On 2 September 1920, Durie Street was named after Lieutenant Colonel William Smith Durie (1813-1885), first Commanding Officer of The Queen’s Own Rifles of Canada. He owned property in this area which he subsequently developed.
William's father, William H. Durie, was an army surgeon who also served in Canada. William graduated from the Royal Military College, Sandhurst, England, in 1828 and served in England until he was transferred to the 83rd Foot on 11 August 1837 when it was ordered to Canada. From 1838 to 1855 he lived in Thornhill, Toronto, and Barrie, but little is known of his life during this time.
In 1855, William was captain of the Barrie Rifle Company, an early unit in Canada’s new volunteer militia. He was promoted to Lieutenant-Colonel on 11 December 1856 shortly after he and 20 of his men rushed to Collingwood when sailors rescued a comrade from the authorities. That same year, he commanded the Toronto corps which included companies in Barrie and Whitby as well as six in Toronto. The 2nd Battalion Volunteer Militia Rifles was created on 26 April 1860 and William secured the title 2nd Battalion, Queen’s Own Rifles of Toronto on 18 March 1863. He had a drill shed completed in June 1864 and tried to standardize uniforms and arms, resulting in probably the best organized militia unit in Canada.
In the winter of 1864–65, he commanded a battalion at Niagara-on-the-Lake and was appointed Assistant Adjutant-General for Canada West on 15 November 1865. He relinquished command of the Queen’s Own on 14 September 1866.
Post-confederation militia, William was appointed Deputy Adjutant-General for the 2nd Military District which included Toronto, Hamilton, and central Ontario. He commanded the militia during disturbances at Toronto in the fall of 1875, known as the Jubilee Riots. He participated in an expedition by part of his old regiment to Belleville in early January 1877 to oppose the striking locomotive engineers of the Grand Trunk Railway. In 1880, he was superannuated at the age of 67.