Scenes from May 7 and 8, 1945, when word of the victory in Europe reached Toronto. As the news of Germany's surrender spread, offices and stores closed down, and people streamed into the streets, singing and shouting. Airplanes overhead dropped scraps of paper and ticker tape, some of which people piled up to light bonfires. Singing and spontaneous parades filled the downtown core. At City Hall, Mayor R.H. Saunders twice came outside to give speeches to cheering crowds of thousands. Meanwhile, in the city's factories, the mood was more subdued, as some of the women workers wept. The Globe and Mail reported that celebrations were mostly orderly. Every Toronto police officer had previously been given a post in the city's streets in preparation for this moment. Nevertheless, the Globe reported, "Three women and their bottle assailed a policeman. He wiped the lipstick from his cheek and told them to beat it. They laughed." 1. Celebrations on Bay Street. Photo by John H. Boyd, Globe a...