History
-
A bird’s-eye tour of the foot of Bathurst Street in the 1950s
This is what the foot of Bathurst Street looked like in the 1950s. It was a brand new intersection back then; this land didn’t even exist until the 1920s...
By Adam Bunch -
How Toronto helped break up The Beatles
At first, no one believed it was really happening. It sounded too good to be true. The Toronto Rock ‘N’ Rock Revival Show was going to be a...
By Adam Bunch -
EVENT: Toronto’s First Post Office fundraiser pays tribute to “The Dumbells” March 6th
Our friends at The Town of York Historical Society are throwing a 180th birthday party for Toronto (and along the way raising some needed cash for...
By Shawn Micallef -
Started from the bottom now we’re here
The exhibition “Hands-On Urbanism: How to Make a Difference,” at Urbanspace Gallery until March 7th, showcases stories of groups of people — who aren’t...
By Dale Duncan -
Winterdream — a 1993 walk through Allan Gardens and Cawthra Park
Occasionally Toronto filmmaker James Leahy puts together some of the Super 8 footage he shot in Toronto from the late 1980s onwards. Back in June we...
By Shawn Micallef -
Down at Fraggle Rock… in Yorkville — The Muppets take Toronto
It all started in 1981 at the Hyde Park Hotel in London, England. Jim Henson was there with some of his writers and puppeteers. For the last five...
By Adam Bunch -
Toronto hearts Stalingrad — “adopting” the Soviet city during WWII
It was the summer of 1942 and things were looking good for Hitler. The Nazis had already swept across Europe; now they were pushing on into Russia...
By Adam Bunch -
Yorkville Avenue fire at former home of Toronto writer Mazo de la Roche
Yesterday’s fire at 86 and 84 Yorkville Avenue was a day long event; when I walked by 11 hours after it started Toronto Fire was still pumping water...
By Shawn Micallef -
Lee’s Palace before it was Lee’s Palace — the roots of Toronto’s famous music venue
This is what Lee’s Palace looked like when it first opened, nearly 100 years ago. It was the spring of 1919 — the first few months after the end of...
By Adam Bunch -
Elizabeth Simcoe’s 1794 nightmare — the story behind one of Toronto’s first recorded dreams
Toronto was founded in a troubled time. It was the summer of 1793 when the first British soldiers showed up to clear the forest and make way for our brand...
By Adam Bunch -
Good reads: winter issue of Fort York’s free newsletter, Fife and Drum, is out
The December issue of the Friends of Fort York’s quarterly newsletter, Fife and Drum was released just before the new year. The articles include: An...
By Shawn Micallef -
Book Review: Thinking about Yonge-Dundas Square
2013 is not only the 10th anniversary of Spacing, but also the 10th anniversary of Yonge-Dundas Square. The two anniversaries are related — in the first...
By Dylan Reid