Long before Stratford, Ontario, Canada, became world-renowned for its theatre festival. The legendary Albion Hotel stood as the backdrop for some of the town’s most chaotic history and a connection to its short-term, famous resident, Thomas Edison.
Beloved by locals, the Albion was once used as a makeshift town hall. Then etched its name into history due to an election riot. Driven by a horrid defeat, local Conservative Thomas Mayne Daly sparked a street brawl. With fights, bricks raining from the roof, and local women swinging rock-filled stockings.
Yet, bedlam was half of the tavern’s legacy. Almost at the exact time, a 16-year-old boy named Thomas Edison moved into an apartment attached to the Albion. It was here the young, rule-breaking genius made one of the worst mistakes of his life.
..: Quick Links :..
Inside Castle Kilbride Walks
Inside a Victorian masterpiece after the sun goes down. Near Stratford!
Stratford’s Albion Hotel | Home to Major History
Built in 1855 by Peter and James Woods, the Albion Hotel is considered the first-ever brick hotel in Stratford. It featured an accessible, flat rooftop where guests could survey the rapidly growing town.
The Albion was deeply beloved, even by locals. Including the Town Council.
Before Stratford had a dedicated Town Hall, the council was forced to meet inside a stuffy, cramped room in the local Courthouse. So, they moved to the Albion!
However, the town’s residents disapproved of this arrangement. Terrified of having their elected officials so close to the tavern and its flowing alcohol.
They banded together and successfully forced the council to relocate to a local schoolhouse. Where they remained for a short time until the first Town Hall was completed in 1856.
How the Albion Caused a Riot
The Albion served as the backdrop for one of Stratford’s most chaotic historical events. Which was sparked by the town’s once richest resident, Thomas Mayne Daly.
Born and grew up in Hamilton. He was a cocky Conservative, and son of a Colonel who was considered a founding father of Stratford.
Having easily won a previous election in the mid-1800s, Daly entered his reelection campaign with complete confidence … then, he lost.
His defeat by a young Liberal lawyer named Robert MacFarlane empowered the local Liberals. They held a massive victory parade through the streets of Stratford. At the time, one of the longest political processions in Canadian history.
Sadly, they decided to go past the Albion Hotel. This was serving as Daly’s Conservative campaign headquarters.
As the procession marched past, the Liberals spotted Daly and a crowd of his Conservative supporters standing on hotel balconies. They began yelling taunts and insults upward.
Enraged, Daly yelled back down into the crowd, threatening that he would, “…drive the Grits out of town by force.” (Grit was an insulting term for Liberals, implying they were troublemakers or American sympathizers).
To emphasize it, Daly dramatically swung one leg over the balcony railing, pretending he was about to leap down into the crowd.
It was a joke, but not to Daly’s supporters! Standing on adjacent balconies, they mistook this gesture as a battle cry.
They began leaping from the balconies like flying squirrels, landing directly on top of the marching Liberals. Other Conservatives on the Albion’s roof began raining bricks down onto the crowd.
The street erupted into a massive brawl. People pouring out of surrounding buildings to join the fight.
Even women rushed into the melee, whipping off their stockings and filling them with rocks. Then running in while swinging the stockings like propellers over their heads.
Daly was Okay
In the end, the Conservatives lost both the election and the riot.
Remarkably, no legal punishments were ever handed down. The crowd was simply too large for the regional court town of Goderich. Which was protected by just one policeman.
Despite essentially inciting a massive riot, Thomas Mayne Daly’s popularity survived. He went on to serve as the Mayor of Stratford twice during the 1870s. And stayed in politics for years after.
He’d eventually passed away in 1885 at his home. Which once stood at the corner of today’s Erie and Ontario Streets, just steps away from the Albion.
Coincidentally, almost at the same time as Daly’s election riot, a 16-year-old kid named Thomas Edison moved to Stratford.
Dundas Ghost Walks
Join us for our Ghost Walks in the historic (and haunted) Town of Dundas.
Thomas Edison the Child | Screw-up & Hero
Before Canada entered the picture, young Edison was living with his family in Port Huron, Michigan.
He quickly landed his first job in the baggage car of a train, selling candy, newspapers, and magazines to passengers. But boredom and curiosity soon got the better of him, leading him to build a small laboratory where he experimented with chemicals.
It was said that his use of yellow phosphorus caused the accident.
Some spilled, and when it contacted oxygen, the lab exploded.
