Alexander Muir Memorial Gardens | |
---|---|
Type | Urban park |
Location | 2901 Yonge Street, Toronto, Ontario, Canada |
Coordinates | 43°43′17″N79°24′05″W / 43.721439°N 79.401312°W Coordinates: 43°43′17″N79°24′05″W / 43.721439°N 79.401312°W |
Owned by | City of Toronto |
Operated by | Toronto Parks, Forestry & Recreation |
Public transit access | Lawrence Station |
Website | Alexander Muir Memorial Gardens |
Alexander Muir Memorial Gardens is a municipal park in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The park was created in 1933 by public subscription to honour Alexander Muir, who composed the song "The Maple Leaf Forever". The park was originally located opposite Mount Pleasant Cemetery on Yonge Street, but was moved to its present location in 1951 due to the construction of the Yonge subway. Today the park is in Toronto's Lawrence Park neighbourhood south of Lawrence Avenue with an entrance on the east side of Yonge Street.
Alexander Muir Memorial Gardens was founded in 1933 but was originally located on the west side of Yonge Street across from Mount Pleasant Cemetery, where Muir is buried. Landscape architect Edwin Kay designed the original park using the maple leaf as a theme. The park was to celebrate Toronto's centennial in 1934 as well as to honour Muir. The park's creation was supported by public subscriptions. [1]
To make room for the construction of the Davisville subway yard, the Toronto Transportation Commission moved the park, including its stone walls and plants, to its current location starting in 1951. [1] [2] The cost of the move was over CA$100,000 (equivalent to $1,026,087in 2021). The park at its present location was formally dedicated on May 28, 1952. [2] Edwin Kay's formal, symmetrical design was replicated at the new location. [3]
The subway tunnel portal at the south end of the Davisville Yard is called the Muir Portal because of the park that used to be there. [4]
In 1990, an international jury declared Alexander Muir Memorial Gardens to be one of the best 25 urban design projects built before 1985 in Toronto. [3]
Alexander Muir Memorial Gardens feature formal flower gardens with roses, [2] herbs and multi-tiered beds. [5] There is a decorative gate at the Yonge Street entrance bearing a plaque depicting a maple leaf to commemorate Muir and the park's 1952 reopening. Inside the park, there is a stone retaining wall that is also a monument dedicated to Muir inscribed with the refrain of The Maple Leaf Forever. [2] The Gardens contain stone balconies and steps, crushed brick pathways and sunken gardens enclosed by maple, willow and oak trees. [6]
The park is popular for wedding photography. [6]
Alexander Muir Memorial Gardens is part of a chain of parks leading eastwards along Blythwood Ravine Park, Sherwood Park and Sunnydene Park to Bayview Avenue. The Gardens are part of the self-guided tour: Northern Ravines & Gardens Discovery Walk. [5] On the south side of the Gardens, Alexander Muir Road descends into Blythwood Ravine to serve Lawrence Park Lawn Bowling & Croquet Club. [7]
The Toronto Legacy Project and Heritage Toronto erected a plaque in honour of astronomer Helen Sawyer Hogg at the extreme south-west corner of the park. Between 1962 and 1965, Hogg lived in the apartment building at 2875 Yonge Street which is adjacent to the park. [8]
Church and Wellesley is an LGBT-oriented enclave in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is roughly bounded by Gerrard Street to the south, Yonge Street to the west, Charles Street to the north, and Jarvis Street to the east, with the core commercial strip located along Church Street from Wellesley south to Alexander. Though some gay and lesbian oriented establishments can be found outside this area, the general boundaries of this village have been defined by the Gay Toronto Tourism Guild.
Leslieville is a neighbourhood in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated east of the Don River. It is bounded by the Canadian National railway line and Gerrard Street to the north, McGee Street to the west, Eastern Avenue to south, and Coxwell Avenue to the east.
North Toronto is a former town and informal district located in the northern part of the Old Toronto district in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Currently occupying a geographically central location within the city of Toronto, the Town of North Toronto was incorporated in 1890, when much of the area was still farmland, and annexed by Toronto in 1912. The name is still used to refer to the area in general, although Yonge–Eglinton and Midtown Toronto are officially used.
St. Clair Avenue is a major east-west street in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was laid out in the late 18th century by the British as a concession road, 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) north of Bloor Street and 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) north of Queen Street.
