Heritage: Architecture in the "Flowery Suburb"

Architectural historian and Heritage Toronto board member Marta O'Brien introduced her topic while waiting for a projector to be fixed on 8-November-2010

TORONTO, ONTARIO - Heritage Toronto generally doesn't put on a lot of lectures. The bulk of its activities are walks or dedications, usually outside. So, perhaps it should not have been surprising that an illustrated lecture entitled "Parkdale: The 'Flowery Suburb'" drew a standing-room-only crowd to the Community Room at the recently rehabilitated Bloor-Gladstone Library in Toronto, Ontario last evening.

The talk was given by Architectural historian and Heritage Toronto board member Marta O'Brien, who had clearly enjoyed her exploration of what is now a somewhat neglected neighbourhood on the western side of town. O'Brien noted that Parkdale had been incorporated as a village in 1874 with a population of just 875; by 1886, it had become a town with four wards, and it was absorbed into Toronto in 1889. I loved the quote from 1881 that only two policemen "one for night, one for day [were] sufficient for public order."

The talk weaved the history of Parkdale with pictures of its architectural landmarks, some of which survive to this day, but others do not. I was struck by one of those losses, Elm Grove constructed in 1836, as it was a regency-style building designed by John Howard that bore a strong resemblance to other Howard buildings in Toronto, including Howard's own surviving home, Colbourne Lodge in High Park, with its large veranda.


The yellow tones of the projected images were only a minor distraction to the talk on Parkdale's architectural history by Marta O'Brien on 8-November-2010

While projector issues delayed the start of the talk and caused a colour shift in the images, this was only a minor distraction to a knowledgeable audience. The Scholes Hotel, built in 1884, was recognizable as being at King at Roncesvalles. The house at 63 O'Hara is a rare wood structure dating from before 1884. Amongst the classic Victorian and Queen Anne homes along King, the 1890-era building at 200 Dunn featured a monogrammed roof which I had never noticed before.

In its earliest days, as its name implied, Parkdale was trying to be a cleaner, healthier alternative to Toronto and some of its other suburbs, as pushed by (amongst others) a man named William Irvin Mackenzie, who became known as the "father of Parkdale" in the 1870's. Thus, there was a certain irony that row houses he opposed, including the 1883 Trenton Terrace and 1889-91 Melbourne Place, both planned by Alway Beecroft, have survived to this day. Perhaps the biggest irony, though, surrounds 103-105 West Lodge. The 1965 structure has become symbolic of the poor landlords in high-rises along Jameson in southern Parkdale and is largely reviled today--yet it won an architectural award prior to its opening.

O'Brien's presentation made me want to go look at many of the surviving structures in Parkdale--but the schedule for Heritage Toronto walks, undoubtedly including the neighbourhood, won't be released until spring.

Photos: Autumn Heritage Toronto Walks

The Heritage Toronto Riverdale walk stretched out on First Avenue in Toronto, Ontario on 2-October-2010

TORONTO, ONTARIO - This week's update to my photo site starts coverage of the autumn season in Toronto, Ontario with the final two Heritage Toronto walks attended this season. The Old Town Toronto walk took place on 12-September-2010, and the final walk of the season, the Riverdale Library to Library walk, took place on 2-October-2010, ending in time for the ceremony re-opening the Riverdale Library for its 100th anniversary.

Photos: Last Look at Summer in Toronto, 2010

Flowers were in full bloom at the James Gardens in Toronto, Ontario on 11-August-2010

TORONTO, ONTARIO - As the environment looks more and more like fall, this week's update to my photo site takes a final look back at summer in Toronto, Ontario. Featured scenes and events include the "Howards of High Park" Heritage Toronto walk, wildlife along the Humber River, the Labour Day Parade, and more.

Margin Notes: Llamas, 10s, Radke, Random

What appeared to be a family of llamas wasn't moving very rapidly at the High Park Zoo in Toronto, Ontario early on 9-October-2010

TORONTO, ONTARIO - This weekend is the Thanksgiving long weekend in Canada, and people are spending relaxing time with their families--if reduced traffic levels in the early morning and people walking today along the Humber River amazed by the scenery are any indication. From a walk through the High Park Zoo early yesterday morning, the llamas seem to be having a similar weekend, not moving very much and lingering over breakfast.

