diphtheria between 1880 and 1929. Research at the end of the 19th century, notably involving Pierre Paul Émile Roux and Alexandre Yersin of the Pasteur Institute as well as Emil von Behring and Kitasato Shibasaburō, had paved the way for diphtheria antitoxin production using horses. The antitoxin could save lives when given early enough in the course of the disease, and in large enough doses. Despite the developments, treatment was often too costly for middle class families since Canadian public health efforts to counter the spread of diphtheria were largely dependent upon expensive imports from commercial U.S. firms. In 1913, John G. FitzGerald took up a new role as part-time Associate Professor of Hygiene at the University of Toronto. After becoming one of the youngest graduates of the University of Toronto Medical School in 1903, he had spent a decade pursuing further study across North America and Europe, learning how to make antitoxins and observing novel approaches to public health education, research, and biological manufacture. Around that time, calls had mounted for a "Pasteur Institute" in Toronto following a rabies outbreak in southwestern Ontario, since the only closest-available source of life-saving treatment was in New York. FitzGerald worked with William Fenton to prepare the rabies vaccine. Following the success, they soon moved to tackle the lack of access to the diphtheria antitoxin with a commitment from Ontario's Chief Medical Officer that the Ontario Board of Health would buy the antitoxin at cost and ultimately distribute it for free. The initial work done with a stable of horses in Fenton's backyard proved successful, and in 1914 FitzGerald presented a plan to the Board of Governors of the University of Toronto which included dedicating any proceeds to the improvement of public health and education. On May 1, 1914, the Antitoxin Laboratory was formally established in the Department of Hygiene. It was to be self-supporting and received no funds from the University. $500 in donations from Edmund Boyd Osler (Ontario politician), brother of famous Canadian physician William Osler, helped establish the space which contained a general laboratory, a sterilising facility, and a small bacteriological lab. The lab soon began to produce the diphtheria antitoxin and Pasteur rabies treatment that would eventually be made available to all Canadians, regardless of class or income. World War I: 1914-1918 Canada entered World War I on August 4, 1914, and soon the need for anti-toxins against tetanus