Some Stuff You Should See At Doors Open 2016

This weekend is Doors Open weekend in Toronto. More than a hundred and thirty buildings across the city will be opening their doors to the public over the next two days — including some of the most interesting, beautiful and historic buildings that Toronto has to offer. And since there's no way one person can manage to catch all of the cool stuff without a TARDIS or a DeLorean or a Time-Turner, I thought I'd share some of my own picks for this year's event.

I might be out and about myself this weekend and, if so, I'll be sharing my adventures on Twitter and on Instagram (@TODreamsProject). So you can follow me there!

 

THE CATHEDRAL CHURCH OF ST. JAMES

Not only is the Cathedral Church of St. James one of the most spectacular buildings in Toronto, it's also one of the most important buildings in the entire history of Canada. The story of St. James stretches all the way back to a small wooden church built at what's now the corner of Church & King in the very early 1800s — and over the course of that century, it played a central role in the battle for democracy in Canada. This was the church most our city's leaders attended. The first preacher, John Strachan, was also our city's first Anglican bishop, arch-nemesis of William Lyon Mackenzie and a figurehead of the infamously anti-democratic Family Compact. He's still there today, buried under the chancel. (I wrote the full story for Torontoist a while back; you can check it out here.) To this day, it's still the heart of the Anglican faith in Canada. Even the Queen prays here when she's in town.

The doors to the church will be open from 10 to 5 on Saturday and 12:30 to 4 on Sunday afternoon.

FORT YORK

Fort York is one of the jewels of Toronto. A National Historic Site hidden between the highways and the skyscrapers. The fort has been standing on this spot — the place where the modern city of Toronto started — for more than 200 years. Its story stretches back through one war after another, back through the bloody battle that raged here during the War of 1812, back all the way to the very first day the city of Toronto was founded. It was here, at what was then the mouth of the Garrison Creek, that the first British soldiers showed up to start chopping down trees and building the military base that would guard the mouth of our harbour. Meanwhile, Governor Simcoe and his wife Elizabeth lived in an elaborate tent overlooking the construction from the other side of the creek, exploring the beaches and the forests with their young children, their pet cat and a dog they called Jack Sharp.

The site will be open from 10 to 5 on both Saturday and Sunday, with tours pretty much every hour.

THE HIGH LEVEL WATER PUMPING STATION

Just like the much more famous R.C. Harris Water Treatment Plant out in the east end (which will also be open this weekend), the High Level Water Pumping Station takes Toronto's water infrastructure and transforms it into something beautiful. And the old building also played a central role in one of the most delightful episodes in the history of our city. Back in the 1960s, the residents of the surrounding neighbourhood — Rathnelly — declared independence from the rest of Canada. As the story goes, they wrote a letter to Prime Minister Trudeau, elected a Queen, issued their own passports, and sent an "air farce" of children holding a thousand helium balloons to surround the Pumping Station until their demands were met. To this day, the neighbourhood is known as the Republic of Rathnelly. They've even got their own custom street signs featuring a national crest.

The doors will be open from 10 to 5 on both Saturday and Sunday.

OLD CITY HALL

 

Old City Hall has been keeping time above the intersection of Queen & Bay since the very end of the 1900s. It was built by one of Toronto's most important architects, E.J. Lennox, the same guy who did Casa Loma, the King Edward Hotel, and the west wing of Queen's Park. It's Old City Hall that he gets the most attention for, though. In large part because of his battles with city council. He went waaaaaaaaaaaay overbudget, spending six times as much as he was supposed to. They retaliated by saying he wasn't allowed to carve his name into the building, like he usually did, but he did anyway. And hid his face among the grotesques adorning the entrance. Inside, you'll also find one of the most wonderful stained-glass windows in Toronto.

The site will be open from 10 to 5 on both Saturday and Sunday

OSGOODE HALL

Osgoode Hall has been on the corner of Queen & University, nearly as long as there has been a Queen & University. It was originally built in the 1830s, with lots of additions and subtractions since then (including that iconic, black, wrought-iron fence). The architect was William Warren Baldwin, a doctor and lawyer who was one of the most important pro-democracy figures in Toronto's early history. He's also the same guy who built the original Spadina House, and had Spadina Avenue carved out of the forest. Today, it's still home to the Law Society of Upper Canada and some of Ontario's highest courts.
 

