After his death in Toronto in 1860, William Thomas was lauded by the Globe as having created “some of the most tasteful buildings of which our city can boast.” The list was long, featuring churches, schools, stores, offices, and stately homes. But Thomas’s reach as an architect after his arrival in Canada West (now Ontario) from his native Britain in 1843 had extended far beyond city limits. Closer to home, his “tastefully” designed buildings adorned cities such as Stratford and St. Catharines, Goderich and Guelph, Perth and Port Hope; farther afield, there was a miscellany of structures in Quebec City and Halifax.

Although Thomas was hugely successful as both an architect and a surveyor in Canada, with more than 80 buildings to his credit, his rise to the pinnacle of his profession was neither swift nor easy.

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