82:. For several years, this company operated two ships to carry excursionists from Toronto to the owners' hotels at the Humber River. To attract winter business Hicks and Duck constructed a racetrack on the river in winter 1888. Relations with Charles Nurse were sometimes strained. In 1887, Hicks brought a civil action for trespass against Nurse. He claimed that Nurse had improperly fenced in part of public right of way south of the Lakeshore Road. Hicks' complaint was upheld on appeal. The hotel apparently suspended operation around 1889 before reopening several years later under a new owner.
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66:. In 1918, his boat livery became involved in legal dispute with the Toronto Board of Harbor Commissioners. The Board claimed jurisdiction over the Humber River, but Hicks disputed this. He managed to obtain the support of the York County Commissioners. Hicks took the matter to court but lost quickly because "the limits were set by the Department of Marine and Fisheries at Ottawa, and were not merely plan of the commissioners."
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117:". Two innovative techniques were used in construction of the bridge: "the rods were given considerable tension before the concrete was poured by an ingenious device of the contractor"; ice bags were left overnight on the fresh concrete so that courses poured on successive days would bond properly. In 1909, he received a contract from
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Some contractors considered him to be a bold and luck speculator (for instance, in his contract on the Mimico abutments mentioned above.) The writer, however, knows that he never gambled on a contract or took an avoidable risk. He had always considered well his modes of construction and he was one of
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As a boatbuilder, he is best known for canoes with a torpedo stem. He also built sailing canoes, skiffs and power boats. The boat factory was located on the north side of
Lakeshore Road to the west of the Humber Beach Hotel. In 1907, the boat livery was moved to the east side of the river between the
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tracks. The Royal Oak Hotel was located a little west. He purchased it from the widow of the hotel's builder in 1880. As a hotelier, he sometimes joined with owners of nearby hotels to jointly promote their businesses. Most ambitious was when he joined with John Duck (Wimbledon House), Charles Nurse
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bridge. The pilings of the abutment sank into the sand on the river bottom. Therefore, concrete abutments sitting on rock were specified. Hick's solution was to sink square concrete shells through twenty feet of sand. The shells sank as the inside sand was scooped out. The shells were then filled
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His contracting business built bridges and abutments. The firm also did more mundane work such as building a cinder path for bicyclists, earth moving, pile driving, and sand blasting. In 1904, his first commission was Musson's Bridge which carried the old Albion Road (now
Flindon Road) over the
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and continued via steamer without any rail travel. 1913 is the last year in which Might's
Directory Listed O L Hicks and Son as contractors. He continued to be listed as a boathouse operator until his son, W. H. Hicks took over in 1925.
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His best known patent was a sliding seat for racing sculls. He also patented a boat rudder which could be easily shipped or unshipped. 'The
Flotilla' carousel formed from a ring of miniature boats was installed at
125:. The arch bridge over the Holland River at Newmarket was built by Hicks and designed by Frank Barber. This 1909 railway bridge has been stripped of its approach embankments and preserved as a historic structure.
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G.T.R. and the
Lakeshore Road. The boathouse moved back to the west bank south of Lakeshore Road in 1913. This final boathouse was demolished in 1930 to accommodate a widening of Lakeshore Road.
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Municipal
Council to build a reinforced concrete bridge over the Humber River between Purpleville and Kleinburg. This bridge was located near the intersection of Teston Rd and
113:. Frank Barber claimed this was the first concrete beam bridge in York County. In 1909, he built the first concrete truss bridge in Canada. The exact type was a "parabolic
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He is best known as a builder of boats and bridges. His contracting business constructed bridges, and foundations. He was also an inventor, hotel owner, and brickmaker.
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In spring 1885, he constructed a 400 ft iron pier for the Ferry
Company at High Park. The construction was unusual in that it was supported by 53
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Humber River. It was the first all-riveted steel bridge with a permanent floor. The eastern abutment of this bridge survives today. A bridge at
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62:. Boats were built and rented at this location. Hicks saved several people from drowning. He once rented boats to the party of
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In 1911, he and his wife took a trip to the old country. The couple sailed their own cabin cruiser, Visitant, to
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Robert A. Given (9 June 1955). "Hicks An
Honored Name On the Humber Since1873; Boat and Bridge Builders".
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149:. Hicks built the substructure of the Scarlett Road Bridge which was completed in November 1909.
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39:, Scotland. He settled in Humber Bay in 1873 and remained there for the rest of his life.
