Online timeline of our 5-star Mayor Hazel.
TIMELINE: Major moments in the life of Hazel McCallion, Mississauga's iconic former mayor
Steve Cornwell
Mississauga News
Monday, January 30, 2023
Following the death of "Hurricane" Hazel McCallion, Mississauga's longest-tenured mayor we compiled some of her key moments through the years.
Feb. 14, 1921: Hazel Journeaux is born in Port Daniel, Que. She’s the youngest of five children and grew up on the family farm.
1940: Plays semi-pro hockey in Montreal for the Kik Cola women’s team.
1942: Starts work at engineering and construction firm M.W. Kellogg in Montreal. She is later transferred to the company’s Toronto office.
1951: Marries Sam McCallion and moves to Streetsville. They met at St. Michael and All Angels Church in Toronto.
1953: Peter McCallion, the first of her three children, is born.
1964: Starts newspaper Streetsville Booster with Sam McCallion.
1968: Becomes deputy reeve of Streetsville, after losing her first election to George Parker years earlier.
1970: Becomes mayor of Streetsville, defeating former mayor Bill Tolton. She’s the first woman to hold the job.
UPDATE: Longtime Mississauga Mayor Hazel McCallion dies at 101
Hazel McCallion, who became the first female mayor of Streetsville after an election in December 1969, gets a victory hug from her husband Sam. - Metroland file photo
1974: Elected councillor for the newly formed City of Mississauga and Region of Peel.
1978: Elected mayor of Mississauga, upsetting incumbent Ron Searle by 3,000 votes.
1979: Leads city through Mississauga Miracle, a CP train derailment involving explosions and the release of dangerous liquid chlorine. The derailment led to over 200,000 residents evacuating their homes but no reported deaths.
1980: McCallion is acclaimed mayor with no competition.
1981: Conflict of interest case filed against McCallion for participating in a meeting where land that she and her husband owned was to be released for development.
1982: A court finds that McCallion violated conflict of interest rules but “made an honest error in judgment” related to the meeting and would not have to vacate her seat.
1984: Construction starts for Mississauga Civic Centre, a new city hall building McCallion is instrumental in developing.
Hazel McCallion at the 1980 Great Salmon Hunt at Port Credit Marina. The Coho, weighing seven pounds, was caught by 12-year-old Kevin Annis. - Toronto Star file photo
1985: Re-elected as mayor.
1987: McCallion presides over the official opening of the Civic Centre with a visit from Prince Andrew.
1988: Acclaimed mayor.
1991: Re-elected as mayor.
1994: Re-elected as mayor.
1997: Sam McCallion dies after being diagnosed with Alzheimer’s.
2000: Re-elected as mayor.
2001: Metroland Media, which owns The Mississauga News, bought The (Streetsville) Booster newspaper and continued publishing it until 2014.
2003: Re-elected as mayor.
2005: McCallion appointed to the Order of Canada, one of the country’s highest honours.
2006: Re-elected as mayor, capturing over 90 per cent of the vote.
2009: McCallion faces a judicial review of her role in a $14.4-million land deal involving her son Peter.
2010: Re-elected for her 12th term as mayor and what she later said is her last.
2011: Judicial review finds McCallion’s actions around her son’s development deal “raise significant concerns” and recommends reforms to city’s code of conduct and Ontario’s municipal conflict-of-interest laws.
Accompanied by attorney Elizabeth McIntyre, Hazel McCallion, 92, arrives at Brampton Superior Court April 11, 2013 where she testified in a conflict-of-interest case. ~ Toronto Star file photo
2013: Ontario court dismisses conflict-of-interest case against McCallion related to $14.4-million land deal involving her son.
2014: McCallion, 93 at the time, has her last day as Mississauga mayor.
Hazel McCallion chaired her last council meeting on Nov. 26, 2014. She removes her chain of office for the last time. ~ Metroland file photo
2016: Feb. 14, McCallion’s birthday, proclaimed as Hazel McCallion Day in Ontario.
2020: Mississauga council announces the city will rename its largest library the Hazel McCallion Central Library after the former mayor.
2021: McCallion is named to the Order of Ontario, the province’s highest honour. That year she also appeared publicly to encourage city residents to get vaccinated for COVID-19.
2022: Premier Doug Ford announces that the Hurontario LRT will be named the Hazel McCallion Line. The announcement was made on her 101st birthday with McCallion in attendance.
2023: Never one to shy away from controversy, McCallion, who was Ontario's Greenbelt Council chair, issues a public letter in support of the Ford government's move to open the Greenbelt for development.
Greenbelt Council does about-face on safeguarding protected lands with H...
As the Ford government faces increased scrutiny over its decision to open up parts of the Greenbelt for housing ...
RIP … McCallion dies Jan. 29, 2023 in her Mississauga home.
~ with files from Toronto Star and John Stewart
