Coronation Hall at the corner of King and Sturgeon Streets, as well as the pipe organ in Trinity United Church. The Eatons had proposed Omemee change its name to Eatonville and offered to be benefactors of the village. The proud town fathers refused.

Flora's birth place is now the Tully Lark, a coffee shop at 5 King Street East Omemee.

Famous relatives

A contemporary cousin of Lady Eaton is Canadian artist Christian Cardell Corbet

Christian Cardell Corbet

Christian Cardell Corbet is a Canadian sculptor, painter and designer. He co-founded and was first President of the Canadian Portrait Academy.- Quotes :...

, related through the Foden family.

External links