Then: Dobbie's Flower Shop and Greenhouse

In 1888, after John Dobbie had retired as principal of Simcoe Street School, he built his first greenhouse behind his First Concession Road (Victoria Avenue) home and became the first florist in town. Flowers were usually delivered by horse and wagon. In winter, sleighs were used, and the flowers were bundled in newspaper with hot bricks placed around them to protect them.

John and his wife retired from the floral business in 1918, and their daughter Eva took over the business. She created the bouquet that was presented to Queen Elizabeth during her Niagara Falls stop on the Royal Tour of Canada that the Queen and her husband King George VI had undertaken.

Now: Victoria Plaza

All the Dobbie property was sold to the Carroll's-Grand Union food company in 1955, and the family opened a new flower shop across the street. The new Union Grocery Store that opened became the second supermarket in the downtown area. It was later converted to a Miracle Mart, then Hy and Zel's, and the renovated stores today are home to the Dollarama and Shopper's Drug Mart.

Niagara Falls Public Library. 2017. Niagara Falls - Then & Now: A Photographic Journey Through The Years. Dobbie's Flower Shop and Greenhouse/Victoria Plaza.

Niagara Falls Then and Now
A collaborative project
Niagara Falls Museums - Niagara Falls Public Library - Dept. of Geography and Tourism Studies,Brock University.
Original newspaper series by Sherman Zavitz, Official Historian for the City of Niagara Falls from 1994 - 2019.

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