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Those in the United States who listen to NPR received an introduction to Canadian Thanksgiving, courtesy of CBC satirist Rick Mercer. Mercer appeared on Weekend Edition Saturday yesterday, a nice nod by Scott Simon and staff toward their northern neighbour.

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Today is also 10-October-2010, or in simpler terms, 10-10-10. Numerologists are going a bit crazy about that arbitrary concurrence, with perhaps the largest phenomenon a large number of couples getting married on a "lucky" date--Toronto City Hall alone has twenty ceremonies today. I'm thinking the bargain was to get married on October 9th or October 11th this year.

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Speaking of "10s" (and, no, that's not a Too Beautiful to Live reference), Free Speech Radio News has turned ten years old. The independent half-hour news broadcast that started with a strike against the now-defunct Pacifica Network News has now demonstrated for a decade how much quality can be produced on a shoe-string, Internet-leveraging international newscast.

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Luke Burbank (of the aforementioned Too Beautiful to Live) isn't the only person from public radio make a transition to commercial radio, in particular KIRO in Seattle. Now, Bill Radke (once of KUOW, American Public Media, and Marketplace Morning Report) is leaving Los Angeles to do the morning news on KIRO-FM in Seattle starting 1-November-2010, co-hosting with Linda Thomas. Based on Radke's move, I'll now make a prediction, obvious from this item a couple weeks ago--John Moe will be on the KIRO-FM staff within in a year.

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The street sign at the east end of Random Street at Kipling Avenue in Toronto, Ontario was noted on 7-October-2010

If this entry ranging from llamas to John Moe seems especially random, perhaps that's because I live in Toronto--which even has a street in Etobicoke named "Random Street" that I first encountered last week, as demonstrated above.

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Steps leading to an escalator? The Broadview subway station in Toronto, Ontario could use more accessibility work as seen on 2-October-2010

One of the most random things I saw in Toronto in the past week was an escalator at the Broadview subway station that could only be accessed by going up three steps--what exactly were the people at the Toronto Transit Commission behind that thinking?

Heritage: Library to Library in Riverdale

"Library to Library in Riverdale" walk leaders Barbara Myrvold and Gerald Whyte spoke in front of St. Matthew's Anglican Church in Toronto, Ontario on 2-October-2010

TORONTO, ONTARIO - For its final walk of the 2010 season, Heritage Toronto provided a slightly different theme--walking from "library to library." As pointed out by Librarian and Historian Barbara Myrvold, it was really more like "libraries to library." The starting point was not only at the location of the first public library in Toronto east of the Don River, in the still-standing Poulton Block, where a branch existed in an expansion of the building in the rear from October 1888 to June 1910. Practically across the street was a contemporary library location, the Queen/Saulter Branch in the 1913-era Ralph Thornton Community Centre, built in 1913 as Postal Station G, which has existed since 1979.


The Eastern Branch of the Toronto Public Library had been in the rear section of the Poulton Block, observed on 2-October-2010, from 1888 to 1910, when the current Riverdale Branch opened

The walk was through the Riverdale neighbourhood, which has gone through a variety of names in the past, including Donmount and Riverside. The portion south of Queen Street had been annexed by Toronto in 1834, and the remainder had been annexed as Riverdale in 1884. People think of Toronto as not having any numbered streets, but that's not the case in Riverdale, where a series of numbered avenues do exist, laid out south of Gerrard Street starting with First Avenue.


There is a First Avenue in Toronto, as proven by this street sign in the Riverdale neighbourhood seen on 2-October-2010

Riverdale had once been prominent enough to justify its own station site on the Grand Trunk Railway, and the site of that station from 1896 to 1932 was part of the tour. That location is now part of Bruce Mackay Park--honouring the educator who helped provide the inspiration for the popular Degrassi television series. There is no Degrassi High (or Junior High) in Toronto, but there is a Degrassi Street traversed as part of the Heritage Toronto walk.


