Miscellany Toronto Photographs: Then and Now

[Urban Shocker]

I like being able to tell my family and friends in Europe that there's a spectacular castle in my city as well, even if younger.

The problem with that boast, however, is that there's plenty of faux Loire chateau and Mock Goth residential architecture in Britain and on the Continent, and from about the same date as Chorley and Casa Loma, that's every bit as correctly reviled as ours is ... and for the same reasons.

 

[adma]

Well, not me. I think Casa Loma is a failure that should be demolished - and I'm a knee-jerk preservationist.

To reverse my POV that Chorley Park's loss should be considered in the context of the early 1960s, I'd suggest that as a so-called failure, Casa Loma should have been demolished--in the 1930s. Y'know, Great Depression, proven white elephant, etc. Unfortunately (or not), Kiwanis took it over, and you know the rest. The apron of "plausible demolition time" has passed.

But yeah, I know what you mean: as landmark-as-failures go, it may be more like Sacre Coeur in Paris, which for all its revered scenery-domination is pretty simple-minded, esp. when viewed up close...

 

[Urban Shocker]

Waddesdon Manor, the bogus Loire chateau the Rothschilds built in rural Buckinghamshire in the 1870s and 1880s, strikes me as a reasonable equivalent to Casa Loma in pretense and vulgarity.

The Rothschilds also struck, big time, in France, and quite amusingly so - Château de Ferrières, a fake Renaissance monster home built in the 1850s, was designed by Joseph Paxton, no less. It's based on Mentmore, which the same architect designed for the family in Buckinghamshire. "Build me a Mentmore, but twice the size" Baron James is reputed to have directed. And he did.

 

[J T CUNNINGHAM]

Quite frankly, I don't like where this thread is going.

(Is Spadina House next?)


J T

 

[Monk]

I stumbled upon this forum and thread by accident while looking for something else. I first feel I have to give a big thank you to Mustapha, Goldie, and crew for all the work that has been done. The photos and the descriptions brought back memories that had been pushed to the almost hidden corners of my mind.

Shopping with my Mom on the excursions downtown to Eatons, Eatons Annex, Simpsons and occasionally Eatons College Street. The movies afterward at Lowes, Elgin, and Carlton theaters with dinner after at Diana Sweets or Frans (miss the lemon meringue pie).

The long gone bars from my college days: Le Coq d'Or, The Golden Bull (under Le Coq d'Or), Brown Derby, San Frans, and although not on Yonge Docs, and the Midwich Cookoo. There were a few others but the memory is now a little fuzzy for a number of reasons.

It is amazing to see how much still remains from the early part of this century and yet sad to see how many magnificent structures have gone. The house my Grandparents had when they first came to Canada is still here but every house I grew up in has long been gone. I now wish I had taken more photos when I lived downtown.

I have for gotten who posted the image of the "key" many pages ago in this thread but just for the heck of it here is the one my Dad used when he he purchased now radio gear in in 1965 after a gap of ten years. The key is a then and now in one shot as it has been made the same way since 1904:

The only then and now I can do right now:

1965:

1985:

I must go back to the island again.


And finally a photo on Yonge Street looking north at Holland Landing after the last storm to really scare me. Photo was taken October 16, 1954. Yes that is me in the plaid pants.

If you purchased camera equipment downtown in the 1970's and 1980's may have bumped into each other at some of the places I have worked.

I am trying to find a photograph of a Messerschmidt ME-262 that I believe was on display at the CNE about 1952. I have found photos of the V-2 that was on display then. Has anyone run into a photo of this aircraft?

Again thanks for all the work and the memories ... guess I must go downtown again or start wandering around the city with my camera.

 

[Goldie]

And finally a photo on Yonge Street looking north at Holland Landing after the last storm to really scare me. Photo was taken October 16, 1954. Yes that is me in the plaid pants.

If you purchased camera equipment downtown in the 1970's and 1980's may have bumped into each other at some of the places I have worked.

I am trying to find a photograph of a Messerschmidt ME-262 that I believe was on display at the CNE about 1952. I have found photos of the V-2 that was on display then. Has anyone run into a photo of this aircraft?

Thanks for joining us, Monk.
You obviously have much to contribute.
I love that view of "plaid pants" viewing the flood.
Here (attached) is a photo of a Messerschmidt ME-262, but not at the CNE - this one is at a museum in Munich.
There are many, many photos of this aircraft to be found with a Google image search.

 

[Goldie]

Quite frankly, I don't like where this thread is going.

(Is Spadina House next?)J T

J T obviously sees through all the "yada, yada, yada" and I agree.
Do we really need to be so critical of Toronto's classic castles and old homes?
Let's remember that many Toronto residents are not experienced architectural connoisseurs and experts such as many of the contributors to this site.
There are plenty of admirers of Casa Loma and they would also praise and visit Chorley Park if it still existed.
We have good, bad and indifferent architecture in this great city - let's look, study and enjoy it all.

 

[Monk]

Thank you Goldie.

There was one aircraft in Toronto as a spoil of war that was moved to De Havilland Aircraft (Downsview) and was examined by them. After De Haviland and the military got through with it, the airframe was buried. I am (was) with the Canadian Aerospace Museum (formerly Toronto Aerospace Museum) and we were trying to find a photo of that particular airframe either at the CNE or in transit to Downsview.. Photos of the V2 at the CNE in 1952 are an easy find. As you know at present we are homeless but hope springs eternal.

 

[k10ery]

Waddesdon Manor, the bogus Loire chateau the Rothschilds built in rural Buckinghamshire in the 1870s and 1880s, strikes me as a reasonable equivalent to Casa Loma in pretense and vulgarity.