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247:, Hicks, Octavius, "IMPROVEMENTS ON BOAT SLIDING SEATS", issued 1880-08-26
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with concrete to yield bridge abutments. In 1906, he did the concrete work for the
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In 1873, he built a boathouse on the Humber River between
Lakeshore Road and the
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Frank Barber (7 January 1931). "The
Passing of a Pioneer in Bridge Building".
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266:, Hicks, Octavius, "RUDDER FITTINGS FOR BOATS", issued 1886-05-06
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The Middle Road Bridge was the first concrete truss bridge built in Canada.
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He was also a pioneer in foundation work. The engineer who designed the
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453:"The Wheel:Quebec's Preparations Hamilton Falls in Line A Novel".
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27:(27 January 1852 – 23 December 1930) was a prominent citizen of
312:"Boathouse Owner at Humber Objects to Have Canoes Registered".
196:"Humber Bay's Octavius Laing Hicks Was a Master Bridge Builder"
36:
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C. R. Young (26 Sep 1906). "An Economical Concrete Abutment".
600:
Frank Barber (25 February 1910). "Types of Highway Bridges".
503:. Toronto and Region Conservation Authority. p. 37.
228:
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Charles Pelham Mulvaney (1885). "OCTAVIOUS L. HICKS".
101:. Storm-driven ice destroyed the pier in March 1887.
154:the most accurate estimators the writer has known.
616:"Hiking the GTA; Toronto and York Radial Railway"
233:. Vol. II. C Blackett Robinson. p. 254.
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651:"Visiting Liberal Hurt; Want Control of Autos".
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394:"Legal Intelligence; Queen's Bench Division".
162:O.L. Hicks and Ned Hanlan on Humber River 1904
136:considered the problem which beset the nearby
493:. Richmond Hill, Ont. 21 Jul 1904. p. 1.
231:HISTORY OF TORONTO AND COUNTY OF YORK ONTARIO
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54:in eastern Toronto. His boathouse was on the
686:. Toronto: Might Directories, Limited. 1924.
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561:"CONCRETE TRUSS BRIDGE: THE FIRST IN CANADA"
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498:"The Humber River Heritage Bridge Inventory"
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714:Canadian people of Ulster-Scottish descent
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211:"Octavious L. Hicks dies at Humber Bay".
655:. Toronto. 23 November 1904. p. 12.
543:. Richmond Hill. 26 Sep 1907. p. 4.
472:. Toronto. 23 September 1892. p. 8.
215:. Toronto. 24 December 1930. p. 10.
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398:. Toronto. 13 February 1888. p. 7.
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638:Contract Record and Engineering Review
584:Contract Record and Engineering Review
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523:Contract Record and Engineering Review
368:. Toronto. 2 February 1888. p. 2.
361:. Toronto. 13 January 1888. p. 2.
383:. Toronto. 25 March 1887. p. 8.
670:. Toronto. 20 July 1911. p. 9.
457:. Toronto. 2 June 1896. p. 10.
301:. Toronto. 14 May 1887. p. 16.
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666:"From Humber to England by Boat".
442:. Toronto. 28 Mar 1887. p. 8.
331:. Toronto. 29 May 1918. p. 9.
316:. Toronto. 29 May 1918. p. 9.
286:. Toronto. 24 May 1899. p. 4.
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724:Scottish emigrants to Canada
342:"Boat Livery in Etobicoke".
327:"800 Boat Licenses Issued".
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438:"The Storm at the Island".
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683:The Toronto City Directory
537:"MARKHAM TOWNSHIP COUNCIL"
496:Roger Dorton (July 2011).
357:"TROTTING AT THE HUMBER".
282:"The Pleasure of Summer".
64:Governor General Lansdowne
35:Township. He was born in
364:"RACING AT THE HUMBER".
344:Toronto Evening Telegram
329:Toronto Evening Telegram
111:Markham Township Council
468:"More Island Filling".
427:. Toronto. 22 May 1885.
346:. Toronto. 31 May 1918.
423:"The High Park Pier".
194:Denise Harris (2018).
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109:was built in 1907 for
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559:Frank Barber (1909).
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80:Humber Steam Ferry Co
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25:Octavius Laing Hicks
412:. 1907. p. 67.
264:CA patent 23985
245:CA patent 11666
138:Grand Trunk Railway
719:People from Dundee
425:Toronto Daily Mail
187:Etobicoke Guardian
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709:1930 deaths
704:1852 births
541:The Liberal
491:The Liberal
99:screw piles
58:, south of
698:Categories
621:3 November
180:References
167:Retirement
107:Unionville
52:Munro Park
29:Humber Bay
130:streetcar
48:High Park
33:Etobicoke
173:Kingston
119:Vaughan
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71:G.T.R.
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