Ralph Carrette Day (November 24, 1898 – May 21, 1976) was

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well as ...

Toronto, Ontario Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

from 1938 to 1940. He was also an accomplished

funeral director A funeral director, also known as an undertaker (British English) or mortician (American English), is a professional involved in the business of funeral rites. These tasks often entail the embalming and burial or cremation of the dead, as ...

, owning his own

funeral home A funeral home, funeral parlor or mortuary, is a business that provides burial and funeral services for the dead and their families. These services may include a prepared wake and funeral, and the provision of a chapel for the funeral. Services ...

. He also served as chairman of the

Toronto Transit Commission The Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) is the public transport agency that operates bus, subway, streetcar, and paratransit services in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, some of which run into the Peel Region and York Region. It is the oldest and largest ...

in the 1960s and 1970s. He was also a member of the

Orange Order in Canada The Grand Orange Lodge of British America, more commonly known as the Grand Orange Lodge of Canada or simply Orange Order in Canada, is the Canadian branch of the Orange Order, a Protestant fraternal organization that began in County Armagh in Ir ...

. In 1916, at the age of 17, Day joined the Canadian army to fight in

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

. He would fight and survive action at the

Battle of Vimy Ridge The Battle of Vimy Ridge was part of the Battle of Arras, in the Pas-de-Calais department of France, during the First World War. The main combatants were the four divisions of the Canadian Corps in the First Army, against three divisions of ...

. Day entered municipal politics in the 1930s, first as an alderman and then as a

controller Controller may refer to: Occupations * Controller or financial controller, or in government accounting comptroller, a senior accounting position * Controller, someone who performs agent handling in espionage * Air traffic controller, a person ...

before being elected mayor in 1938 and served until 1940. Italian-Canadian men were interned by the federal government shortly after Italy declared war on Canada during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

; Day announced on June 11, 1940, that their families, despite now lacking a breadwinner, would be denied

welfare Welfare, or commonly social welfare, is a type of government support intended to ensure that members of a society can meet basic human needs such as food and shelter. Social security may either be synonymous with welfare, or refer specificall ...

. "This country is at war with Italy", he stated, "and Italians cannot very well expect us to spend money for war purposes for the purpose of maintaining alien enemies." In 1952 Day became the first chairman of the new Toronto Parking Authority. He held this position until 1963 when he was named to the Toronto Transit Commission and became its chairman in turn. He held the position with the TTC until 1972. The Ralph Day Funeral Home still operates but has since merged with another Day family acquisition. "Heritage Funeral Centre, Ralph Day Chapel" is in Toronto on Overlea Boulevard.

Irish Sweepstakes

In 1949 Day won the equivalent of $100,000 (Canadian) on an

Irish Sweepstakes The Irish Hospitals' Sweepstake was a lottery established in the Irish Free State in 1930 as the Irish Free State Hospitals' Sweepstake to finance hospitals. It is generally referred to as the Irish Sweepstake or Irish Sweepstakes, frequently ab ...

ticket on the horse Russian Hill. Seriously ill at the time with "a blood complaint" resulting from an infected tooth, he described the news as "the best tonic in the world".

Personal life

With his wife Vera, Day had two daughters, Marie and Shirley, and one son, Glen. His son would marry former mayor

Allan A. Lamport Allan Austin Lamport, (April 4, 1903 – November 18, 1999) was mayor of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, from 1951 to 1954. Known as "Lampy", his most notable achievement was his opposition to Toronto's Blue laws which banned virtually any activ ...

's daughter, Edythe Jane Lamport, and have three sons, Glen, Allan, and Andrew.

References

* ''Toronto Star'', May 21, 1976 {{DEFAULTSORT:Day, Ralph 1898 births 1976 deaths Mayors of Toronto Chairs of the Toronto Transit Commission Canadian funeral directors Burials at Toronto Necropolis