Toronto Branch Annual Dinner Programmes

Throughout the 1940s, the Toronto Branch of the General Accountants Association—the precursors to CGA Ontario and CGA Canada—held an annual Christmas Dinner at the Oak Room of Union Station in downtown Toronto. The location was perfect for CGAs travelling into Toronto from out of town, and the Oak Room (so named for its oak panelling) was a prestigious venue.

CGA Ontario’s archives hold several programmes from those years, and their details paint an interesting portrait of bygone days. On Monday, December 16, 1946, for example, the “Toronto Branch and Study Group” held their Christmas Dinner Meeting. The menu served:

Relishes
Tomato Bouillon
Roast Veal, Thyme and Parsley Dressing
Cranberry Jelly
Escalloped Potatoes
Green Peas
Plum Pudding with Brandy Sauce
Rolls and Coffee
Dinner Mints and Salted Nuts

Toronto Branch’s chairman, J.F. Galloway, CGA, led the evening by saying grace, followed by a rendition of the national anthem and a toast to His Majesty the King (King George VI of the Britain). Master of ceremonies Roy Durnan took over and introduced the evening’s entertainment: dancer Dorothy Steadman and The Musical Troubadours, plus magician “Zanoni” and pianist Harold Rich. The evening was intended to be edifying as well as entertaining: guest speaker Herbert A. Mowat, the executive director of the Canadian Palestine Committee, addressed the Toronto Branch on the topic of “Palestine—A World Problem.” For all the details peculiar to their time, it seems that the concerns of 1946 are still the concerns of today.

T.H. Frankling, the secretary-treasurer of Toronto Branch, presented certificates and awards to the successful candidates of the CGA final examinations. The evening closed with a turkey draw and a rendition of Auld Lang Syne.

In 1946, Ivy Cox—soon to be Ivy Thomas—was the “vice-chairman” of Toronto Branch, but in 1947 she became chair and led the Toronto Branch and Study Group in its “Christmas Dinner & Dance.” On December 15th, 1947, the menu at the Oak Room featured:

Chilled Fruit Cup
Relishes
Baked Virginia Ham, Cranberry Jelly
Escalloped Potatoes, Baked Pepper Squash
Ice Cream, Christmas Cake, Shortbread and Small Cakes
Rolls and Coffee
Dinner Mints and Salted Nuts

Beyond the intriguing revelation that in the 1940s, rolls were eaten at the end of the meal rather than the beginning, one wonders if Ivy Thomas had a sweet tooth. As in 1946, the chair led the group in grace, the national anthem and a toast to the King. There was group singing, a quiz contest, speakers, a turkey draw, dancing, and the finale, Auld Lang Syne.

Dinner entertainment that evening also included a performance by the “Oak Room Acorns”: J. Gallagher, T.C. Grandy, A.R. Davey and C.L. McLaughlin. Of the four, we know that Davey was a director of the Branch and Tom Grandy was the vice-chair of the study group, and would later become president of CGA Ontario.

It was a tradition that, according to Professor Reginald Stuart’s The First Seventy-Five Years: A History of the Certified General Accountants Association of Canada, could be traced back to 1915, when the annual meeting of the General Accountants Association in Montreal included a violin and piano recital by two members, followed by a song by GAA founder F.C. Larivière. Professor Stuart writes that “national directors who attended branch meetings would often offer their own musical specialty,” and not until after 1927 did the national organization annual dinners include professional entertainers.

In the words of Professor Stuart, “Association officers had to be song and dance men in more ways than one.”