Sir Henry Pelliatt: The King of Casa Loma, by Carlie Oreskovich (TPB, 1996, $2)
Who knew Toronto had a king? Well, actually, Sir Henry Pelliatt wasn't a king, just a robber barron who had been knighted. He did, though, have a 98 room castle. He made his fortune in many ways. One project that didn't work out well was his building of a power station at Niagara Falls. Earlier Pelliatt had made lots of money selling electricity to both towns and individuals. Then electricity was produced by steam generators fueled by coal. Until new technology made hydropower feasible, and a coal strike reduced the availability of coal, no one was interested in harnessing the water power. Unfortunately for Pelliatt, the government decided to provide people with cheap power, and so took over control of the power station. But never mind, Pelliatt had lots of other ways to make money.
Pelliatt was proud of bringing 891 men of the Queens Own Riflemen Regiment in 1910 to England to practice maneuvers with other parts of the British army. His men, even after intense training, were obviously not in the same class with the rest of the British army. (In part, because some of the Canadians were coming down with typhoid fever.) The British soldiers also laughed at the Canadians' "toy" rifles. Regardless, Pelliatt had shown that Canada was able and willing to fight if necessary to protect the British Empire. Pelliatt never led his men into battle, but when war came in 1914, 210 officers and 7,352 of his men left to fight in the trenches. (Even after several modifications, their rifles still didn't work well.)
In 1910 Pelliatt was fabulously rich, but after the recession in 1913, and then the war, his finances were in trouble. Trying to remake his fortune, Pelliatt both invested badly, and "borrowed" money from banks, his companies, and even his family that he could never pay back. Long before the stock crash, Pelliatt was broke. His castle, Casa Loma, had been started at the peak of a financial boom, but even if it had not, his grand dreams were just too expensive. He had dreamed so big, and bought so high, that even downsizing his dream castle wasn't enough. Some of the wings and floors were never finished, and eventually the furnishings were all sold at auction. They went for a song. The castle never did sell. With out anyone looking after it, the Casa Loma started to crumble. The city of Toronto forced him into bankruptcy for unpaid taxes in 1934. Until 1937 people feared Casa Loma would be razed, but in 1937 it was bought by the Kiwanis Club and turned into a tourist attraction, which is why we can still visit it today.
What a complex man. I probably should feel sorry for him, but I don't. He caused people too much pain for me to feel that way. Look for this book on the new non-fiction table. (L-tr. C.)