The large size of the final Heritage Toronto walk group of the year was demonstrated at the former site of the Riverdale railway station on 2-October-2010

Most of the historic buildings on the Riverdale walk had brick facades, but it was pointed out that many of them north of First Avenue had been built with a brick facing and wood framing. In a classic Heritage Toronto serendipitous moment, it was interesting to find evidence of that fact in the form of a house undergoing refurbishing on the north side of First Avenue just a few blocks after that statement had been made.


Ongoing work revealed the wood framing behind the brick outer layer on a First Avenue house in Toronto, Ontario on 2-October-2010

The walk ended at the Riverdale Library in time for its one hundredth anniversary celebration, covered earlier. It's time for indoor heritage activities for the rest of the year.

Photos: Heritage Toronto Walks, August 2010

The Heritage Toronto "Faces on Places" walk gathered in front of the Household Science Building at Ryerson University on 22-August-2010

TORONTO, ONTARIO - This week's update to my photo site features a variety of Heritage Toronto walks were held in the central area of Toronto in August 2010. Included are "William Lyon Mackenzie's Toronto" on 14-August, "The Royal Alexandra Theatre and its Neighbourhood" on 21-August, and "Faces on Places" on 22-August. Also included are other sights and events in downtown Toronto.

Heritage: Old Town Toronto

Heritage Toronto Program Chair and Walk Leader Marta O'Brien spoke in front of the 1827 Bank of Upper Canada, the oldest bank building in Canada, in Toronto, Ontario on 12-September-2010

TORONTO, ONTARIO - On occasion, a visitor to Roundhouse Park will ask for directions to "Old Town." It's usually not clear where they want to be. While the location of the original, 1793 10-block Town of York is somewhat well-known, there actually aren't that many sights there. Heritage Toronto, of course, has put together a tour of many of Toronto's oldest buildings, starting within the limits of the original Town of York and working southwest, and the "Old Town" walk took place on Sunday.


Toronto's first Post Office, opened in 1834, became a working Post Office again in 1984 but was closed on a Sunday, 12-September-2010

This walk was interesting in term of content; I was surprised about how little I knew about the building that survived the Great Fire of 1849 in this part of town. However, what really set it apart were the logistics of the walk. From establishing the meeting place at the fountain in St. James Park since it had places to sit to having the walk leader across the street, with the speaker standing on the same sidewalk as the group, this walk was well thought-out. For the most part, walk leader Marta O'Brien could keep talking except during the highest periods of traffic on the street, and we had a much better view of the buildings being discussed from afar.


The Daniel Brooke Building, at King and Jarvis, had been completed in 1850 and featured small signs indicating its historical occupants on 12-September-2010

The walk was largely contained within the onetime St. Lawrence and St. James Wards of Toronto. I had not known that Toronto had been divided into seven wards in 1861, mostly named after major immigrant groups--St. George for the English, St. Andrew for the Scottish, St. David for the Welsh, St. Patrick for the Irish, St. John for French Canada, St. James for the Native population, and St. Lawrence for English Canada. St. Lawrence being the patron saint of English Canada was a new tidbit for me.


The Heritage Toronto "Old Town" walk paused in the courtyard of the Market Square Condos, a 1982 building designed to evoke a warehouse, on 12-September-2010

The walk did not strictly focus on old buildings. There were several good examples of new construction blending in to an historic neighbourhood to be seen, including condominium lowers with lower levels matching the buildings around them, the incorporation of the facades of previous buildings, and even the Market Square Condos which were designed to evoke resonance with the warehouses around it.


Warehouse buildings along Front Street East dated from the 1870's, including the Dixon Building in the distance with the only surviving cast iron façade in Toronto on 12-September-2010

The next time someone asks for directions to "Old Town" in Toronto, thanks to the Heritage Toronto walk, I will know where to send them.