The Rothschilds also struck, big time, in France, and quite amusingly so - Château de Ferrières, a fake Renaissance monster home built in the 1850s, was designed by Joseph Paxton, no less. It's based on Mentmore, which the same architect designed for the family in Buckinghamshire. "Build me a Mentmore, but twice the size" Baron James is reputed to have directed. And he did.

What it calls to mind for me is Neuschwanstein, the last castle completed by Mad King Ludwig before his "mysterious" death.

 

[k10ery]

Quite frankly, I don't like where this thread is going.

(Is Spadina House next?)


J T

Sorry about that. I love these photos of old Toronto architecture. But I do enjoy looking at them critically and seeing what we can learn about history, architecture ... and the Folly of Man more generally.

With respect, I do not think that Casa Loma is "off topic". The subject was Chorley Park, reviled and ultimately demolished because of its drain on the public purse. Since the same issues are in the news now with Casa Loma I think the comparison is a useful one, and adma's discussion of changing attitudes to preservation is right on the mark.

 

[adma]

Since the same issues are in the news now with Casa Loma I think the comparison is a useful one, and adma's discussion of changing attitudes to preservation is right on the mark.

True--and while 50 years ago it would have been a blunt matter of demolish/not demolish, these days it's a more nuanced matter of "how to use". (And besides, as drains-on-public-purse go, the real hardcore Ford Nation snark might question Spadina House even more than Casa Loma, relative merit notwithstanding. But, shhh-don't tell'em.)

 

[J T CUNNINGHAM]

"With respect, I do not think that Casa Loma is "off topic". The subject was Chorley Park, reviled and ultimately demolished because of its drain on the public purse. Since the same issues are in the news now with Casa Loma I think the comparison is a useful one, and adma's discussion of changing attitudes to preservation is right on the mark."
QUOTE k10ery.


Does not the term "slippery slope" have any meaning here-in?

Eg:

The Board of Trade Building at the n/e corner of Yonge & Front Streets was "an old, "ratty", ill-concieved pile, with a "stupid roof" arrangement."
"Tear it down!" - "We need the parking!"

The balance of the above noted block "looks rather shabby."
"Tear it down!" - "We must have more public parking!"

"Just look at that "garbage" that sits east of Scott Street, between Front & Wellington."
"Tear it down!" - "We require more parking for the public!"

Then there was The Gooderham Building, a "totally out-dated monstrosity if there ever was one!"
"Tear it down!" - "We desire more parking for the O'Keefe Centre and it's newly built companion to the east."

"Hello. City of Toronto; Joseph Blow, here."
"Hello Mr Blow. I represent Walsh & Company and would like to inspect a building that the City of Toronto has for sale
at 49 Wellington Street East; The Gooderham Building."


All that it took was one man and/with The City of Toronto to start it, and all that it took was another man, being in private business, to stop it.
Thank you David Walsh!


In summation, you and a number of others, are not Walsh & Company.



Reguards to the thread,
J T

 

[Goldie]

True--and while 50 years ago it would have been a blunt matter of demolish/not demolish, these days it's a more nuanced matter of "how to use". (And besides, as drains-on-public-purse go, the real hardcore Ford Nation snark might question Spadina House even more than Casa Loma, relative merit notwithstanding. But, shhh-don't tell'em.)

And then there are "drains-on-public-purse" such as these which languish because no one wants to take responsibility for the preserved remains.

 

[Mustapha]

Hello again. Please forgive my fumbling posts earlier. I was reading through from the beginning and was so excited to be able to add something to this wonderful tome. I finally made it to the end and what a journey in and out of a time portal this has been. Thank you to everyone here for all the effort that has gone into this.

Please allow me to formally introduce myself. My name is Paul and I am the author of several digital railway mapping projects. My passion lies with historical electric railways and thats what brought me here in the first place. I recently updated my map of the TTC streetcar system and have made great use of the Toronto Archive online to display the early track layouts. I use Google Earth to draw my maps and have linked these images directly to the map. A left click on an intersection detail usually brings up a historical image of that intersection. I have also marked out the footprints of related buildings like carhouses and power substations with polygons. A left click will also bring up images.

Recently I also began to attach image links to the map from the cameramans point of view. Double clicking a camera icon will put the image in perpective. I like this because you can switch to the street view for a then and now treatment. Try the Rogers road line or St.Thomas Ontario for examples.
This project has taken about 8000+ hours to do so far and I see no end in sight. My work is free and open to criticism so please visit www.cermc.web.com for my latest work.

Paul... just call me faw

Hi FAW/Paul; your link doesn't work for me.

 

[Mustapha]

A recent thread made mention of Col.Harland Sanders. He lived on Melton drive in Cooksville. I remember seeing him in my church at Applewood United on Stanfield road. He came here to attend to his Canadian operations after he was ousted from the U.S. company in a hostile takeover. He was a large contributor to the Cooksville General Hospital(now Trillium?) at Queensway and Hwy 10, a wing bears his name to this day. He used to film cooking shows for the CBC in his back yard and had one of the last horse stables in Mississauga, on what is now the Queensway at Dixie road. The people that bought his home from his estate found his trademark white suit and black bola tie in a closet. The garage of his house was built to mimic the restaraunt design of the time too and still stands. I would post a streetview but am still in the dark as to how to do that. http://goo.gl/maps/gLBf try this.
If you can find a copy,( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SplIHEeA4rA ) check out Dan Ackroyd's first feature film, "Love at first sight" filmed in Toronto and Niagara Falls in 1976. KFC was big then and is referenced 7 times in the movie as well as a cameo near the end of the Col. himself. Also some period shots of Toronto to see.

faw

The streetview link worked! Thank you FAW. What an interesting history; well told.