He was immediately fired. Showing a perfect example of how his mind worked as a boy … brilliant, with no patience for rules or wasted time.
Even with that setback, Edison remained obsessed with trains and continued to spend time around the station.
That turned out to be fortunate for a young boy named Jimmie Mackenzie.
What Led Him to his Next Life
At only 15 years old (1862), Edison saved a two‑year‑old’s life.
He often lingered around the train station and considered himself friends with the station agent and telegraph operator, James Mackenzie.
One day, Edison was standing outside the main station watching freight cars transfer to the sidetrack.
He saw Mackenzie’s two‑year‑old son, Jimmie, walking on the track as a freight car sped toward him. Edison ran to the track, risking his own life to save the boy, resulting in only a few minor scratches instead of something far worse.
James was overjoyed with gratitude and soon offered to teach Edison how to use the Morse telegraphic system. The always‑curious Edison quickly agreed.
Leading him to become a telegraph operator and pulling him deeper into the intricacies of train stations.
Which is what led him to an available job in Stratford, Ontario, Canada.
His Quick Life in Stratford
At 16 years old, Edison moved to Canada for his second job. Working for the Grand Trunk Railway in a town historically renowned for its train depots.
Was paid $25 a month. Which surprisingly was less than when he sold candy in Michigan. But the call to travel and adventure was too much to turn down.
He lived in a small apartment at 46 Ontario Street in Stratford. Which was attached to the Albion Hotel, just after the politically violent riot took over the streets.
He was a teenager alone in a new country, already tinkering with inventions.
Edison split his time between two train stations…
- The Stratford Station
- A Junction Station in St. Marys
And it was at one of these stations where things went sideways. Which one? We’re not sure. Seems both Stratford and St. Marys claim the incident happened at their station, as a point of historical pride for the towns.
(Almost) Head-On Collision
Edison was given the dreaded nightshift. And to ensure that night operators weren’t falling asleep on the job, the railway required them to telegraph a specific signal. Called an “all-clear”, or hourly signal to the dispatcher. Every hour on the dot.
Edison found this annoying. It interrupted his activities, reading and napping.
So, the Inventor invented!
He created a hack … connecting a clock to the telegraph key so that it would automatically send the required signal precisely on the hour. Even if he was distracted, or maybe mistakenly fell asleep.
As you’d expect, the device worked perfectly. But it sadly didn’t have eyeballs. Unable to look out the window to see if the tracks were actually clear.
Led to one night in 1863. Edison’s clockwork contraption clicked out the “all-clear” signal while he was asleep.
Unbeknownst to him … an actual train was stalled on the track.
Because of his automated message, a second train was allowed through, not knowing the stalled train was there in the darkness of night.
A near-fatal, head-on collision ALMOST occurred. Only saviour was the quick reflexes of experienced engineers.
A mistake so serious that Edison was summoned to the Toronto office of W.J. Spicer, the Grand Trunk Railway’s general manager at the time. He fully expected to be put in jail.
Escape from Canada
At Spicer’s office in Toronto there was a distraction. He left the office, leaving a berated Edison alone with his thoughts.
The boy seized the moment and snuck out of the building through a side door. Running in full sprint through Union Station and hoping the first train to Stratford.
In Stratford, live a fugitive on the run, he grabbed his belongings. Then catching a train west to Sarnia. Leading him to a Ferry Boat back to the safety of the United States.
His Canadian adventure was over. Lasting only a few months between 1863 and 1864.
Even though the time was short, his legacy created a true historical experience for Stratford. Leading to the Albion being more associated with Edison than even the Daly Riot.
And today it continues with the Edison Inn.
What did Edison Learn
Edison later said that his time with the Grand Trunk Railway taught him two things…
- Telegraphy was powerful and ripe for innovation … true, as it led to the invention of the telephone (in Canada … Brantford) about 12 years after his escape.
- Automation was the future, but it demanded precision … we all know that’s true!
The boy who nearly caused a train collision would go on to revolutionize communication, sound, and electric light.
Stratford was a stumble. A moment where Edison’s ambition outpaced his discipline. A learning experience.
And all was forgiven! It’s said Edison left Canada so quickly, he failed to collect his final paycheck. This was corrected in 1890s.
After becoming the great inventor responsible for …
- The Phonograph
- Light bulb
- Early Movie Cameras
And much more.
The Grand Trunk Railway dug up his final paycheck. Officials travelled to Port Huron, Michigan and presented the check to Edison.
It’s said he accepted it with “great amusement”.