Photos: World Cup, York, and The Ex

After Spain won the World Cup on 11-July-2010, celebrations completely engulfed a streetcar on College Street in Toronto, Ontario

TORONTO, ONTARIO - With the Canadian National Exhibition closed for another year, this seemed as good a time as any to present the Heritage Toronto walk through the Exhibition Grounds that took place on 28-July-2010 in the update to my photo site. Also in this update are scenes related to the World Cup and a Heritage Toronto walk through central York on 10-July-2010.

Heritage: Faces on Places II

Heritage Toronto's "Faces on Places" walk gathered in front of Ryerson University's South Kerr Hall and its Dora de Pédery-Hunt bas-relief art on 22-August-2010

TORONTO, ONTARIO - Terry Murray has become a bit of a celebrity around Toronto for her book, Faces on Places: A Grotesque Tour of Toronto. I was first introduced to Murray when she gave a Heritage Toronto walk past some of those faces in the downtown area in 2008, and this blog previously addressed her appearance at the Swansea Historical Society. When a revised Heritage Toronto "Faces on Places" walk was announced for this year, I had to be there.


Ivy was partially obscuring this Elizabeth Wyn Wood bas-relief of a figure skater on Ryerson University's Recreation and Athletic Centre in West Kerr Hall on 22-August-2010

The previous walk had been criticized for having its key objects too far from the ground and thus difficult to see. This walk featured faces and art much closer to pedestrian level. The early stages of the tour focused on Kerr Hall at Ryerson University. While Murray was able to point out and talk about a variety of controversial pieces, ivy had obscured others, a fact she has already lamented on her web page.


Terry Murray talked about the faces on Kerr Hall at the Ryerson University campus in Toronto, Ontario on 22-August-2010

The champion for this walk in sheer density of faces came at the 1848-era Oakham House, located on the Church Street periphery of Ryerson University, with twelve heads hanging off the building. Of those, the identities of only original owner William Thomas and his wife Martha were known.


A bowed head stood atop the seventh story of the Toronto Hydro building at 14 Carlton Street on 22-August-2010

One set of faces was well off the ground--up on the seventh story of the Toronto Hydro building on 14 Carlton Street. Murray claimed to have walked by the building for twenty years before noticing the bowed heads on top of building--since she had them in the walk guide, they were readily noticed by the approaching group. Sometimes, that's all the reason one needs to go on a Heritage Toronto walk. Interestingly, the building was originally intended to be much larger, so these faces would not have been on top of the building.


John Lyle, known as an advocate for Canadian content in architecture, included this farmer on a tractor on what had been a Dominion Bank and was an Elephant and Castle restaurant on 22-August-2010

The walk ended with a real gem, the one-time Dominion Bank at 380 Yonge Street which is presently an Elephant and Castle. Its architect, John Lyle, was a strong proponent of Canadian themes, and it featured both Canadian wildlife and medallions with the images of France's King Louis XIV and Britain's Queen Victoria--which I had never noticed in all my walks down Yonge Street. The mix of low-level faces that most people had likely also overlooked was a recipe for a very interesting Heritage Toronto walk.

Heritage: Toronto's "New Town"

One of the first stops on the "Royal Alexandra and its Neighbourhood" Heritage Toronto walk was the site of the third Toronto location of Upper Canada's Legislature on 21-August-2010

TORONTO, ONTARIO - I spend a fair amount of time around the CN Tower in Toronto, and walk to the northwest on a rather regular basis. Yet, in all of my wanderings through what was once "New Town," I had never passed some of the most historic buildings in that neighbourhood, as I learned from Saturday's Heritage Toronto walk, "The Royal Alexandra Theatre and its Neighbourhood."


31 Mercer Street was constructed in 1939 as offices for the Pilkington Brothers glass manufacturers in the art moderne style, seen on 21-August-2010

Even Simcoe Park, where the walk led by Janet Langdon began, offered surprises. I had never noticed the small holes in the tent of the "Campsite Founding" monument to Elizabeth and John Graves Simcoe--it turns out they are designed to create the constellations that the Simcoes would have seen in the sky. The biggest surprise of the walk, though, turned out to be Mercer Street between John Street and Blue Jays Way (once Peter Street). It turned out to have a wide variety of historic buildings, including a 1879 brick building and a 1939 art moderne office building shown above. Being introduced to this block alone justified going on the walk.


