This bronze sculpture entitled Family Group by artist Almuth Lutkenhaus resides in Berczy Park in the St. Lawrence neighbourhood.
The sculpture is a family unit depicting a father, mother and two children. The man and the woman are facing each other and the base of these two figures join to form one solid unit. The small boy is resting against the front of the mother and the girl child is resting against the chest of the father. These children look as if they are secure within the family unit by resting in front of their parents and being enclosed by their bodies and encircled with their arms.
Commissioned in the 1970s by a local historical society, Family Group was at first accepted by the City of Toronto, but subsequently rejected on aesthetic grounds. Controversy ensued, with author Margaret Laurence contributing to the debate by declaring: The work seems to me to be a tender and beautiful tribute to the Berczy family and, by extension, a tribute to the concept of family everywhere. The sculpture was finally installed in 1982 with financial help from the Consumers’ Gas Company.
This sculpture was donated by The Historical Society of Mecklenburg Upper Canada Inc., with the financial assistance of The Consumer’s Gas Limited and The Council of Metropolitan Toronto, in memory of Johann Albrecht Ulrich Moll, better known as William Berczy, born December 10, 1744 in Wallerstein, Germany. He was co-founder of York (Toronto) in 1794 when John Graves Simcoe was Lieutenant-Governor of Upper Canada. His younger son, Charles Albert Berczy, was the first president of The Consumer’s Gas Company, from 1847 to 1856, and Postmaster of Toronto. His older son, William Bent Berczy, was a Member of the Legislative Assembly of Upper Canada and, like his father and mother, a gifted painter.
Fair Grounds (2001-2003) is a work by Canadian artist Michel Goulet. It is comprised of two parts, a part residing on each side of the main entrance to the Icon II condo at 250 Wellington Street West.
Part 1: The Ribbons
Colourful ribbons recall the tradition of tying a ribbon around one’s finger or around a cherished object as a reminder to oneself to remember, or as a call for hope or a happy ending.
Part 2: The Chairs
Eight chairs, each unique in their period and style, are arranged in pairs to simulate different relationships between two people when they meet on equal terms.
While these two parts stand their own ground, they also trigger a reading that connects them, expanding the dialogue to a further dimension. The chairs are an invitation to take a seat with others or in the absence of others, while the ribbon colours intertwine with hopes or dreams and keep wishes, promises and memories alive.
The sculpture is made of stainless steel and painted aluminum, and was commissioned by Tridel & the Dorsay Development Corporation for the 2003 completion of the Icon II condominium complex.
On the St. Michael’s College campus of University of Toronto, there resides a bronze sculpture entitled Neighbours. Created by artist Joe Rosenthal, the piece was installed in 2001.
Two figures lean on opposite sides of a railing with their gaze just past one another. They lean together while waiting for something, possibly speaking softly to each other while passing the time. Their facial expressions are parallel in somber intensity.
Their body language differs subtly. One figure leans forward expectantly, almost hopefully, as if they can see what is to come. The other leans with patient resolve.
In this sculpture, Joe Rosenthal has provided an excellent example in composition. The two figures are placed in an equal yet opposite position. This guides the viewers’ gaze back and forth between the two dramatically.
Joe Rosenthal, the sculpture’s artist, was born in Romania in 1921. He came to Canada in 1927 and served in the Canadian Armed Forces from 1942-1945. He studied at the Ontario College of Art and continued his learning on extensive sketching trips through the Northwest Territories, Mexico, Cuba, England, Holland, France, Italy, Spain, Greece, Jordan, Israel, and Egypt.
His work has been recognized with awards from the Art Gallery of Ontario, the Canada Council, and the Toronto Outdoor Exhibition. He is a member of the Royal Canadian Academy and the Ontario Society of Arts.
Then, a year later, one of the gals scored a little accoutrement…
There’s nothing like a good, gossipy catch-up with a friend
For more than half a century, renowned literary critic Northrop Frye made Victoria College at the University of Toronto his intellectual home: he graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in English and Philosophy, taught English to students from 1939 to 1991, and wrote such influential works as Fearful Symmetry and Anatomy of Criticism. This bronze sculpture – located near Northrop Frye Hall on the Victoria College campus – shows the esteemed professor in a state of contentment, surrounded by beloved books.
