Royal Botanical Gardens Headquarters Building - Burlington, Ontario - Grand Opening on Waymarking.com

This Grand Opening plaque is located outside the Headquarters Building of the Royal Botanical Gardens in Burlington, Ontario. This building is now referred to the as the RBG Main Centre. The plaque can be viewed from the parking area without the need to enter the buildings, and therefore there is no admission fee associated with visiting this Waymark. However, a visit to the RBG Main Centre and outlying gardens is strongly encouraged!

The Royal Botanical Gardens is Canada’s largest botanical gardens, and is a Canadian National Historic Site (Waymark: WMDZ7Z). As a charitable, non-governmental organization, it owns and manages over 400 acres of display gardens and over 2300 acres of environmentally sensitive lands. The properties ranged from show gardens featuring a stunning variety of native and non-native plants, to important natural areas which serve as a refuge for many endangered or threatened species of plants, mammals, fish, and amphibians. The Royal Botanical Gardens is a major tourist attraction in the Hamilton-Burlington area. Originally named Westdale Park, it was renamed to Royal Botanical Gardens (after the Royal Botanic Garden; Waymark: WMKY6) in England in 1930 after receiving a Royal Charter by King George V of England for the new name. Sources: www.rbg.ca/aboutus www.rbg.ca/FAQ www.rbg.ca/rbghistory; Accessed Nov 30, 2014

Charles Vincent Massey (February 20, 1887 - December 30, 1967) was a Canadian lawyer and the son of Chester Massey (owner of the Massey-Harris Co., predecessor company to the Massey-Ferguson Tractor Company, and the patriarch of one of the city's wealthiest families). Vincent Massey held several prominent private, institutional, political and diplomatic positions, including as president of the Massey-Harris Co., the first Dean of Men at Burwash Hall, Victoria University (University of Toronto), the first president of the National Liberal Federation of Canada, the first Canadian Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary to the United States for His Majesty's Government in Canada, High Commissioner to the United Kingdom for His Majesty's Government in Canada, and most notably as the first Canadian-born Governor-General of Canada. For his service to the Crown, he was awarded from the Queen the Royal Victorian Chain, making him the first Canadian recipient of that honour and today only one of two to ever receive it.Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vincent_Massey; Accessed Nov 30, 2014