Misplaced Pages

#797202

48-459: The Spadina Hotel was one of the names of the hotels operated at 460 King Street West, in Toronto, at the corner of Spadina Avenue and King Street. The hotel was built in late 1873, the three storey Victorian building featuring a small clock on the east facade. A four-storey annex was later built to the north of the hotel. It has been known by at least half dozen names, and has had many proprietors. It

96-405: A daughter of Albert Austin, who lived there from 1942 until 1982. The aged house had outdated wiring and needed a thorough overhaul, that would have been far more expensive than rebuilding it. While the house could have been sold to private interests, the family decided instead to donate the house and all of its furnishings to the city. In 1984 it opened as a museum, jointly owned by the city and

144-634: A popular walking trail. It briefly resumes north of Eglinton, and ends at New Haven Drive (1100 Spadina Road – Northern Preparatory Junior Public School – Toronto District School Board). To access the section north of Eglinton traffic diverts via Eglinton Avenue and Chaplin Crescent. The road ends at New Haven Drive next to Northern Preparatory Jr Public School. 43°39′09″N 79°23′53″W  /  43.6525°N 79.398°W  / 43.6525; -79.398 Spadina House Spadina Museum ( / s p ə ˈ d iː n ə / ), also known as Spadina House ,

192-560: A song, "Spadina Bus", which became a surprise Top 40 hit in Canada for the jazz fusion band The Shuffle Demons in 1986. In the 1990s, however, the TTC rebuilt and reinstated the 510 Spadina streetcar line, which runs largely in a dedicated right-of-way along the median strip of the street since its opening in 1997. Prior to the construction of the Spadina LRT, streetcars ran down the street until it

240-508: A year for extensive interior and exterior renovations. When it re-opened to the public on October 24, 2010, it was decorated in the style of the inter-war era of the 1920s and 1930s. The estate's gardens reflect the landscape during the Austin family's occupation of the house. The first house constructed on the site was built in 1818 by Dr. William Warren Baldwin . He named his 200-acre (81 ha) property and estate Spadina , which derived from

288-634: Is always pronounced the first way. The distinction between the two ways was once an economic class marker in Toronto with the upper classes favouring the second pronunciation. Now, however, even the official TTC stop announcements pronounce the i in Spadina as the one in mine . Spadina Museum was jointly awarded the Peggi Armstrong Public Archaeology Award along with the Ontario Heritage Trust in 2004. Spadina Museum

336-615: Is a historic mansion at 285 Spadina Road in Toronto , Ontario, which is now a historic house museum operated by the City of Toronto 's Economic Development & Culture division. The museum preserves the house much as it existed and developed historically. The art, decor and architecture of the house used to reflect the contemporary styles of the 1860s through the 1930s, including Victorian , Edwardian , Arts and Crafts , Art Nouveau , Art Deco and Colonial Revival styles. The museum closed for

384-449: Is also nearby. The house and the street are named after the escarpment, the word ishpadinaa meaning "[it is a] hill" or "rise" in the Ojibwe language . Spadina Road continues north through the wealthy neighbourhood of Forest Hill . Starting north of St. Clair Avenue and continuing a few blocks further north is lower Forest Hill Village, which forms the main street of a small commercial area,

432-493: Is kept as an artefact as it was designed by him for himself. This chair resembles a “ La-Z-Boy chair ". The City of Toronto invested about 600,000 dollars towards the revitalization of the Spadina House to present day. The natural landscape of the Spadina House is protected by law under the “Ravine and Natural Feature Protection By-law”. This estate originally included 200 acres of farmland. There were 200 feet of trees between

480-478: Is known for are its bay windows, its brick and stone terrace, the brick chimneys, and the botanically themed carved keystones. The estate ground's oldest building is a wood stable from the mid-19th century, which was attached to the old coach house, and was once used as a gardener's shed until the end of the 1920s. The interior of the house showcases the Victorian and Edwardian components through its floating staircase in

528-586: Is now a commercial office building including a programming school. Initially the hotel was owned by James Richardson, and known as Richardson House. Robert Falconer acquired it in 1906, and renamed it the Hotel Falconer. Charles Zeigler acquired it in 1914, and renamed it the Zeigler′s Hotel. In 1917 the Chartered Trust and Executor Company foreclosed on the hotel′s mortgage. The property was transferred to

SECTION 10

#1733092590798

576-600: Is now predominant among most Torontonians, to the point that in 2011 a minor controversy emerged when the Toronto Transit Commission 's new automated announcement system pronounced the upcoming subway stop with /iː/ . The name originates from the Ojibwa word ishpadinaa , meaning "high place/ridge" or "sudden rise in the land." The Ishpatina Ridge , in Northern Ontario , which is the highest point of land in

