Over a 30-year career, Hamilton lawyer and politician Thomas Baker McQuesten presided over a remarkable array of public works and beautification projects. Starting in his hometown of Hamilton, McQuesten led multiple park development projects — including Gage Park, the Sunken Garden at McMaster University (which he helped bring to Hamilton) and Royal Botanical Gardens, which he saw as his legacy. Appointed provincial Minister of Public Works and Highways in 1934, in less than a decade McQuesten oversaw the construction of the technically advanced Queen Elizabeth Way, three international bridges (including the Rainbow Bridge), hundreds of kilometres of new highways, the complete redevelopment of Niagara Parks, and the restoration of several historical forts and sites. A man of vision, McQuesten was able to accomplish such an impressive body of work because he possessed a unique combination of political skill and integrity, creating major public projects shaped by his esthetic sense, attracting the talents of the best artists, landscape architects and builders in Ontario.

Location

York Boulevard, at the layby a short distance from the Thomas B. McQuesten Level Bridge, Hamilton

Themes

• Buildings and structures
• People
• Politics and law
• Transportation systems and communications