Osgoode Hall is also where an escaped slave, Thornton Blackburn, got a job working as a waiter when he first came to Toronto. He used the money he earned there to launch the city's first horse-drawn cab company, which in turn gave him enough money to help other former slaves get on their feet after coming to Toronto through the Underground Railroad. (I wrote more about him here.)

The site will be open from 10 to 5 on both Saturday and Sunday.
  

Stuff You Should See At Doors Open 2015

It's Doors Open weekend in Toronto! More than a hundred and fifty buildings across the city will be opening their doors to the public over the next two days — including some of the most interesting, beautiful and historic buildings that Toronto has to offer. And since there's no way one person can manage to catch all of the cool stuff, I thought I'd share some of my own picks for this year's event.

I'll also be out and about myself this weekend, armed with dreams, leaving them at the some of the Doors Open sites. You can follow me on Twitter and on Instagram (@TODreamsProject) to find out when and where I do.

If you'd like more information, you can visit the Doors Open website here. Chris Bateman shares his own picks for blogTO here. And NOW Magazine's Elena Gritzan has a list here.
 
 

SCADDING CABIN

This is the oldest building in Toronto. Scadding Cabin turns 221 this year. It was originally built all the hell the way back in 1794. Our city was still brand new; Toronto was just a tiny muddy little frontier town surrounded by ancient forests. It had only been founded the summer before. The guy who built the cabin was John Scadding — he had been John Graves Simcoe's right-hand man back on his country estate in England and became his right-hand man in Canada, too. But while Simcoe went home, Scadding eventually settled here with his family for good. His son, Henry, would grow up to become one of city's earliest historians.

The cabin originally stood on the banks of the Don River, but in the late 1800s it was moved to the Exhibition Grounds. That's where it stands today. You'll find its doors open on Saturday and Sunday from 10 to 5.

Also nearby: The Liberty Grand; BMO Field.
 

THE GIBRALTAR POINT LIGHTHOUSE

It's the oldest lighthouse on the Great Lakes — the second oldest in all of Canada. It has been standing on the island since before it was an island — since 1808 — which makes it the oldest building in Toronto still standing on the spot where it was originally built.

I recently wrote a whole post about the history of the Gibraltar Point Lighthouse, which includes the mysterious disappearance of the first lightkeeper, John Paul Radelmüller. They say his ghost still haunts the lighthouse today, searching for the limbs that were hacked off him during his grizzly murder in the final days the War of 1812.

Getting the chance to go inside is a rare privilege, so you'll want to show up early. There were long lines last year. The iconic red door will be open from 10 to 5 on both Saturday and Sunday — but they'll probably cut off the line a bit earlier than that.

Also nearby: Artscape Gibraltar Point.

ST. JAMES CATHEDRAL

Not only is the Cathedral Church of St. James one of the most spectacular buildings in Toronto, it's also one of the most important buildings in the entire history of Canada. The story of St. James stretches all the way back to a small wooden church built at what's now the corner of Church & King in the very early 1800s — and over the course of that century, it played a central role in the battle for democracy in Canada. This was the church most our city's leaders attended. The first preacher, John Strachan, was also our city's first Anglican bishop, arch-nemesis of William Lyon Mackenzie and a figurehead of the infamously anti-democratic Family Compact. He's still there today, buried under the chancel. I wrote the full story for Torontoist a while back; you can check it out here. To this day, it's still the heart of the Anglican faith in Canada. Even the Queen prays here when she's in town.

The doors to the church will be open from 10 to 5 on Saturday and 12:30 to 4 on Sunday afternoon.

Also nearby: The Market Gallery; Commerce Court North.

 

THE HIGH LEVEL WATER PUMPING STATION

Just like the much more famous R.C. Harris Water Treatment Plant out in the east end (which will also be open this weekend), the High Level Water Pumping Station takes Toronto's water infrastructure and transforms it into something beautiful. And the old building also played a central role in one of the most delightful episodes in the history of our city. Back in the 1960s, the residents of the surrounding neighbourhood — Rathnelly — declared independence from the rest of Canada. As the story goes, they wrote a letter to Prime Minister Trudeau, elected a Queen, issued their own passports, and sent an "air farce" of children holding a thousand helium balloons to surround the Pumping Station until their demands were met. To this day, the neighbourhood is known as the Republic of Rathnelly. They've even got their own custom street signs featuring a national crest.