624-459: Is the centre of Toronto's second-oldest Chinatown (the oldest was located at Dundas and Elizabeth Streets), with many restaurants and shops catering to the Chinese community. The Chinese Spadina began in the 1970s after the departure of Jewish Toronto (1920s to 1960s) from the area. It supplanted an older Chinatown centred on Dundas Street West and Elizabeth Street, which was disrupted when New City Hall

672-461: Is the home and headquarters for BrainStation, Konrad Group's digital and technology training arm. 43°38′45″N 79°23′44″W  /  43.645701°N 79.395506°W  / 43.645701; -79.395506 Spadina Avenue Spadina Avenue runs south from Bloor Street to the Gardiner Expressway , just north of Lake Ontario . Lower Spadina Avenue continues the last block to

720-548: The BC Music Review , it was also one of the venues of Toronto's punk scene . The hotel was renamed the Global Village Backpackers in 1997 and the once seedy hotel became a welcoming youth hostel to Toronto , Ontario . With 190 beds (four people per room) it was the largest youth hostel in Toronto. The hostel closed on January 20, 2014. In July 2014, Allied Properties Real Estate Investment Trust announced it

768-688: The El Mocambo , where the Rolling Stones performed one night to a small audience that included the wife of Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau . North of College Street, the avenue forms the western border of the University of Toronto and is home to several businesses catering to students, as well as university facilities such as the Athletic Centre and a number of student residences such as University of Toronto Graduate House . Just north of College Street,

816-750: The Imperial Bank of Canada . According to a 1917 report in the Financial Post , at the time of the foreclosure the building was worth $ 12,500 CAD . According to the Financial Post the next hotel to open in the building was a ″temperance hotel″ . Toronto Sun columnist Mike Filey speculated that the 1917 change of name from the Zeigler Hotel to the Hotel Spadina was to counter prejudice against German names during World War I . The Hotel operated under

864-406: The Ojibwe word espadinong , which translates as "hill" or "sudden rise of land"; it is located at the top of an escarpment . Baldwin himself designed the two storey wood-frame house. The house burnt down in 1835, and owing to the three mile (5 km) trek from the estate into York , he moved to a house on Front Street . He built a smaller country estate on the property in 1836. In 1866

912-589: The Ontario Heritage Foundation and operated by the City of Toronto. The museum is especially known for its gardens. The Spadina historic house and gardens is one of ten historic museums operated and owned by the City of Toronto. The museum's visitors learn and experience how Torontonians lived during the early 20th Century. Tours are scheduled at set times each day, that explore political, economic and social themes of that time period. The restoration process of

960-702: The Rolling Stones . On the second level, the Cabana Room was a central venue to the strip. The Jack Nicholson film The Last Detail was also partially filmed at the hotel. According to the National Post , Ernest Hemingway , who was a reporter for the Toronto Star before he became a famous writer, used to stay there. They reported that Leonard Cohen and the Tragically Hip used to perform there. According to

1008-486: The Spadina House museum on Spadina Road is always pronounced with the i as /iː/ as in ski . The name originated under the latter pronunciation, with the former a colloquialism that evolved as Spadina Avenue was extended from the wealthy neighbourhoods north of Bloor into the more working-class and immigrant areas to the south; for many years, the pronunciation difference served as a class marker . The /aɪ/ variation

SECTION 20

#1733092590798

1056-549: The condominium tower complex of CityPlace . The road once crossed the railway lands with a pony truss bridge built in 1926-1927 (replacing an early single lane truss bridge), which was replaced with the current Box girder bridge in the 1990s. More recently, a number of tower buildings are being built or have been planned. Concord Canada House at 23 Spadina will have 74 stories, The Well at Front Street will have 46 stories and The Taylor at 57 Spadina will have 36 stories. In 2021, new residential tower buildings were proposed for

1104-515: The area around Spadina being the home of the garment district—where many Jews worked—as well as numerous Jewish delis , tailors, bookstores, cinemas, Yiddish theatres, synagogues and other political, social and cultural institutions. In the 1950s and 1960s, the Jewish community moved north along Bathurst Street , but signs of Spadina's Jewish history can still be found in many locations. The city's Chinatown moved west along Dundas onto Spadina when much of

1152-422: The central hall, high baseboards, ceiling medallions, plaster crown mouldings and hardwood floors. This home is separated into 14 rooms and six common areas, in which various new art pieces and decorations are showcased. The remodelling in 2010 added specific studied reproductions of the original family's artefacts. The wallpaper, the kitchen, the bathroom, and bedroom closet were remodelled. Stuffed wolves found in

