Our Past

Brampton Historical Society

Our mandate is to Conserve, Celebrate and Promote Brampton's History and our continuing programs are designed to educate, preserve and enjoy the Heritage of Brampton and its surroundings.

With a growing membership and exciting on going activities, if you are looking for a group that has a vision, and are willing to spend a little time to help us fulfill it, please consider joining us for the future of the past.

Buffy's Corners, the original name of Brampton, was the site of the respectable tavern owned by William Buffy, considered the father of Brampton. His pioneer spirit lives on as the title of our new web site.

On a Thursday night, October 1, 1998, a group of people met, in the Peel heritage Complex (now PAMA) to discuss the rapid depletion of historical buildings in the City of Brampton and possible solutions to the destruction of our heritage.

From that humble beginning the Brampton historical Society was born. 


Here are just a few things we've accomplished since then:

  • BHS was granted Associate Member status in the Ontario Historical Society.
  • BHS has received official recognition from the City of Brampton
  • BHS was responsible, in 1999, for generating interest in the restoration of the four-faced tower clock atop the 1888 Dominion Building at Main and Queen Streets. After many years sitting silent and neglected, the clock has been fully restored. The clock was built and installed in the Dominion Building clock tower in 1914 by Smith of Derby, England. St. Paul’s Cathedral, London also houses a tower clock by the same manufacturer that had its beginning in 1856 and still flourishes today.
  • BHS was the driving force behind the saving and preservation of the 1902 CPR Train Station. The restored historic landmark now provides valuable community space and is the focal point of the Mount Pleasant Community Centre.
  • BHS was responsible for the locating and restoration of the historically significant 1857 Bristow, Fitzgerald Map of the Town of Brampton. It is both the earliest known map of Brampton and also the only one known to exist. The Map can now be viewed at Peel Art Gallery, Museum and Archives where it is displayed on permanent loan.
  • BHS in 2004 initiated the Paul Hunt Bursary Awards. The Awards are available to any student who resides in Brampton. Recipients must have graduated from a public or separate secondary school in the Region of Peel and have been accepted into an accredited Canadian post-secondary institution with plans to major in Canadian history or related subjects.