The doors will be open from 10 to 5 on both Saturday and Sunday.

Also nearby: City of Toronto Archives; Spadina House.

FORT YORK

It's one of the jewels of Toronto. A National Historic Site hidden between the highways and the skyscrapers. Fort York has been standing on this spot for more than 200 years. Its story stretches back through one war after another, back through the bloody battle that raged here during the War of 1812, back all the way to the very first day the city of Toronto was founded. It was here, at what was then the mouth of the Garrison Creek, that the first British soldiers showed up to start chopping down trees and building the military base that would guard the mouth of our harbour. Meanwhile, Governor Simcoe and his wife Elizabeth lived in an elaborate tent overlooking the construction from the other side of the creek, exploring the beaches and the forests with their young children, their pet cat and a dog they called  Jack Sharp.

The fort is always open to the public, but why not take advantage of the free admission during Doors Open? The site will be open from 10 to 5 on both Saturday and Sunday.

Also nearby: John St. Roadhouse - Toronto Railway Museum. 

Other great spots I'd recommend include Old City Hall, Mackenzie House, Fool's Paradise, Osgoode Hall, and the Elgin and Winter Garden Theatres.

Shit You Should See At Doors Open 2014

This weekend is Doors Open weekend in Toronto. More than 150 sites across the city will be welcoming visitors into the some of the most interesting, beautiful and historic buildings that Toronto has to offer. And since there's no way one person can manage to catch all of the cool stuff, I thought I'd share five of my own picks for the some of the most amazing places you might want to check out.

If you'd like more information, you can visit the Doors Open website here. Jamie Bradburn also has a great list of some locations that are new to the event up on Torontoist here. And Derek Flack has his own picks for blogTO here.

I also expect to be out and about at some point this weekend, armed with some of my Toronto Dreams Project dreams, leaving them in historic spots around the city — including some that are part of Doors Open. You can follow me on Twitter and on Instagram (@TODreamsProject) to find out when and where I do.

THE GIBRALTAR POINT LIGHTHOUSE

It's the oldest lighthouse on the Great Lakes, originally built all the way back in 1808, when Toronto was just a few years old. So it has been standing out there on the island for more than 200 years. And the history of the building is particularly interesting, including the mysterious disappearance of the first lightkeeper, John Paul Radelmüller, who served as a porter to Prince Edward (the father of Queen Victoria and the guy PEI is named after) before he settled in York. They say he still haunts the lighthouse today, which fits with this year's Doors Open theme: Secrets and Spirits. Getting the chance to go inside is a rare privilege, so, while you'll have to make the trek out to the island and may have to line up when you get there, it should be well worth the trip. 

Oh, and I'm hoping to pop by with a copy or two of my dream for the lightkeeper's daughter, so that's a reason to visit, too.

THE STEREOSCOPIC PHOTO EXHIBIT

Seriously, how fucking cool is it that there are super-old 3D photos of Toronto? Thanks to the stereoscopic technique, all you need to do is cross your eyes and these archival pics of our city spring to life. And as part of the Contact Photography Festival, there's already an exhibition of them on display at Campbell House — that historic old building at Queen & University — which will also be welcoming visitors as part of Doors Open. It's bound to be one of the highlights of the weekend. And to give you a taste of just how neat it is, you can click on the photos to the left to make them bigger and give them a try. Just cross your eyes like you're looking at a Magic Eye. (Though it might be a bit easier if you then zoom out a little.)