The life-size statue was created by artists Darren Byers and Fred Harrison. The figure is a modified version of a sculpture in Frye’s hometown of Moncton, New Brunswick.
The artists adapted the statue so it reflected Frye’s time at U of T and in Toronto: among his stack of books is a class planner, and in his right hand is his wife Helen Kemp Frye’s sketch of a party. The book he holds contains images of an angel, the Leviathan and the divine creator, which allude to his religious background and to poet William Blake – whose work is the focus of Fearful Symmetry.
I’ve been working on this post for months, off and on. Originally I had entitled it Jarvis Street Mansions and thought I’d focus exclusively on the remaining mansions from Jarvis Street’s so-called golden era. As I walked up and down Jarvis Street capturing shots for this post, I encountered a fair number of buildings that, while not necessarily “mansions”, are heritage buildings with historical significance. Doing a little research I could find the history/background on many of these Jarvis Street structures; conversely some seem to have left no legacy at all.
There have been hundreds of articles written on how Jarvis Street looked about 120 years ago or more – it must have been exquisite. These days if you stand outside one of the surviving mansions and mentally dismiss the solar panels, traffic lights, garbage cans, bike stands, crosswalks, electric skateboards, honking horns and other trappings of the 21st century, you can imagine how it must have looked in a different era.
View of Jarvis Street, 1915
A Walk Up Jarvis Street
The Corner of Jarvis Street and King Street East
Except for the St. Lawrence Market there’s not many – if any – historical buildings on Jarvis Street south of King Street East, so this little tour of Jarvis Street will begin at this corner and work north to Bloor Street.
At 44 Jarvis Street resides the Canadian Bank of Commerce building, which was home to the York Council Chambers from 1907 to 1950.
144 King Street East Around the corner from 44 Jarvis Street. Canadian Bank of Commerce building.
157 King Street East Southwest corner of Jarvis Street and King Street East
150 King Street West Northeast corner of Jarvis Street and King Street East. The Daniel Brooke Building.
This building was first constructed in 1833 for owner Daniel Brooke, a prominent merchant in the town of York. It was substantially rebuilt between 1848-1849 prior to the great fire of April 1849 which started in a nearby stable. While much of the business district was destroyed, this building escaped major damage.
It housed a variety of commercial enterprises over the years, including the prosperous wholesale grocery business of James Austin and Patrick Foy in the 1840s. Austin went on to become a president of the Consumers Gas Company and of the Dominion Bank. His home, Spadina, became a museum in 1984. During the mid-19th century, the Daniel Brooke building contained the offices of The Patriot, an influential conservative newspaper.
The block is a rare example of Georgian architecture in Toronto.
55-57-61-65-73 Jarvis Street
A string of retail shops occupy these buildings
99 Jarvis Street
99 Jarvis Street is an historic heritage building conceived in 1898 by renowned Toronto-based Architect Fredrick Henry Herbert, a prolific architect at the time. Along with E.J. Lennox, Herbert was the architect of choice for wealthy Torontonians building mansions on Jarvis Street, Rosedale and the Annex. The building is currently the showroom for the contemporary kitchen and furniture retailer Poliform.
If you’re interested in reading more about this building, there’s a fascinating and in depth history of it here.
107 Jarvis Street
Currently home to the Salvation Army Gateway. The Gateway is a 120 bed emergency shelter and drop-in for individuals experiencing homelessness and marginalization in Toronto. Their goal is to meet people in their experience of homelessness and help them find their way out.
207-209-211-213 Jarvis Street
207 Jarvis Street is hidden behind the “Skygrid” hoarding on right. 207 Jarvis is the project office for Mango Hotels, Hyatt Place Residences, which is going up next door at 203 Jarvis, corner of Shuter Street.
