Evocative Images of Lost Toronto

[LowPolygon]

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about 40 odd years later....

no cell phones, no iPods, iPhones, Kindles, Nintendo, laptops, or Blackberrys. nothing but the sound of the water and human beings interacting with each other. definitely a lost world......

 

[LowPolygon]

these baby contests seemed to be extraordinarily popular back in the day. there are many shots of them in the archives over several decades. i wonder what the 'contest' was? babies don't seem to be all that competitive at that age.

 

[Urban Shocker]

The contest was simply to be the cutest, not to be the first baby to recite the St. James version of the bible from memory or to wrestle the other infants into submission in ten rounds.

 

[JordanRHughes]

Now these are priceless pictures. Thanks for sharing.

Jordan.

 

[thecharioteer]

One of the most evocative views of the city is the view up University Avenue from Queen, a view that's been photographed since the 1860's. The South African War Memorial of 1908, once a crowning glory of the Avenue, now stands guard over a fountain that hasn't worked for about two years, broken granite benches, planters and lighting. That classic "postcard view" of only a few years ago is now as evocative of the past as the Edwardian ones.

Once:

Unveiling of the Memorial:

 

[LowPolygon]

One of the most evocative views of the city is the view up University Avenue from Queen, a view that's been photographed since the 1860's. The South African War Memorial of 1908, once a crowning glory of the Avenue, now stands guard over a fountain that hasn't worked for about two years, broken granite benches, planters and lighting. That classic "postcard view" of only a few years ago is now as evocative of the past as the Edwardian ones.

Once:

you're absolutely right. it hadn't really occurred to me how rundown that fountain area has become. i wonder why the city has let it go like that? especially with the FSC right across the road. it would add such a lovely ambiance to the area at night if it was restored to its former state. it doesn't even seem like it would cost all that much money to do. maybe the restoration of Nathan Phillips Square will inspire a renewed look at it.....

 

[LowPolygon]

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[adma]

you're absolutely right. it hadn't really occurred to me how rundown that fountain area has become. i wonder why the city has let it go like that? especially with the FSC right across the road. it would add such a lovely ambiance to the area at night if it was restored to its former state. it doesn't even seem like it would cost all that much money to do. maybe the restoration of Nathan Phillips Square will inspire a renewed look at it.....

Though wasn't it mentioned in another thread that they're having problems tracing replacement stone "in kind"? Also worth noting is that it's evidently part of the 1960s median redo; that is, aside from issues of modernist landscape architecture preservation, it could just as well be sacrificed on behalf of "something better".

OTOH judging from the photos, the Adam Beck memorial definitely does benefit from the 60s landscaping, given how inert and insular it originally was. (Makes me wonder if there were originally plans for a more elaborate setting, shelved due to Depression, no doubt)

 

[thecharioteer]

An 1868 view up University (then College Avenue) from Queen; gates designed by John Howard, taken from Toronto In The Camera; A Series Of Photographic Views Of The Principal Buildings In The City of Toronto, published in 1868.

 

[LowPolygon]

An 1868 view up University (then College Avenue) from Queen; gates designed by John Howard, taken from Toronto In The Camera; A Series Of Photographic Views Of The Principal Buildings In The City of Toronto, published in 1868.

such an amazing number of trees! shots like that remind you that the city was slowly, decade by decade, being carved out of the Carolinian forests of southwestern Ontario....

 

[LowPolygon]

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[adma]

Interesting how you can see EJ Lennox's Beard Building peeking out to the left of the King Eddy tower--and in the foreground, the backside of yet another early EJ Lennox Romanesque "skyscraper" (I forgot its name, but it's his)

 

[Edward Skira]

Adam Vaughan indicated the fountain was damaged by a car crash. Apparently the stone is rare enough that it takes a couple of years to replace.

 

[yonderbean]

A little bit of lost Toronto from my family archives:

The above, skating on Grenadier Pond in High Park sometime in the 30s or 40s. My grandfather played hockey there starting in the late 20's, and took his family there up into the 50s or 60s. I get why its no longer allowed, but it must have been glorious. Not quite the frozen Rideau Canal but still pretty awesome.

Hurricane Hazel aftermath. I think this is the Humber River, likely somewhere near Rexdale. Blurry, but evocative.

 

[LowPolygon]

A little bit of lost Toronto from my family archives:

The above, skating on Grenadier Pond in High Park sometime in the 30s or 40s. My grandfather played hockey there starting in the late 20's, and took his family there up into the 50s or 60s. I can see why its no longer allowed, but

Hurricane Hazel aftermath. I think this is the Humber River, likely somewhere near Rexdale. Blurry, but evocative.

very beautiful shots! thank you for posting them. i love the varying areas of blurriness and clarity in the second one...