ST. JAMES CATHEDRAL

As far as I'm concerned, St. James Cathedral should be a WAY bigger deal than it is. Not only is it one of the most spectacular buildings in Toronto, it's also one of the most important buildings in the entire history of Canada. The story of St. James stretches all the way back to a small wooden church built at what's now the corner of Church & King in the very early 1800s — and over the course of that century, it played a central role in the battle for democracy in Canada. This was the main church for most our city's leaders, including the preacher John Strachan, who was our city's first Anglican bishop, nemesis of William Lyon Mackenzie and a figurehead of the infamously anti-democratic Family Compact. Strachan is still there today, buried under the chancel. (I wrote the full story for Torontoist a while back; you can check it out here.) And while this probably won't be your last chance to visit the building — the cathedral has long been a Doors Open staple — it's always a good idea to seize the opportunity to venture inside one of the most underrated historic sites in Toronto.

THE NECROPOLIS

The Necropolis Cemetery in Cabbagetown is open (and free of charge, of course) all year round. But it's not easy finding all the coolest graves among the endless rows of headstones. So you might want to visit during this year's Doors Open, when they'll be offering free tours of the cemetery. This is where our rebel mayor William Lyon Mackenzie is buried. It's also home to the bones of Peter Matthews and Samuel Lount, martyrs of Mackenzie's rebellion. Then there's Thornton Blackburn, the escaped slave from Kentucky who established Toronto's first horse-drawn cab company and helped to bring more former slaves to Toronto on the Underground Railroad. He's resting near George Brown, founder of the Globe newspaper and Father of Confederation. And there's also Willam Petyon Hubbard, our city's first Black alderman, who once saved Brown from drowning in the Don River. The Necropolis is easily one of the most fascinating (and beautiful) cemeteries in our city. And since I've got dreams to leave at pretty much all of those graves, I'll probably be stopping by at some point this weekend to leave some postcards there. (Again, you can follow me on Twitter and on Instagram at @TODreamsProject to find out when and where I do.)

THE HIGH LEVEL WATER PUMPING STATION

Here's a new addition to the Doors Open roster. You'll find the High Level Pumping Station just a bit north-east of Davenport and Spadina. It's not far from some of the other Doors Open sites like the Toronto Archives and Spadina House. And like the much more famous R.C. Harris Water Treatment Plant out in the east end, it takes Toronto's water infrastructure and transforms it into something beautiful. The old building also played a role in one of the most delightful episodes in the history of our city. Back in the 1960s, the residents of the surrounding neighbourhood declared independence from the rest of Canada. As the story goes, they wrote a letter to Prime Minister Trudeau, elected a Queen, issued their own passports and sent an "air farce" of children holding a thousand helium balloons to surround the Pumping Station until their demands were met. To this day, the neighbourhood is known as the Republic of Rathnelly. They've even got their own custom street signs featuring their national crest.

-----

All photos by me, except, of course, for the stereoscopic ones.

Cool Stuff I Saw At Doors Open

St. Lawrence Hall

So! As you are probably very much already aware, it was Doors Open in Toronto this weekend. Which means that I spent the last couple of days running around like a crazy person, seeing as many historically awesome buildings as I could. (Not an easy task when you like sleeping in as much as I do and everything closes by five.) I managed to catch some pretty ridiculously cool stuff, from ballet at St. Lawerence Hall to One King West's giantass bank vault. And I took photos and notes the whole time. Which I now share with you, my lovely readers:

Osgoode Hall

Osgoode Hall has been on the corner of Queen & University, nearly as long as there has been a Queen & University. It was originally built in the 1830s, with lots of additions and subtractions since then (including that iconic black wrough-iron fence). The architect was William Warren Baldwin, a doctor and lawyer who was one of the most important pro-democracy figures in Toronto's early history. He's also the same guy who built the original Spadina House, and had Spadina Avenue carved out of the forest.

Osgoode Hall is also where an escaped slave, Thornton Blackburn, got a job working as a waiter. He used the money he earned there to launch the city's first horse-drawn cab company, which in turn gave him enough money to help other former slaves get on their feet after coming to Toronto through the Underground Railroad. I wrote more about him here.

Today, it's still home to the Law Society of Upper Canada and some of Ontario's highest courts.

Osgoode Hall

Osgoode Hall's atrium was one of the additions, added in the 1870s

The ceiling in the atrium

The floor of the atrium

The overwhelming diversity of the Law Society of Upper Canada, 1932

The Great Library

WWI memorial

One of the very few places that remembers the contribution of the fathers of Canadian democracy: Robert Baldwin and Louis-Hippolyte Lafontaine

Robert Baldwin, William Warren's son, was born and raised in Toronto

Baldwin teamed with this guy, Lafontaine, to bring democracy to Canada. More here.

