Thomas Baker McQuesten, 1882-1948
An influential proponent of landscape improvement programs, McQuesten was raised here and educated at the University of Toronto and Osgoode Hall. He joined a Hamilton Law practice in 1909 and eleven years later was appointed to the city's Board of Parks Management. In this capacity and as Minister of Highways (1934-43) and Chairman of the Niagara Parks Commission (1934-44), McQuesten devoted himself to the development of parks and scenic parkways. He effectively combined attention to aesthetics with engineering requirements in the design of bridges and roads, including the Queen Elizabeth Way, that were constructed under his charge. McQuesten also actively promoted numerous beautification projects, the park lands along the Niagara River and the Royal Botanical Gardens nearby remaining today as the greatest legacies of his efforts.
Plaque via Alan L. Brown's site Ontario Plaques. Full page here.