1200-618: The corners at Adelaide and Richmond. From Front Street , Spadina runs through the Fashion District and along the western edge of the Entertainment District , which also contains a number of office buildings. North of Queen Street West , the avenue passes along the eastern side of the Alexandra Park neighbourhood, which is made up of a number of public housing projects. The intersection of Dundas Street West and Spadina

1248-403: The family's archives are now placed at the entryway of the museum. Additionally, the artwork included in the remodel was a statue from France of a woman. Due to the blue and pink colors of the sculpture, the museum staff nicknamed it “Wonder Woman”. Another part of the remodelling was the addition of a mechanical chair used by Albert Austen when he lost mobility. The entirety of the chair moves and

1296-409: The historical downtown of Forest Hill before Toronto grew around the town. Forest Hill continues to just north of Eglinton Avenue. The street continues north through this green, rolling residential neighbourhood. This stretch is served by the 33 Forest Hill bus route. North of Eglinton Avenue , Spadina Road is again interrupted, here by the trenched right-of-way for the defunct Belt Line Railway , now

1344-527: The house's initial frame and the edge of the ridge in the south of the property, still providing an unbroken view of Downtown Toronto and Lake Iroquois . Spadina House's landscape features include formal gardens, the old Orchard, the stone pergola, the fieldstone wall, and the Battery constructed by James and Susan. There are presently 6 acres of restored 1905 Gardens. These 6 acres hold more than 300 varieties of flowers and vegetables. The name and pronunciation of

1392-463: The house, and 20 acres (8.1 ha) of the property to his son, Albert William Austin . Albert Austin expanded the house in several renovations, including the addition of a third floor in 1912. He sold much of the property to the City of Toronto in 1913 for the construction of the St. Clair Reservoir. Albert Austin died in 1933. The last member of the family to live in the house was Anna Kathleen Thompson,

1440-450: The lake after the Gardiner. North of Bloor Street, the physical street continues as Spadina Road and this has new street address numbering starting over at zero. For much of its extent, Spadina Road is a less busy residential road (especially north of Dupont Street and the railway track underpass) than Spadina Avenue. Spadina Avenue is commonly pronounced with the i as /aɪ/ as in mine ;

1488-461: The museum is also offered in “The restoration tour”. Other possible excursions available include “It’s a Kid’s Life” and “Meet the Austins: A Toronto Family in the 1920s and 1930s”. A seasonal excursion at the Spadina House is “Flashman versus Evil: A Grudge Match-recreated 1930’s Radio Play”. This excursion has been on exhibit four times, during the holiday season, and recreates 1930's live radio shows for

Spadina Hotel - Misplaced Pages Continue

1536-564: The names Hotel Spadina, or Spadina Hotel for the next eighty years. In 1982 Douglas Martin, of the New York Times , described the hotel′s bar as a ″cozy, mainly working-class bar″ , while he reported Canadians' reaction to one of Pierre Trudeau's speeches. Over its history it has been home to many notable residents. In the 1960s and 1970s it was a centre of the Queen Street West music scene, and saw such visitors as Leonard Cohen and

1584-680: The opposition to the project led by Toronto urban writer Jane Jacobs and former Toronto mayor John Sewell , the plans were halted in 1971. In 2006, the Forest Hill Jewish Centre announced plans to rebuild the façade of the Great Synagogue of Jasło, Poland , which was destroyed by the German Army in World War II, as the façade of its new building on Spadina Road, a project that was completed by 2015. The southern section of Spadina

1632-534: The original Chinatown was expropriated to build Toronto's new City Hall and Nathan Phillips Square . Most of the section known as Spadina Avenue is a six-lane urban arterial (four lanes for cars, two dedicated right-of-way lanes for a streetcar running down the middle) with a speed limit of 50 km/h (30 mph), although it is unposted. The section known as Spadina Road is a two- to four-lane collector road with speed limits alternating between 40 and 50 km/h (25–30 mph). The 77 Spadina bus route inspired

1680-498: The property was acquired by James Austin , founder of The Dominion Bank and Consumers Gas. By this time, parts of the property had been sold off, and what Austin purchased covered 80 acres (32 ha). In the 19th and early 20th century the area was the wealthiest in Toronto, with a number of Toronto's leading families having large estates. Austin subdivided and sold off the land west of Spadina Road in 1889, which amounted to 40 acres (16 ha). In 1892, James Austin turned over

1728-554: The province of Ontario, and the city of Ishpeming , in the state of Michigan 's Upper Peninsula in Marquette County both derive their name from the same preverb . Spadina was the original name of the street from Bloor Street to Queen Street West , built by Dr. William Baldwin beginning in 1815. The street's name did not appear in published maps until 1834. The southern portion was named Brock Street (first appearing around 1837) and remained so until after 1884. Brock Street