I know John Beverley Robinson and an anti-democratic Family Compact jerk of a judge, but Osgoode Hall's pretty big on him

A Toronto history handbook from the late 1800s

 

Old City Hall

Old City Hall has been towering over the intersection of Queen & Bay since the very end of the 1900s. It was built by another of Toronto's most important architects, E.J. Lennox, the same guy who did Casa Loma, the King Edward Hotel, and the west wing of Queen's Park. It's Old City Hall that he gets the most attention for, though. In large part because of his battles with city council. He went waaaaaaaaaaaay overbudget, spending six times as much as he was supposed to. They retaliated by saying he wasn't allowed to carve his name into the building, like he usually did, but he did anyway. And...

Lennox had the councillors carved into the facade of the building, looking like fools...

...while he added himself looking normal. (The guy with the moustache.)

The huge, spectacular "Union of Commerce & Industry" stained glass window

Fancypants courtroom

The mosaic floor is one of the reasons things went over budget

Angels span the spandrels

 

St. James Cathedral

St. James was the very first church in Toronto, first built in the late 1700s on the same spot (at King & Church) where the cathedral now stands. It was at the centre of city life all the way through the 1800s, and played a huge role in the battle to bring real democracy to Canada. I wrote all about that for Torontoist here.

The first St. James built all the way back in the 17freaking00s

Our first bishop, John Strachan, hero of the War of 1812, hater of democracy

I believe Strachan is buried somewhere beneath this choir

St James has great stained glass, including this WWI memorial

In the doorway to the cathedral, they have John Ridout's headstone. He was killed in a famous duel with Samuel Jarvis, which I wrote about here.

St. Lawrence Hall

Just across the street from St. James Cathedral is St. Lawrence Hall, another building that played a central role in the political and social life of Toronto. It was built in the wake of the Great Fire of 1849, which wiped out the whole neighbourhood. It's where Sir John A. Macdonald and George Brown rallied their political troops in the drive toward Confederation. And former slave/abolitionist leader Frederick Douglass gave a big speech here once at an three-day-long anti-slavery convention which officially declared Canada to be the best destination for refugee slaves.

St. Lawrence Hall at King & Jarvis

Ballet in the Great Hall

Jump!

St. Lawrence Hall just a few years after it opened

The Great Hall ballroom back in the day

The ceiling of the Great Hall is totally awesome

One King West

Now, you probably recognize One King West as the building with the huge fin-shaped condo tower built on top of it on the southwest corner of King & Yonge. But when it originally opened in 1914, it was home to the Dominion Bank (back in its pre-TD days).

One King West

Dowwwwn into the vaults

This was one of the biggest bank vaults in the world

It took 19 horses to pull the 40 ton door

The One King West website calls it "one of the largest and heaviest doors ever built"

The 45 foot ceilings of the Great Banking Hall

The Great Banking Hall has the provincial emblems embedded in the ceiling (except for you, Newfoundland, you took to long to join Confederation)

The Great Banking Hall had a 100 foot teller counter, now the longest bar in Canada

The Church of the Redeemer

The Church of the Redeemer is that one on of the northeast corner of Bloor and Avenue/University. It has been there since 1879, when it opened to serve some of the Anglican residents of the village of Yorkville.

The Church of the Redeemer

The church in the 1890s, when Bloor and University were still dirt roads

The church has amaaaaaaaazing stained glass windows

Lots of the church's peeps died fighting WWI and they've got lots of memorial windows

The church's choir hanging out in 1907

"I Know That My Redeemer Liveth"

City Hall

By the end of the 1950s, Old City Hall wasn't big enough for Toronto anymore. And so a new, modern design was chosen. A slum was level and the current iconic City Hall went up and the new Nathan Phillips Square was created. It all opened in 1965.

There's a cool diorama of the city in City Hall. All the pink buildings are heritage properties.

Our mayor's office. Note the football statue and the photo of Ford's dad hanging with Mike Harris

The very next day, Mayor Ford quit his own challenge three weeks early

Toronto's Park & Rec Department!