This block of King Street West featured a variety of one-time townhouses constructed between 1856 and 1880, viewed on 21-August-2010

The walk centered on far more common places, such as the block of King Street shown above. I had always thought it was an interesting stretch of King Street, but I had not known that the buildings dated from as far back as 1856. Furthermore, I did not know the "Bell Lightbox" being constructed for the Toronto International Film Festival had been the site of the 1819 York General Hospital.


The Royal Alexandra Theatre had opened in 1907 and was still in operation on King Street in Toronto, Ontario on 21-August-2010

The jewel of the neighbourhood, lending its name to the walk, was the Royal Alexandra Theatre. The 1907 Beaux Arts structure, designed by John Lyle, had been saved in 1963 by "Honest Ed" Mirvish and now serves as the anchor of the theatre district, along with the much larger and more modern Princess of Wales Theatre from 1993.


The walk ended at the 1875-built St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church at the corner of King and Simcoe on 21-August-2010

The biggest problem during this walk was construction, leading to narrow sidewalks and background noise. At one point, a construction worker kicked us out of a parking lot, saying we required safety shoes to be there (which wasn't posted). As I was wearing safety shoes and overalls from a work session before the walk, I pointed at my feet and said, "Good! I'm wearing steel-toed shoes, so I'll stay here." The guy shook his head and ignored me as he continued to insist that everyone leave. Such are the interesting moments of the Heritage Toronto walk.

Photos: Queen's Park

David Bogart led the Heritage Toronto Queen's Park walk inside the West Wing of the Legislative Assembly building on 17-July-2010

TORONTO, ONTARIO - Coverage of summer in Toronto, Ontario on my photo site continues with a three-part look at Queen's Park. A Heritage Toronto walk featured the monuments on the grounds and went inside the Legislative Assembly building on 17-July-2010, a Heritage Tour walk focused on the trees in the park on 14-August-2010, and the most unique event was the visit of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II on 6-July-2010.

Heritage: The Howards of High Park

A stop along Grenadier Pond during the Heritage Toronto walk "The Howards of High Park" was interrupted by the passage of the tour train on 15-August-2010

TORONTO, ONTARIO - On this blog, probably the second most common local geographic reference (after the Humber River) is High Park. The 399-acre park not far from my residence is so large that even today there are likely corners I have not visited. I have grown to appreciate High Park, but I knew little about its history. That was rectified by Heritage Toronto's walk, "The Howards of High Park," last Sunday.


Catherine Raven of the Colbourne Lodge museum introduced the Heritage Toronto walk on the Howards of High Park on 15-August-2010

John Howard, a local architect, had set his sights on the property that is now High Park not long after he arrived from England in 1832. He first leased land in what is now Swansea, and then purchased the land when it came on the market in 1836. He built Colbourne Lodge as a one-storey cottage the next year, as it was effectively a legal requirement to build on one's land within a year, even though he didn't regularly occupy it until his retirement in 1857. By 1890 when he died, it had taken on its present two-storey appearance with an art gallery to its rear. Particularly intriguing to me was the fact that he installed indoor plumbing, one of the first buildings in North America to have it. The window he added to his bathroom was pointed out prominently during the tour.


One of the first bathroom windows in North America was found at Colbourne Lodge in High Park, Toronto, Ontario on 15-August-2010

John Howard and his wife Jemima did not long wait to share their property with the city. In 1873, about 300 acres became High Park, one of the first urban parks in North America. The Howards kept about 100 acres, but interacted with community in the park. People were invited to come down to the gardens at Colbourne Lodge, where on one day in 1883, Howard counted 10,993 bulbs.


The Heritage Toronto walk gathered at the tomb of the Howards in High Park on 15-August-2010

The single most impressive portion of the walk was probably the Howards' tomb. Constructed in 1874 and 1875, the stone cairn pays tribute to Jemima's Scottish ancestry, and the Maltese Cross at the top to John's association with the Masons. The most amazing thing is that Howard had the fence from St. Paul's Cathedral in London, one of the earliest cast iron fences made between 1710 and 1714, shipped to Toronto to surround the tomb. It may be the single most interesting artifact in High Park, certainly the oldest.