1776-688: The road, Line 1 Yonge–University passes underneath. Two stations, Spadina and Dupont , are under it. Spadina Road is interrupted just north of Dupont Street by an escarpment, Davenport Hill. The two sections require traffic to divert via Davenport Road, Walmer Road and Austin Terrace. There is a flight of stairs called " Baldwin Steps " and walkway in Spadina Park between the two sections of Spadina Road. Spadina Road continues atop this escarpment in front of Spadina House , one of Toronto's largest mansions. Casa Loma

1824-542: The roadway splits into a traffic circle, called Spadina Crescent . The building in the centre of the circle was originally built as Knox College , but it was renovated in 2017 to become the Daniels Building, which houses the Faculty of Architecture . North of Bloor Street , Spadina Avenue gives way to Spadina Road. Here the street passes through the upper-middle-class neighbourhood known as The Annex . For this stretch of

1872-412: The visitors to experience Radio how the inhabitants of the Spadina House would have in the 1930s. The Spadina Historic house is known as a desirable location for photography, film shots, weddings, and corporate functions. The house is at the southern end of the northern section of Spadina Road , on top of Davenport Hill, an escarpment which was the shore of prehistoric Lake Iroquois . Immediately east

1920-500: The “Spadina House” is rooted from the Ojibway word “Espadinong” which signifies “Hill”. It was adopted as a name for the home and the street by Baldwin. Many Torontonians follow a convention of pronouncing Spadina Road with the i as /aɪ/ as in mine , and Spadina House with the i as in /iː/ as in ski. Occasionally, Spadina Road is pronounced the second way. South of Bloor Street , however, Spadina Road becomes Spadina Avenue , which

1968-500: Was Sir John Craig Eaton and Lady Eaton 's massive Italianate palace and estate, Ardwold . Just around the corner on Austin Terrace, on the lot adjacent to Spadina House, is Casa Loma , a stately pile built in 1911 by Major-General Sir Henry Mill Pellatt . The architecture of the Austin Home is inspired by the second empire architectural style combined with elements of later Victorian and Edwardian style. The exterior features that it

Spadina Hotel - Misplaced Pages Continue

2016-673: Was awarded the Ontario Museum Association Award of Merit in conjunction with Dawn Roach Bowen for their Black History Month programme Meet Mrs. Pipkin in 2002. Mrs. Pipkin was a laundress at the Spadina house in the 1860s, where she came after escaping slavery in the United States . “Spadina Museum was nominated for the 2013 Toronto Heritage Award in the William Greer Architectural Conservation and Craftsmanship category” This award category

2064-400: Was constructed in the early 1960s. Just west of the avenue in this area is the famed Kensington Market. The famous Shopsy's Deli was on Spadina north of Dundas Street, but it moved and burned down in the 1980s. The intersection of Spadina Avenue and College Street is known as an inexpensive place to buy electronics, with a number of independent stores in the area. It is also the location of

2112-414: Was created to honor the owners who restored structures or buildings that, either have existed for 40 years or more, or are included in the inventory of “Toronto’s Heritage Properties”. The jury who decides on the winners of the award focus on several different aspects, such as: whether the new building or structure meets current needs, was restored using the appropriate materials, kept a significant portion of

2160-527: Was in negotiations to purchase the Hotel and the property it sat on. When the purchase was finalized in November 2014 Allied completed its ownership of all the properties between King and Adelaide. After its purchase, Allied clad the building in scaffolding, and began repairs to the facade, which had fallen into disrepair. Konrad Group announced the launch of a new "innovation hub" at the iconic corner in 2015. The "hub"

2208-468: Was named in honour of Sir Isaac Brock . Baldwin designed the original Spadina, choosing its extra large width and placing the circle that is today 1 Spadina Crescent . He named the connecting Baldwin Street after himself, and Phoebe Street to the south was named after his wife Phoebe Baldwin. For a number of decades, Spadina Avenue and nearby Kensington Market were the centre of Jewish life in Toronto with

2256-505: Was replaced by the 77 Spadina bus. Bricked road bed was used along the streetcar route. Small sections of the brick road bed remained until the LRT was constructed. In the 1960s, city hall was planning to tear up Spadina and most of the buildings on either side to construct the Spadina Expressway , a proposed highway that would have run straight into downtown. After a long public battle, with

2304-520: Was the heart of Toronto's industrial area for most of the 20th century, but in the 1970s, most of the factories left. Most of the land south of Front Street is infill on Lake Ontario. The Rogers Centre (formerly the SkyDome) was opened just east of Spadina in 1989. This area was previously the site of the CNR Spadina Roundhouse . Some land along this portion of Spadina has also been redeveloped into

#797202