Lawrence Park is a neighbourhood in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is bordered by Yonge Street to the west and Bayview Avenue to the east, and from Blythwood Ravine on the south to Lawrence Avenue on the north. Lawrence Park was one of Toronto's first planned garden suburbs. Begun in the early part of the 20th century, it did not fully develop until after the Second World War. It was ranked the wealthiest neighbourhood in all of Canada in 2011.
College is a subway station on Line 1 Yonge–University in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is located at Yonge Street and College Street/Carlton Street. Wi-Fi service is available at this station.
St. Clair is a subway station on Line 1 Yonge–University in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The station opened in 1954 as part of the original Yonge Street subway.
Davisville is a subway station on Line 1 Yonge–University in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is located at 1900 Yonge Street, where it intersects with Chaplin Crescent and Davisville Avenue. The station opened in 1954 as part of the original Toronto subway. In 2002, this station became accessible with elevators.
Lawrence is a subway station on Line 1 Yonge–University in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is located under Yonge Street at Lawrence Avenue, in the Bedford Park, Lawrence Park and Lytton Park neighbourhoods.
The Toronto Belt Line Railway was built during the 1890s in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It consisted of two commuter railway lines to promote and service new suburban neighbourhoods outside of the then city limits. Both lines were laid as loops. The longer Don Loop ran north of the city limits, while the shorter Humber Loop ran west of the city limits. The railway was never profitable and it only ran for two years. Today, as part of a rails-to-trails project, the Beltline Trail lies on the right-of-way of the Don Loop.
Davisville Village is a neighbourhood of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is located near the intersection of Davisville Avenue and Yonge Street. There is a subway station named Davisville at this intersection. The area directly abuts Mount Pleasant Cemetery, and has many massive apartment and condominium complexes built between the 1970s and the 2000s, as well as a number of office buildings. The area is within Midtown Toronto between St Clair and Eglinton. Davisville Village is represented at Toronto City Council by Councillor Josh Matlow.
Alexander Muir was a Canadian songwriter, poet, soldier, and school headmaster. He was the composer of The Maple Leaf Forever, which he wrote in October 1867 to celebrate the Confederation of Canada.
Midtown is one of four central business districts outside the city's downtown core of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Located in the north of Old Toronto, its borders are roughly defined by St. Clair Avenue to the south and Eglinton Avenue or Lawrence Avenue to the north, Bayview Avenue to the east and Dufferin Street to the west. The central neighbourhood of the area is Yonge–Eglinton.
Mount Pleasant Road is a major arterial thoroughfare in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The street extends from Jarvis Street south of Bloor Street north to Glen Echo Drive. The road is unique as one of the few arterial roads in Toronto to be created after the development of the suburbs which it passes through. These include the wealthy Rosedale, Moore Park and Lawrence Park neighbourhoods. The road also passes through the centre of Mount Pleasant Cemetery, after which it takes its name.
The Beltline Trail is a 9-kilometre (5.6 mi)-long cycling and walking rail trail in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It consists of three sections, the York Beltline Trail west of Allen Road, the Kay Gardner Beltline Park from the Allen to Mount Pleasant Road, and the Ravine Beltline Trail south of Mount Pleasant Cemetery through the Moore Park Ravine. Built on the former right-of-way of the Toronto Belt Line Railway, the linear park passes through the neighbourhoods of Rosedale, Moore Park, Forest Hill, Chaplin Estates, and Fairbank.
Beginning operation in 1861, the Yonge streetcar line was the first streetcar line in Toronto and the first in Canada. It started off as a horsecar line and closed in 1954 operating two-unit trains of Peter Witt motors pulling a trailer. Under the Toronto Transportation Commission, the Yonge line was the busiest and most congested streetcar line in the city leading to its replacement in 1954 by the Yonge Subway line, also Toronto's first and the first in Canada.
Maple Leaf Forever Park is a municipal park in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The park is named after the song "The Maple Leaf Forever" composed by Alexander Muir. The park was created in 1933 by public subscription to honour the composer, and is located in Leslieville south of Queen Street East between Leslie Street and Greenwood Avenue.
Burke Brook is a small stream in Toronto, Ontario. It is part of the Don River watershield, a major river that flows into Lake Ontario. The north end of the stream begins near Glenview Senior Public School.
Alexander Muir Memorial Gardens ... was further south, between Davisville and St. Clair, opposite Mt. Pleasant Cemetery. The portal where the subway goes underground south of Davisville Station is called Muir Portal because of the park that used to be there.