The cast iron fence around the tomb had been cast by 1714 and had served at St. Paul's Cathedral in London before coming to Toronto, seen 15-August-2010

When John Howard died in 1890, the final portion of his property became part of High Park, under strict terms ensuring that it would never charge admission or allow alcohol, amongst other things. It is thanks to the generosity of an immigrant architect that today we can enjoy this urban treasure.

Heritage: Mackenzie's Toronto

As close as I could get to Heritage Toronto in the stocks--walk leader Danielle Urquhart was viewed through the replica of the stocks across from St. James Park in Toronto, Ontario on 14-August-2010

TORONTO, ONTARIO - With a current population of more than 2.5 million people, it is hard to believe that when it was incorporated, Toronto had fewer than 10,000 people. When William Lyon Mackenzie became Toronto's first mayor in 1834, the population was only 9,252. The second Heritage Toronto walk of the weekend, on William Lyon Mackenzie, attempted to take us back into that 1834 world.


It is hard to believe that today's sleepy Colborne Street had been the theatre district in 1834, seen during the Heritage Toronto walk on 14-August-2010

Most of what Mackenzie is known for, such as the Upper Canada Rebellion, took place after his one-year stint as Toronto's first mayor. However, as we learned from our walk leaders provided by the city's Mackenzie House museum, the political battle lines were clearly drawn in Toronto--Mackenzie led the reformers against a faction of establishment Tories, and that dynamic dominated his time in office.


The Heritage Toronto walk paused in Courthouse Square, near the site of the 1820's courtyard replaced in 1853, on 14-August-2010

The core of the story came down to gridlock in the city council after Mackenzie used the rhetoric "baneful domination" to describe British rule. The riled up opposition stamped so hard one day that the public gallery collapsed, killing four, and Mackenzie was blamed for having started the whole thing. That doesn't sound entirely unlike 2010.


Many of the victims of the August 1834 cholera epidemic were buried in this corner, of St. James Cemetery now a parking lot in St. James Park, observed on 14-August-2010

The crisis only resolved itself when a cholera epidemic hit Toronto in August 1834, lending cruel perspective to the situation. The opposition cooled, Mackenzie set his sights on other political beyond Toronto, and life went on.


Mackenzie had lived at Church and Richmond Streets in 1834, a stop on the Heritage Toronto walk on 14-August-2010

The organization of the walk was geographically oriented, rather than chronologically oriented, so the story came out a bit disjointed in some ways. Still, with a little imagination, it was possible to imagine the Toronto of 1834 that Mackenzie had governed, and reflect on how it compared with the Toronto of 2010 for this year's mayoral candidates.

Heritage: The Trees of Queen's Park

Todd Irvine spoke about one of his favourite trees, a 250 year-old red oak, to a Heritage Toronto walk in Queen's Park in Toronto, Ontario on 14-August-2010

TORONTO, ONTARIO - On 11-September-1860, Edward, Prince of Wales, opened Queen's Park in what has become central Toronto. 150 years later, Queen's Park is getting quite a bit of attention, including a Heritage Toronto tour of the grounds focusing on its botanical history led by well-known local urban forestry consultant, Todd Irvine, last Saturday.


Horse chestnut trees such as this later planting observed on 14-August-2010 once lined University Avenue in the area of Queen's Park

Once, the area around Queen's Park had been full of white pines and red oak trees. When the legislative assembly building was built, many of these trees were removed to make way for the building and to open the area to its south. However, to the north, the forest was initially left in place, meaning that 250 year-old red oak trees have survived, now some of Irvine's favourite trees in the park. White pines are being replanted, so while some oaks are not in good health, the northern part of the park may slowly start to resemble its original appearance. In the meantime, many waves of different appearances have graced the park. Once, horse chestnut trees lined University Avenue, and now mostly later plantings of this species dot the grounds.


