I magine somebody asked you to guess the city they were thinking of by just giving you hints – could you do it? Probably, if the hints were good enough. What would you think of if that friend started hinting that the city in question creates some of the world’s most innovative technology and high-tech companies? Most would probably begin to think about San Francisco, the Bay Area or the Silicon Valley corridor connecting the two. Would you be surprised then when that friend tells you you’re wrong because the city in their mind isn’t even in the United States? It’s in Canada – and it’s not even Toronto. Really? Yes really, it’s Kitchener-Waterloo!
The Waterloo region is many things. When asked, people often boast about its two highly sought-after universities. Others talk about the town’s vibrant tech scene that attracts international business and rivals Silicon Valley. But there’s one piece of history about this town that many do not know of though and that’s its heritage of being a gangster-filled, booze-smuggling, and bootlegger hotspot during the Prohibition era.