Being an immigrant can be an alienating experience: you come to a strange city and you just take it for granted –you’re there but you could be anywhere, the city’s history is a blur, it’s just a place where you sleep, eat, and work, it’s a space that simply is not home.
Making it home is laborious, but fascinating if you’re up to it. I’ve been in Toronto for more than 3.5 years, and I keep discovering corners and stories that make me appreciate it all the better.
Through the wonders of ebay, I got myself an old atlas map of Toronto –from 1898. That makes it 109 years old. I think it’s amazing:
I’m far from finishing exploring it, but I thought I’d share a few things that I’ve found.
I was intrigued by this piece of the map. Where we now have the Old City Hall, the map says it’s the “Site of New C.H. (Courthouse?) & City Hall”. Apparently construction of the now Old City Hall was finished in 1899 – one year after this map was printed.
But if back then that was the New City Hall, where was the old one? The answer really surprised me, like the murderer in a mystery novel: Why, but if it’s old and yummy St. Lawrence Market!
Wikipedia confirms it: “It was established in the early part of the city’s history and (was) home to Toronto’s first permanent city hall and jail house from 1845 to 1899. Designed by Henry Bowler Lane, the first floor was formerly Police Station # 1.”
Why did nobody tell me?!
Two more findings from the map, and I’m gone. First, the corner of my current apartment building (Charles and Balmuto) didn’t exist yet: Charles ran from Yonge eastwards, not to both east and west; it’s continuation from Balmuto westward to Queen’s Park was called Czar St. If you’re around the area, you can now spot that Charles was two different streets, since the line from Czar St. ends a bit to the north of Charles:
Finally, of course there was no subway in 1898 Toronto. But there was public transportation. The dotted lines you see in the previous three maps represent horse railroads:
I feel a bit ignorant, but I don’t think I even knew these things existed:
They ran on Yonge, King, Queen, College, and other streets. Great stuff. Back to study the map…
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Photo of St. Lawrence Market by SimonP. The horse car picture is not from Toronto, but from Stamford, Connecticut.
14 responses so far ↓
mcyclops // April 25, 2007 at 9:37 am |
You haven’t seen anything yet!!! Check where is Front Street….. isn’t something missed? Check with a present-day map and tell us what do you find. I will send you a picture as a prize!!!! Tip: Front Street name now seems irrelevant, but in 1899 it MEANT something…
Jorge // April 25, 2007 at 6:19 pm |
I guess you refer to the Gardiner, Queens Quay, and other additions to the waterfront!
Toronto’s waterfront seems extremely altered from what it was in 1898 –the city is growing into the lake. I may post more pics from the map that illustrate this later.
Alden // April 26, 2007 at 9:57 am |
Cool Map, it is also interesting to see the streets were the present new city hall stands as well as the Eaton Centre. As I have heard those streets were the poorest streets in the city and look at them now.
Jorge // April 26, 2007 at 5:40 pm |
Thanks Alden! It’s also a bit depressing to look at all those streets south of the (now) Old City Hall, knowing that they’d be completely burnt down six years after.
Rob Campbell // December 7, 2007 at 2:48 pm |
Hello,
Do you mind if I feature one of the map bits in my blog at http://dumpdiggers.blogspot.com
I have a mystery set around a dog collar and man named John Clegg who lived at 79 Edwards Avenue. I don’t know exactly when, but I assume it was in the 1880’s.
Any help would be appreciated.
RobC
Jorge // December 7, 2007 at 3:56 pm |
Absolutely, be my guest! And if you need other photos from the map just let me know.
William // February 17, 2008 at 4:03 pm |
May I suggest you visit the City of Toronto archives. They sell at nominal cost, maps and booklets (with pictures) on several of the older areas of the city.
Wm.
Orange // April 11, 2008 at 10:39 pm |
For more information, you can contact Gunter Gad at ggad@geog.utoronto.ca. He’s a Toronto historical geographer at UofT.
Jorge // April 12, 2008 at 8:39 am |
Orange, William,
Thanks for the advice –they’re both excellent pointers.
Lyndsay Moffatt // August 24, 2008 at 6:35 pm |
Hello Jorge and others,
Thanks for posting the beautiful old map of T.O.
I found my way here after seeing you remark that David Mitchell (of Black Swan Green) is a genius. I think so too and am constantly trying to find books that take hold of me in the same way.
Given that you liked BSW and like Toronto history you might well like “Consolation” by Michael Redhill…. I am reading it right now and am loving it.
I am a Torontonian who has been transplanted to Vancouver for grad school… missing T.O more and more these days.
best,
Lyndsay
Jorge // August 24, 2008 at 6:55 pm |
Thanks Lyndsay!
I’d read about “Consolation” in the Spacing blog, and was unsure about getting a copy. I will now.
I miss Toronto myself –I’ve spent the summer in Seattle. I’m returning in two weeks, and I really look forward to it. Enjoy Vancouver!
Will // April 21, 2009 at 10:21 pm |
I’m currently doing a project for school, the class is “Historical Toronto” and I’m trying to find some old street names that don’t exist anymore. The area in question is the Cabbagetown and Regent Park neighbourhood. I know this is rather random but your map came up in a google search and it seems as though it would be perfect for solving my problem. If you would be interested in giving a student a hand at all by sending a couple photos of the map please let me know and I’ll give you more specific details on the area I’m looking for.
Cool map regardless.
Thanks.
Patti // July 19, 2009 at 5:12 pm |
Can anyone help me locate 101 Pembrook Street, Toronto Canada in 1918? My g-grandfather was a meat inspector for the British Goverment according to his 1918 draft registration. Does anyone know if there was a packing house or stock yard in that area?
Thank you for your help.
Patti
Kenneth M. Kambara // September 3, 2009 at 6:56 pm |
Great blog & blog post. Congrats on the map. I featured a part in an assemblage art project.
I’m on Gloucester, so I walk your neighbourhood frequently. My first nasty fall on ice was on Balmuto after seeing a movie at the Varsity. I noticed the black square on Bloor west of Queens Park. It looks like 273 Bloor W., which is now the Royal Conservatory of Music, but was the old McMaster University site. It was also interesting to see that Bay St. didn’t go north of Wellesley/”St. Albans.”
Cheers, Ken