History
Initial sections of the RBG were built during the Great Depression in the 1930s as a make work project, under the impetus of Thomas McQuesten. It beautified derelict or undeveloped land in west Hamilton and east Burlington. For instance, a disused gravel pit was turned into the Rock Gardens, by using stone relocated from the Niagara Escarpment. The original vision of the RBG was a mixture of horticultural displays and protected natural forests and wetlands. Formal permission was obtained in 1930 from King George V to call the gardens "Royal Botanical Gardens".
The first Director of RBG, Dr. Norman Radforth, was appointed in 1947 and was a Professor of Botany at nearby McMaster University. In the early 1950s, Dr. Leslie Laking was appointed as Director and served until the early 1980s. Under his guidance, the institution developed into the major entity it is today. With approximately 1,100 ha (2,700 acres) of property, Royal Botanical Gardens is one of the largest such institutions in North America. In 2006, the Auxiliary of RBG published Love, sweat and soil: a history of Royal Botanical Gardens from 1930 to 1981 authored by Dr. Laking.
Read more about this topic: Royal Botanical Gardens (Ontario)
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—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)