East Toronto

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Map of East Toronto in 1908, just prior to being annexed to Toronto East Toronto map.PNG
Map of East Toronto in 1908, just prior to being annexed to Toronto

East Toronto was an incorporated community, currently part of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It covered much of the present day neighbourhood of the Upper Beaches, stretching up to Danforth Avenue in the north, part of it stretching to Lake Ontario in the south a portion of the present-day neighbourhood, The Beaches. The central street in East Toronto was Main Street, running between Danforth Avenue to Kingston Road. The commercial centre of the town was located at the intersection of Main Street and Lake View Avenue (present-day Gerrard Street). [1] [2] Following the annexation of East Toronto into Toronto, Main Street retained its name despite Toronto's conceptual Main Street being historically designated to be Yonge Street.

Contents

After the 1998 amalgamation of Toronto, "east Toronto" informally refers to Scarborough, a division of Toronto occupying its east end.

History

The area, after being colonized by British settlers, was occupied in about 1850, when it was a considerable distance from the city of Toronto. It was incorporated as a village in 1888 when there were about 800 people living in the area. The area began to grow rapidly and in 1903 it was elevated from a village to a town. The southern part of the community by the lake became one of Toronto's most popular travel destinations, and became home to hotels and amusement parks. The northern section, by contrast, was an industrial centre, home to the Grand Trunk Railway's main yards. [1] These facilities stretched along most of Gerrard Street, and employed several hundred workers.

When East Toronto was annexed to city of Toronto in 1908 it had a population of about 5,000 people. [3] The CN freight yards closed down in that same year of 1908 and relocated to Belleville and Etobicoke, a move that forced the area into a transition from a railway-based small town into a commuter-based neighbourhood within a city. The trunk yards themselves were essentially abandoned for over 90 years until a housing development was built on most of the land they once occupied [1]

Today East Toronto commonly refers to the portion of the old city of Toronto east of the Don River. This includes neighbourhoods such as Upper Beaches, Riverdale, Leslieville, East Danforth, and the Beaches.

Street name changes

With the annexation by the city of Toronto in 1908, many East Toronto street names were changed, as the city of Toronto already had streets by those names. The following tables show the changes made, with the names of changed streets in bold text.

North/south streets

Street names
Pre-annexationPresent
Oak AvenueWillow Avenue
Beach AvenueBeech Avenue
Balsam AvenueBalsam Avenue
Spruce AvenueSpruce Hill Road
Howard AvenueMacLean Avenue
(between Lake Front and Queen only)
Catherine StreetPickering Street
Hannaford StreetHannaford Street
Charles StreetMalvern Avenue
John StreetWayland Avenue
Edward StreetOsborne Avenue
Walter StreetWalter Street
Mary StreetKimberley Avenue
Main StreetMain Street
Enderby RoadEnderby Road
Norwood RoadNorwood Road
Lee AvenueLee Avenue
Woodlee RoadWoodlee Road
Elliot StreetBarrington Avenue
Donald StreetWestlake Avenue
(south of The Danforth only)
Morton RoadMorton Road

The following north/south streets were outside the village limits of East Toronto, but were included in the annexation, and had their street names changed.

Street names
Pre-annexationPresent
Birch AvenueSilver Birch Avenue
Maple AvenueScarborough Road
(between Queen and Kingston only)
Cockburn AvenueScarborough Road
(between Swanwick and Gerrard only)
Reid AvenueRhodes Avenue
Erie TerraceCraven Road
Morley AvenueWoodfield Road

East/west streets

Street names
Pre-annexationPresent
Queen StreetQueen Street East
Cedar AvenueCedar Avenue
Pine AvenuePine Avenue
Kingston RoadKingston Road
Lyall AvenueLyall Avenue
Benlamond AvenueBenlamond Avenue
Swanwick AvenueSwanwick Avenue
(between Enderby and Pickering only)
Lake View AvenueGerrard Street East
Stephenson AvenueStephenson Avenue
Danforth AvenueDanforth Avenue
Lansdowne AvenueColeman Avenue

The following east/west streets were outside the village limits of East Toronto, but were included in the annexation. Streets that had their names changed are in bold text.

Street names
Pre-annexationPresent
Glenfern AvenueGlenfern Avenue
Balmy AvenueBalmy Avenue
Barwick AvenueSwanwick Avenue
(between Lawlor and Scarborough only)

Related Research Articles

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Riverdale, Toronto</span> Neighbourhood in Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Riverdale is a large neighbourhood in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is bounded by the Don River Valley to the west, Danforth Avenue and Greektown to the north, Jones Avenue, the CN/GO tracks, Leslieville to the east, and Lake Shore Boulevard to the south.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Queen Street, Toronto</span> Thoroughfare in Toronto, Ontario

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gerrard Street (Toronto)</span> Thoroughfare in Toronto, Ontario

Gerrard Street is a street in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It consists of two separate parts, historically referred to as Lower Gerrard and Upper Gerrard. The former stretches between University Avenue and Coxwell Avenue for 6 km, across Old Toronto. The latter portion starts 300 m north of Lower Gerrard's eastern terminus and runs between Coxwell Avenue and Clonmore Drive, between Victoria Park Avenue and Warden Avenue, in Scarborough for another 4 km.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mimico</span> Neighbourhood in Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Mimico is a neighbourhood in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, being located in the south-west area of Toronto on Lake Ontario. It is in the south-east corner of the former Township of Etobicoke, and was an independent municipality from 1911 to 1967.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yorkville, Toronto</span> Neighbourhood in Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Yorkville is a neighbourhood and former village in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is roughly bounded by Bloor Street to the south, Davenport Road to the north, Yonge Street to the east and Avenue Road to the west, and it is part of The Annex neighbourhood. Established as a separate community in 1830, it was annexed into Toronto in 1883. Yorkville comprises residential areas, office space, and retail shopping.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Toronto Civic Railways</span> Streetcar operator in Toronto, Canada, from 1912 to 1921