The interesting-looking seed pods of the Kentucky coffee tree generally held three seeds, seen at Queen's Park in Toronto, Ontario on 14-August-2010

As always on a Heritage Toronto walk, there was a lot to learn. I didn't know that the Scadding Cabin, the oldest building in Toronto, had been built of the same white pine species that had once dominated Queen's Park. I didn't know there was such a thing as a tulip-tree, even if it doesn't really resemble the flower. One tree that was especially interesting was the Kentucky coffee. Not only did I learn how its seed pod could actually be used as a coffee substitute, but that its leaves were actually compound, and what I would have thought were the leaves were actually leaflets. Come autumn, first the leaflets will fall, then the remainder of the leaf structure.


Todd Irvine held what was actually a single leaf of a Kentucky coffee tree, pointing to the leaflets in Queen's Park on 14-August-2010

Different walk leaders have different styles, and Todd Irvine tried something I hadn't seen before on a Heritage Toronto Walk--showing historical pictures using a laptop computer. It didn't work--besides the outside glare issues, the screen simply wasn't big enough. Sticking with laminated print-outs that can be passed around seems to be the optimum alternative.


The use of a computer to show pictures during the Trees of Queen's Park Heritage Toronto walk was largely ineffective on 14-August-2010

Early in the walk, someone asked about black walnut trees, and upon seeing one near the north end of the park, Irvine decided to divert the walk to it and end it there. Such serendipity is the joy of going on Heritage Toronto walks.

Heritage: Exhibition Grounds

Tour guide Steve Collie demonstrated how a microphone was not required on the bandshell stage at the Canadian National Exhibition Grounds in Toronto, Ontario on 28-July-2010

TORONTO, ONTARIO - Last night there was a rare weekday Heritage Toronto walk. When I intended to leave to walk there, a thunder squall went through. By the time it cleared, I barely had time left to make it to the walk, and it seemed that many other people were actually discouraged by the weather, as there were practically more volunteers on hand than visitors. Yet, by the time the introductory speeches were finished, the rain had stopped completely, and within minutes the sun would come out. It turned out to be a very nice night for a twilight walk.


Steve Collie spoke about the Scadding Cabin, the oldest building in Toronto built in 1794 and moved to its present location in 1879, seen 28-July-2010

The Canadian National Exhibition grounds have a lot of history in their own right, from the location of Fort Rouillé, the French fur trading post from the 1750's whose outline is highlighted, to a battle in the war of 1812. History has also been transplanted there, most prominently the Scadding Cabin, the oldest building in Toronto, which was moved to the exhibition grounds for the first fair in 1879 and remains to this day.


The architectural elements from demolished sports buildings had been incorporated into Bimo Field, as pointed out during the Heritage Toronto tour on 28-July-2010

Yet, most of the heritage that people care about comes down to the buildings, including the surviving George Wallace Gouinlock structures in the Beaux Arts style from the early 1900's, to structures designed by Chapman and Oxley in the 1920's. Even some of the demolished buildings live on, with the murals and architectural features re-created in the Bimo Field entrance and stone re-used as benches.


Even the Bailey Bridge over Lake Shore Boulevard, observed 28-July-2010, had a historical connection discussed in the Heritage Toronto walk

The joy of Heritage Toronto walks is the set of random things that are difficult to learn elsewhere. On this night, I was surprised to learn that the Bailey Bridge over Lake Shore Boulevard had been donated in 1945 immediately after World War II, but it had taken seven years to decide where to put it--it was then installed in about 90 minutes in 1952. I hadn't heard that the flagpole (the latest version only recently removed) had been struck by lightning in 1930 and a time capsule ended up being opened just months after its placement.


The sun had set by the time the Heritage Toronto tour reached the 1929-era Automotive Building (now the Allstream Centre) on 28-July-2010

While most Heritage Toronto walks can go over time easily, this one had a natural closing time enforced by the sunset. By the time we reached the Princes' Gates, the sun had gone down and it was time to wrap up a rather unique tour put on by the Exhibition Place Archives.