Creators of the Classic City: Ben Sleet and William Keane
By: Paul Wilker
Ben Sleet was an escaped Kentucky slave who probably came here in about 1850 with his wife Elizabeth (Betsy) and son Benjamin through the efforts of Stratford pioneer John E. Linton.
Sleet was an enterprising man. He is listed in a number of census documents and Stratford directories as the proprietor of the Falstaff Hotel on Ontario Street, and later of Sleet’s Market Refreshment Hall. It was in the heart of Stratford's downtown and served oysters, fried and pickled pigs' feet, tripe and other items, including "the best of wines and liquors."
Sleet acquired the ice-cutting privileges on the river near where he owned property just west of Waterloo Street. When he died, his son James took over the business. The first icehouse was on the Sleet property until it was sold to the city for parkland in 1921. Then the building was razed.
James and William Keane built a large wooden icehouse which faced the river on what is now the bottom end of Morenz Drive, at the west end of the William Allman Arena. A wooden ramp extended from the icehouse across Lakeside Drive. It was there for hauling the 22-inch-thick blocks of ice from the river. The ramp was dismantled when not in use. The present Morenz Drive was William Keane's lane, leading to the back door of the icehouse. He lived on Water Street, just west of his lane. The icehouse office was just east of the lane.
Sometime after 1904, William Keane moved into a frame house at 48 North St. It was torn down and replaced by a two-storey brick house that was renumbered. Ted Keane and Shirley Keane were born in the house at 52 North Street. The street was apparently informally known as Keane Hill. Three of the four houses on the west side of North Street were built by Keanes. When the Classic City Arena Co. was organized in 1924, the private stock company bought the land for the arena from Mary (Mrs. William) Keane.
William Keane's son, Armour, took over the operation of the icehouse. Like his dad, he was nicknamed "Icy Keane." Armour Keane had a collection of waterfowl (and many other animals) on the property between North Street and Morenz Drive. He was the "Keeper of the Swans" before Robert Miller.
His brother Ross Keane was associate editor of the Beacon-Herald. A refreshment booth was operated by Ted Keane (son of William Keane) at his home on North Street. That was in the days when a bottle of pop costed five cents.
Taken from Creators of the Classic City: www.streetsofstratford.ca.
“Creators of the Classic City” is an ongoing Times series written by Paul Wilker, co-author of the e-book of the same name by him and Gord Conroy. Interested readers can find the free book online at https:// online.fliphtml5.com/ypken/pqiv/.
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