A Piece of History: Banting House

Meet Grant Maltman, the curator of Banting House and one of the Old East Village BIA’s Associate Members! Located at 442 Adelaide Street North, Banting House almost needs no introduction. It’s the “Birthplace of Insulin”; a national historic site chronicling the life of Sir Frederick Banting and his major contribution to science that saved countless lives. Maltman has been the curator of Banting House for more than 30 years, but he says time hasn’t taken away any job satisfaction. “It was supposed to be sort of three years and out and on to the next big museum,” Maltman says. “But every time I was ready to go, something else really interesting would come up, whether it be an interesting visitor, an interesting anniversary, or the opportunity to turn Banting House into a National Historic Site of Canada.” Since 1984, the house has been a museum dedicated to Banting’s life, and was dedicated as a national historic site in 1997.

While Banting House has been viewed as the “Birthplace of Insulin” since 1923, just a few years after the discovery of insulin, the museum doesn’t just focus on that. Instead, it chronicles Banting’s whole life; from his time as a student at the University of Toronto, his service in World War I as a medic, to his life after the discovery of Insulin, including as an international celebrity and Nobel Prize winner, and a researcher in World War II. “The discovery of insulin casts a long shadow,” Maltman says. “We hear ‘I had no idea’ a lot. No one really knows what he did before, No one knows what he really did after, because [Insulin] is all that matters.” Banting was even an amateur painter, becoming friends with Group of

Seven artists A.Y. Jackson and Lawren Harris. 

Banting House is one of Old East Village’s “hidden gems;” Londoners drive by the Flame of Hope every day, not even knowing a huge part of history is right there. According to Maltman, over 4000 people visited Banting last year, of which around 70% were from out of town. “We send people to places like Dough EV and Unique Food Attitudes all the time,” he says. “That’s a bit of a challenge sometimes, but this is a way we can help contribute to help some of our partners in the community.” In addition, the parking lot behind Banting House is free, allowing visitors to OEV to visit any local businesses after they finish at the museum. 

Like most museums, the COVID-19 pandemic threw a wrench into plans at Banting House. They had their best season in 2019, with several big anniversaries, but things are on the upswing again, according to Maltman. “We're about 90% of our 2019, and then, you know, last year, our US attendance dropped, but our Canadian visitation has started to grow,” he says. “I think getting back to where Banting House isn't an afterthought for people, it's a place to go.”

Banting House is open Tuesday to Friday from 12:00pm to 4:00pm, and on Saturday & Sunday from 11:00am to 4:00pm. Exhibits at the museum are in both French and English, with guided tours offered by volunteer interpreters in several languages, including Farsi, Japanese, Lebanese, and more!

📍 442 Adelaide St N

☎️ (519) 673-1752

🌐 https://bantinghousenhs.ca/