Toronto Civic Railways (TCR) was a streetcar operator created and owned by the City of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, to serve newly annexed areas of the city that the private operator Toronto Railway Company refused to serve. When the Toronto Railway Company's franchise expired in 1921, its services were combined with those of the Toronto Civic Railways, and are now assumed by the new Toronto Transportation Commission (TTC). The first route of the TCR started operation on December 18, 1912.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bloor Street</span> Major thoroughfare in Toronto

Bloor Street is a major east–west residential and commercial thoroughfare in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Bloor Street runs from the Prince Edward Viaduct, which spans the Don River Valley, westward into Mississauga where it ends at Central Parkway. East of the viaduct, Danforth Avenue continues along the same right-of-way. The street, approximately 25 kilometres (16 mi) long, contains a significant cross-sample of Toronto's ethnic communities. It is also home to Toronto's famous shopping street, the Mink Mile.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lawrence Avenue</span> Thoroughfare in Toronto, Ontario

Lawrence Avenue is a major east–west thoroughfare in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is divided into east and west portions by Yonge Street, the dividing line of east–west streets in Toronto.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Danforth GO Station</span> Railway station in Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Danforth GO Station is a railway station on GO Transit's Lakeshore East line in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The station is situated in the east end of Old Toronto, south west of the intersection of Main Street and Danforth Avenue. The station is a short walk from Main Street station on Line 2 Bloor–Danforth of the Toronto subway.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Old East York</span> Neighbourhood in Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Old East York is a district of the city of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It consists of the southern, urban, portion of the former borough of East York. Old East York is continuous and functionally integrated with the old City of Toronto, bounded by the old municipal boundary between East York and Old Toronto on the south, by the Don River Valley on the west and northwest, by Taylor-Massey Creek on the north, and Victoria Park Avenue in the east.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Upper Beaches</span> Neighbourhood in Toronto, Ontario, Canada

The Upper Beaches is a neighbourhood in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is directly north of the Beaches area. It stretches from Coxwell Avenue in the west to Victoria Park in the east. The southern border is Kingston Road, while the northern boundary is generally considered to be the Canadian National Railway tracks between Gerrard Street and Danforth Avenue. The western part of the area was originally called Norway, and the larger area was once part of the Town of East Toronto. The name "Upper Beaches" was first used by developers and real estate agents around the period of 2001 to 2003 for the selling of houses on redeveloped land in the area, and was used as a marketing tag to attract buyers. The area was never considered part of the Beaches neighbourhood but was close to it. The city's current name for this area is East End Danforth, though that is rarely used. The city also includes the buildings along and just north of Danforth Avenue in the neighbourhood. The western portion between Woodbine Avenue and Coxwell is referred to by the city as Woodbine Corridor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Parliament Street (Toronto)</span> Street in Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Parliament Street is a north–south street in the eastern part of downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The street runs from Bloor Street to Queens Quay and is the first major street west of the Don River.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jameson Avenue</span> Thoroughfare in Toronto, Ontario

Jameson Avenue is a multi-lane arterial road in the Parkdale neighbourhood in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is a north-south roadway from Lake Shore Boulevard to Queen Street. Originally laid out in the 19th century as a two-lane residential street, its traffic and land use has changed considerably from a suburban/semi-rural street to a main arterial connecting to an expressway.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of neighbourhoods in Toronto</span>

Throughout its history, Toronto has been a city divided into many districts and neighbourhoods. As the city has grown, new neighbourhoods have been created by expansion of the city into the countryside. Over time, the neighbourhoods within existing areas have also been altered and rearranged.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">East Danforth</span> Neighbourhood in Toronto, Ontario, Canada

East Danforth, also known as Danforth Village, is a neighbourhood in the east end of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is located on the eastern part of Danforth Avenue in the old city of Toronto. It stretches from the eastern edge of Greektown by Greenwood Avenue to the boundary of Scarborough at Victoria Park Avenue. The area is covered by two business improvement associations, Danforth Village and Danforth Mosaic. To the north of the neighbourhood is Old East York, once a separate municipality, but today closely integrated into the area. The southern border is the railway tracks, beyond which is Leslieville and the Upper Beaches. According to the 2006 census the area has a population of 14,629.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Ron Brown (2013). Rails Across Ontario: Exploring Ontario's Railway Heritage. Dundurn Press. p. 19. ISBN   9781459707542 . Retrieved 2014-02-20. Many wonder why there is a "Main Street" in Toronto's east end. This too came about when the GT selected a tract of land to create another sea of railway sidings. While it named its yard "York," the town that grew nearby was incorporated as "East Toronto" and the commercial main street became "Main Street."
  2. Edward Relph (2014). Toronto: Transformations in A City and its Region. University of Pennsylvania . Retrieved 2014-02-20. The names of many of the old municipalities have been preserved in business improvement areas, and, for example, Main Street subway station refers to the main street of East Toronto.
  3. Mike Filey (2008). Toronto: The Way We Were. Dundurn Press. p. 209. ISBN   9781550028423 . Retrieved 2014-02-20. The request was approved and came into effect on January 1, 1888. The newly incorporated Village of East Toronto initially had a population of about 800, with that number increasing dramatically over the next few years, thanks in great measure to the presence of nearby railway yards. In 1903 the village became a town, a status it held until December 15, 1908, when, with a population of 4,800, the Town of East Toronto vanished into the history books to become part of the City of Toronto's Ward One.

43°40′51″N79°17′40″W / 43.6808°N 79.2944°W / 43.6808; -79.2944