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Miscellany Toronto Photographs: Then and Now
- Thread starter Mustapha
- Start date
Blovertis
Active Member
Let me say it again: This thread has been going so long that the "nows" have become "thens".
r937
Active Member
indeed !!
mustapha, that link back to the earlier page in this thread -- well before i joined the forum -- was fascinating
i thought you might be interested in a more recent photo for one of the locations --
here's a picture of that same wall taken this past august --
sorry, i did not stop long enough to inspect the artwork, but it sure looks like a mosaic, doesn't it?
i took the picture because of the message which seems to have been sponsored in part by the city of toronto
and also because, yes, that's a QR Code in the corner
Mustapha
Senior Member
Mustapha
Senior Member
True, 'dis. Especially a record of retail establishments that have come and gone... if nothing else.
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Mustapha
Senior Member
indeed !!
mustapha, that link back to the earlier page in this thread -- well before i joined the forum -- was fascinating
i thought you might be interested in a more recent photo for one of the locations --
here's a picture of that same wall taken this past august --
sorry, i did not stop long enough to inspect the artwork, but it sure looks like a mosaic, doesn't it?
i took the picture because of the message which seems to have been sponsored in part by the city of toronto
and also because, yes, that's a QR Code in the corner
Oh, that's Glenview Presbyterian. It's on the west side of Yonge just out-of-picture to the left. The pastor used to live across the street from me. They used to have a nice annual book sale there at the church, they may still be having one but I missed it this year. That mural is a very cool addition to the streetscape as well as a bit of careful artistry. Thank you r937!
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Mustapha
Senior Member
Then and Now for October 16, 2012.
Then. 1955. Yonge looking N towards Gloucester.
Now. May 2012.
Then. 1955. Yonge looking N towards Gloucester.
Now. May 2012.
Mustapha
Senior Member
Then and Now for October 17, 2012.
Then. 1936 this time. A different angle on our old Masonic building.
Now. May 2012.
Then. 1936 this time. A different angle on our old Masonic building.
Now. May 2012.
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Mustapha
Senior Member
Then and Now for October 18, 2012.
Then. Eastern Entrance to Fort York. April 10, 1909.
Now. May 2012.
Then. Eastern Entrance to Fort York. April 10, 1909.
Now. May 2012.
Blovertis
Active Member
A good number of buildings have been removed, which is too bad.
You really get the feeling that in 1909 Fort York wasn't "preserved", it hadn't "survived"; it was just there, a leftover from previous era. Witness the adjacent lumber yard, the rough dirt road.
Did it still have a military use then?
You really get the feeling that in 1909 Fort York wasn't "preserved", it hadn't "survived"; it was just there, a leftover from previous era. Witness the adjacent lumber yard, the rough dirt road.
Did it still have a military use then?
adma
Superstar
Well, let's remember that the fort's restoration came from the same era that gave us Colonial Williamsburg. Such cleaned-up "perfection" was de rigeur then (and is as much of a "historical artifact" in its own right today)
PapaBob
New Member
Hello, all, I've been busy with "other things" (what she had me doing) but I have a contribution which might be other side of the coin; civilian buildings put to military use.
I have not been able to find particulars, but the general impression seems that the World War I "School(s) of Military Aviation" [S.of M.A] were at the University of Toronto. In February 1918, the Royal Flying Corps [RFC] was a few weeks away from becoming the Royal Air Force (formed April 1, 1918). This is another from my collection of panoramic photos and I have no idea which building forms the backdrop, or even if it was actually on the campus of the U of T...
I apologize for the quality of the photo, the framing is so perfect still (after 94 years) that I couldn't bear to dismount the original photo from the frame. The quality of the scan suffers as a result. The original image is 48"x8".
One can't help but wonder how many of these young men went into combat overseas and how many made it back.
Attachments
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FAC33
Active Member
I believe most of the military functions had been moved over to the Stanley Barracks over on what is now the CNE grounds.
I also remember from my volunteer days at the Fort that one of the buildings--and it actually encroached within the bounds of the original fort on the northeast side--was an abbatoir. Quite possible it's one of the buildings we see in the photo.
Mustapha
Senior Member
I'm wondering if the present layout is anything close to the 1793 inception version - the clutter coming later; and then a 'de-clutter', back to what we see now. The problem being the 'de-clutter' went too far, as your Colonial Williamsburg example. One need only to look at photographic examples of 19th century ie., Civil War era fort interiors, to see that they were very cluttered indeed. The Fort York restorationists even went to the trouble of landscaping the earthen walls, with a bulldozer probably. What we see in the Then picture was probably the actual rough earthen embankment thrown up by the soldier's spades.
A clever fortification, our Fort York. The earth walls could not be battered down by artillery as stone walls could be. Cannon balls would harmlessly glance off it. It could only be taken by direct assault, mining or starvation of the garrision. However, something unlike any of these things happened; we abandoned it for the Americans to take possession meanwhile leaving a slow fuse burning in the powder magazine. Said magazine exploded while the Americans were milling around inside the Fort grounds in celebration. An idea as treacherous as it was inspired.
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Mustapha
Senior Member
And its amazing how over 200 years after Fort York rose that its spiritual descendant - Fort York Armoury - stands a couple hundred yards southwest, still training soldiers, reservists in this case. In the early 70s, there was a gun room within, just like you see in the movies; rifles all lined up in racks.
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