207-213 Jarvis Street is a residential rowhouse built in 1879 by Builder John Small in the Second Empire style.
Property speculator Charles Chamberlain and builder John Smith acquired the property at the corner of Jarvis and Shuter Streets in the late 1870s. Chamberlain was responsible for developing a number of terrace housing in the 1870s, including 165-179 Carlton Street (1878); 181-183 Carlton Street (1878); 187-189 Carlton Street (1878); and 568-582 Parliament Street (1876). All exhibit the same architectural design.
215-217-219 Jarvis Street
In 1864 a terrace house with three-units was erected on Lot 22 at 215-219 Jarvis Street. A speculative venture, the builder Thomas Snarr acquired the land to develop the three-storey brick houses, leasing them to middle-class merchants and professionals.
The grand proportions of this terrace housing speak to the middle-class occupants that builder Thomas Snarr was hoping to attract to his speculative development. Built of red brick, the three-storeys on a raised basement served as fairly gracious residences until they were subdivided into rooming houses in the mid- twentieth century.
280 Jarvis Street
280 Jarvis Street is a beautiful old building desperately in need of a reno and some TLC. It was built in 1891 in the Richardson Romanesque style, and is now a Heritage property. There is, however, currently a proposal to build a 25-storey mixed-use rental and condominium building on this site. This current building on the site will be incorporated into the structure, and the project will be designed by Giannone Petricone Associates for Antorisa Investments Ltd. It will be joined with 290 Jarvis Street (more below).
The proposal for the site looks something like this:
287 Jarvis Street
Built in 1890, 287 Jarvis Street is on the Toronto heritage list of buildings. It is currently part of a housing organization called Homes First Society, Jarvis House.
Jarvis House consists of 6 apartments each containing 4 units. These are home to 24 single men aged 45 and over. A renovated historical building, Jarvis House is owned by the Toronto Housing Company and managed by Homes First.
290 Jarvis Street
A neglected, beautiful old building in need of rejuvenation
The building at 290 Jarvis was built in 1891 in a style known as Richardsonian Romanesque. The style appeared for only about 20 years and is attributed to an architect named Henry Richardson. This building is known as the William Carlyle House and is a mirror image of the home at 280 Jarvis Street – also from 1891 – which also sits empty and boarded up. The two buildings have historical designations and are intended to be incorporated into a new 25 story condo development.
280 and 290 Jarvis Street from the east side of Jarvis Street
Builder’s proposal of how 280 and 290 Jarvis Street will be joined
295 Jarvis Street
The Inglewood Arms rooming house. Not everything on Jarvis Street is beautiful.
The building’s days are numbered though; on this site there is a proposed 60-storey condominium building designed by IBI Group for CentreCourt. The proposed building looks something like this:
314 Jarvis Street
Future home of JAC condos
The house at 314 Jarvis Street was built in 1865 and is known as the Sheard House. The house was in the family for decades with some prominent members of the community living here. Joseph Sheard was the mayor of Toronto from 1871 to 1872. In 1901 his son Dr. Charles Sheard renovated the house. Dr. Sheard was Toronto’s Chief Medical Officer of Health and was an MP from 1917-1925.
During WW2 the home was divided into apartments and eventually it was sold to developers. The building was gutted by a fire in January 2016. After years of alternating neglect and abuse, the transformation is under way – the building’s facade will be incorporated into the JAC condos currently being built on the site and will look something like this:
337 Jarvis Street
The house at 337 Jarvis Street was built in 1849 for Samuel Platt. Samuel had made his fortune as a brewer until he went into politics in 1845 as a city Councillor. In 1872 he became involved in planning the young city waterworks before being elected as an independent MP for Toronto East, a position he held until 1882. His house now serves as the Toronto Baptist Seminary, also known as Church House to the pastors who visit there.
336/338/340 Jarvis Street
These three buildings are a legal Triplex. Currently on the market, for sale together as a package, they’re going for a cool $10 million.
