The degree to which Toronto has developed since the early 1960s is nothing short of profound. From a sleepy city defined by its preponderance of church spires at the outset of the decade to the home of not one but two marvels of modernist architecture by its end (New City Hall and Mies van der Rohe's TD Centre), the city was on the brink of a development explosion, and as the saying goes, nothing was the same.
But what about before the rise of the modern skyscraper in Toronto? How has the city developed over the last 135 years? If you care to look closely, the city has undergone remarkable change each decade since the 1850s. In an effort to track these changes and growth, collected below are a series of bird's eye maps and photographs of Toronto. Unlike our aerial photo collection, the idea here is to keep the field of vision as consistent as possible (that's a bit more difficult than it sounds, but I've done my best).
Be sure to click on the maps for high resolution viewing. And don't forget to check out our related post on the transformation of the Toronto skyline from 1880 to today.
1879
Highlights from our earliest bird's eye view of Toronto include a visible Garrison Creek (and ravine), Union Station II, the Third Parliament Buildings (at Front and Simcoe), the early Distillery (District), and a burgeoning U of T campus amongst other things.
1886
This map gives a good indication of the crucial importance of the harbour to 19th century Toronto, but also noteworthy is the fact that Yonge St. is the only thoroughfare that reaches significantly beyond Bloor St. This city is almost entirely concentrated in the area that we now refer to as downtown.
1893
By 1893, Garrsion Creek is on its way to being buried altogether. Old City Hall makes an early appearance (it hadn't been built yet, but the mapmaker's often included future structures of note), and the Don River has already been significantly straightened. If you look closely, you can see the city becoming progressively more industrialized.
1904
The Great Fire of 1904 decimated the downtown core. Toronto spent the next decade rebuilding the Financial District.
1932
By 1932, the first skyscrapers have appeared on the scene (Commerce Court, The Royal York). There's a new Union Station, and the land south of Front St. has expanded through various fill efforts.
1935
An alternate view from the 1930s looking south from the U of T campus gives some context as to the city's lack of density at this time.
1940s
By the 1940s, the Railway Lands have become enormous and the city has pushed as far south as it exists today. Toronto is still very much an industrial city, as demonstrated by the busy waterfront area.
1967
And then Toronto went modern. First with New City Hall (1965) and then the TD Centre. The black steel of the latter ushered in the rise of the modern Financial District. The rest of the city is starting to get denser as well.
1974
As the CN Tower rises above the city, Commerce Court has been complete, First Canadian Place is on the way, and a population boom has lead to the rise of concrete apartment complexes across the city.
1990s
Fast forward to the 1990s, and the waterfront is now home to condos, the SkyDome has arrived (ditto for Scotia Plaza in the 1980s), and the Railway Lands have been razed to prepare for the massive CityPlace condo development.
Late 2000s
The 25+ year jump reveals the huge rise of condos in Toronto, though the area to the west of the CN Tower has yet to be fully developed.
Late 2000s (alternate angle)
This is what contemporary Toronto looks like. While not as dense as some cities, you can trace an obvious Manhattan-like island of heavier development through the core of the city.
Today
A closer look at downtown from June 2014, featuring the Trump Tower, the rise of South Core, and the profound condo development along the waterfront. Photo by Jimmy Wu.
by Derek Flack via blogTO
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