336 Jarvis Street The artist Frederick Bell-Smith lived in this house at 336 Jarvis Street
338 Jarvis Street Originally in the Georgian Revival style, the residence was completed in 1871 and remodelled in 1882 with Second Empire detailing
340 Jarvis Street This used to be the location of “The Fireplace Restaurant”, but is now a residence. Like 338 Jarvis beside it, the building was originally built in the Georgian Revival style, completed in 1871 and remodelled in 1882 with Second Empire detailing.
342/344 Jarvis Street
342 Jarvis Street
344 Jarvis Street
I couldn’t find much on these two connected buildings except that they are currently rented as townhouses. Designed in the Italianate style by architects Langley & Langley, this heritage property was built in 1875.
354 Jarvis Street
These days, this building is known as the Margaret McCain Academic Building, belonging to Canada’s National Ballet School.
The Heritage property was completed in 1894. From that year until 1945 The Havergal Ladies College was situated here. Also known as the Radio Building, it was later occupied by CBC Radio and was the main radio studios. Occasionally it was also referred to as the CBL FM Studios. In 1992, the CBC Radio Studios moved to its current location – the Canadian Broadcasting Centre – at 250 Front Street West.
In 2005 the building was re-opened as part of the National Ballet School, and in 2006 the building won two awards: the Ontario Association of Architects Award, and the Architectural Excellence Awards – Institutional B – Award of Excellence.
400 Jarvis Street
Lozinski House
This was originally the 1856 home of Sir Oliver Mowat, the longest-serving Premier of Ontario, a Father of Confederation, and later Ontario’s Lieutenant-Governor. The mansion, originally named Norfield House, was renamed Lozinski House and now houses the National Ballet School’s artistic and administrative offices.
In 2000, 400 Jarvis Street was acquired from the CBC for one dollar. The existing buildings on the site were restored and redesigned by Goldsmith Borgal & Company Ltd. Architects (GBCA). Three new buildings, dubbed Project Grand Jete, were planned and built by GBCA, along with Kuwabara Payne McKenna Blumberg Architects (KPMB). Construction began in 2003, and in 2005 the school relocated here. The major expansion to the school was completed in 2007 at a cost of $100 million.
404 Jarvis Street
This is currently the Betty Oliphant Theatre. Completed in 1863 it also goes by the alternate name of The Blaikie/Alexander House, originally built for J. Blaikie and W. Alexander. In 1988-89 the building was extensively renovated and a theatre added to the rear portion of the historic house.
406 Jarvis Street
Currently home to The Shoe Room, a store belonging to the National Ballet School, the building was completed in 1900 for Jennie H. Irish. Created by the architect Charles John Gibson.
410 Jarvis Street
This building is also known as the John N. Lake House, and was completed in 1905.
410 Jarvis Street has now been acquired by the National Ballet School. In the short-term, the building offers flexible administrative office space. According to the Ballet School’s website:
The long-term goals for the building include an expansive vision for our Toronto campus, further driving the professional ballet training programs to new heights; making dance and ballet more accessible and relevant; providing platforms and spaces for a plurality of artistic voices; and offering new creative hubs for multi-sectoral engagement and arts-driven social enterprise.
412 and 414 Jarvis Street
412 Jarvis Street (left) is a condo building; 414 Jarvis Street (right) is a rental complex
441 Jarvis Street
Currently the office of lawyer firm Johnstone & Cowling. Historically, the building is known as the A.J. Mason House. It was completed in 1881, with the porch added in 1902. Built in the Gothic Revival style, the architects for this building were Bond & Smith. The structure is now a Heritage property.
449 Jarvis Street The Blake House
Currently known as the very popular The Blake House restaurant, this building was completed in 1891 for the original owner Edward Blake and known, not surprisingly, as the Blake House. The architects were Knox & Elliot. Before the Blake House was the The Blake House restaurant, it was the Red Lion, a storied old-school British pub.
The building has heritage status for being one of the last structures in Toronto to mix Victorian and Second Empire architecture.
467 & 469 Jarvis Street
467 Jarvis Street
469 Jarvis Street
Known as the Samuel R. Briggs House, the joined building at 467-469 Jarvis Street was completed in 1872. Around the time of the construction of this house, Samuel R. Briggs was a lumber merchant and the President of the Canada Organ and Piano Company. Created by the architects Langley, Langley & Burke, the house has a designated Heritage status under the Part IV Ontario Heritage Act.
471 Jarvis Street
The house at 471 Jarvis Street was built for Thomas Thompson in 1874. The house goes by the name Elderslie and was owned at one time by Alexander Morris who served as a Conservative for Toronto East. He was in opposition to the government of Oliver Mowat who lived at 372 Jarvis Street.
In recent years the main floor of the building was a Macs variety store. Later it became home to the offices of Lifford Wine, then Vielight, who specialize in photobiomodulation technology.
504 Jarvis Street G.H. Gooderham House
This Richardsonian Romanesque house was built in 1889 for George H. Gooderham. The Gooderham family owned the Gooderham and Worts distillery which dominated the waterfront, today known as the Distillery District. At least half a dozen family members owned mansions within a few minutes walk of George Gooderham’s new mansion.
The conical tower on one side is paired with a bald gable on the other end. Accents are cut from Credit Valley stone.
506 Jarvis Street
The building is known as the J.H. McKinnon House. Built in 1888 in the Queen Anne Revival style, the house is now a heritage property. It was designed by architects Langley & Burke, who created several other impressive Toronto residences back in the late 1880s.
510 Jarvis Street
Thomas B. Taylor had the house at 510 Jarvis built in 1888. Taylor had been involved in three paper mills along the Don River including one at Todmorden Mills. The building now consists of luxury apartments (rentals).
512 Jarvis Street The Gallows House
The Edward Gallow House was built in 1889-90 by E.J. Lennox, the renowned architect who designed Old City Hall and Casa Loma.
When researching this building I was very surprised to learn that the Victorian mansion is now a shelter providing refuge for homeless women. Entitled Mary Sheffield House, it was transformed to a shelter via a joint effort by Fred Victor, a social services organization for homeless and low-income people in Toronto, and the owners of the property, Mike and Giulia Ahmadi. The building is named after Mary Sheffield, who founded a downtown mission to help the poor and destitute, and battled the social problems that plagued Toronto in the late 19th Century.
Prior to its incarnation as the Mary Sheffield House, the building was inhabited by sixteen Jesuit priests for 20 years.
514 Jarvis Street The Rundle House
The Rundle House was built in 1889-90 also by E.J. Lennox. Built in the Queen Anne Revival style and named after Charles Rundle, one of its owners, The Rundle House has been described by Heritage Canada as one of the most important historical properties in the country. It’s currently used as a residence. The building is the end unit of one of the few intact sections of 19th century Jarvis Street.
The Rundle House was derelict by the 1970s, unheated and deserted. The city took it over in the 1980s. Then it was purchased by Virgin Records and they used it as a sort of haven for musicians who could lodge there and use it as rehearsal space.
While researching this building, I found the following interesting bit on the real estate site loopnet.com:
The three storey, 7,567 square foot building consists of 12 guest rooms, a kitchen/dining area, a living room, a recording studio and a small coach house at the rear of the property. Interior finishes are modernized while retaining historic features. The landscaped corner site of rectangular shape has frontages of 75.2 feet on the west side of Jarvis Street and of 150 feet on the south side of Gloucester Street.
515 Jarvis Street The Keg Mansion aka Euclid Hall
Designed by architect William Young in the Gothic Revival style, the building was completed in 1868 for businessman William McMaster. In 1882, it was purchased by Hart Massey of the prominent Massey family who built the agricultural equipment firm Massey Ferguson.
In 1915 the home was bequeathed to the University of Toronto’s Victoria College. It was an art gallery in the 1920s, then a restaurant named Julie’s Mansion, with the Bombay Bicycle Club on the top floor.
The mansion, also known as Euclid Hall, was designated as a heritage property in 1973. The building is rumoured to be one of the most haunted in Toronto.
519 Jarvis Street Chester D. Massey House aka Massey Mansion
519 Jarvis Street is a Toronto heritage building known as the Chester D. Massey House, or alternately, The Massey Mansion. Erected in 1887 by architect E.J. Lennox and renovated most recently in 1907, this official heritage structure stands as the picture of historical elegance along Jarvis Street. The Massey Mansion has an elegant stone arch and entryway, paired with an attractive red brick exterior.
This estate was the childhood home of brothers Raymond and Vincent Massey of the Massey Ferguson farm machinery family. Raymond (1896-1983) grew up to be a movie star, best known for playing Abraham Lincoln on stage and screen. He lived here in this family mansion from 1865 to 1915. Vincent Massey was the first Canadian Minister to the United States, the first Canadian-born Governor General of Canada and the founder of the Canada Council.
571 Jarvis Street The William R. Johnston House
Now Casey House, this building was designed by the architecture firm Langley, Langley & Burke in 1875 for William R. Johnston, a prominent Toronto clothing merchant. At the time, Jarvis Street was lined with large homes owned by the city’s wealthiest residents. The house remained in the Johnston family until 1941 when it became the national headquarters of the Young Women’s Christian Association (YWCA).
In 2001, the HIV/AIDS hospice Casey House bought the property. Casey House was the first independent HIV/AIDS hospice in Canada – and one of the first in the world – when it opened in 1988 on nearby Huntley Street. It provided compassionate, specialized care at a time when many people with HIV/AIDS faced isolation and discrimination. Casey House‘s services evolved and it became an HIV/AIDS hospital in 2016. in 2017, it moved to the renovated and expanded William R. Johnston House. The addition at the rear was designed by Hariri Pontarini Architects with ERA Architects, greatly expanding the capacity of Casey House.
This building is designated under the Ontario Heritage Act, 2002.
Having worked our way almost to Bloor Street East, our tour of historic Jarvis Street buildings comes to a close. If you’re still reading this rather lengthy post, I thank you for sticking with it to the end!
If you’d like to read more about some of the buildings I’ve mentioned, check out this link to The Mansions of Jarvis Street, which I’ve used as reference for some of the buildings listed in my post.
Time for some fireworks! The photoset below is from the Canada Day celebration of our 150th birthday. On July 1, 2017 the CN Tower hosted a massive fireworks display with a live music stream of Canadian music from Boom 97.3. Here’s how it went down:
In the Canary District on Front Street East there resides a chaotic sculpture by artist Tadashi Kawamata.
Untitled (Toronto Lamp Posts) is a twelve-metre-high tower that contrasts with the geometry of the condos, street lines and organized public space of Front Street in the West Don Lands.
To make this piece, a selection of lamp posts was sourced from various yards and depots and the artist worked in an organic way, selecting on the spot which post would go where, to create the effect he intended.
The sculpture, which invites pedestrians into its centre, is an accumulation of lampposts that appear to hold themselves together as Mikado sticks just before they fall. At night, the lamps are lit with energy-efficient bulbs, creating a bright internal volume.
The sculpture was commissioned by Waterfront Toronto and installed in 2015.
Well, the streets have been swept, the tourists have (mostly) gone and the village has settled back down to its everyday rhythm. Toronto Pride is over for another year but it left in its wake a lot of memories. For today’s TOcityscapes, I give you a small sampling of this past weekend’s mayhem (each image is clickable for a larger view).
There were…
Merchants & Vendors…
Dancing In The Street…
Pride Pups…
Lots of Love, Colour & Messages…
Random Oddities & Mayhem…
If I could put a thought bubble above this woman, it would say: “What the f…?!” I thought the same when I first saw this tree taking a cigarette break.
I came upon yet another Elicser mural on my travels around downtown Toronto. This one is located in an alley off Adelaide Street East, one block west of Sherbourne Street.
[…] weekend: the Roncesvalles Polish Festival and the Bloor West Village Toronto Ukrainian Festival. I’ve posted previously about the Ukrainian…