Miscellany Toronto Photographs: Then and Now

[Mustapha]

Mustapha, you have a fine knack for finding the most interesting/unusual locations and images!
Welcome back.

Thanks Goldie! That's appreciated.

 

[DSC]

Mustapha, you have a fine knack for finding the most interesting/unusual locations and images!
Welcome back.

You are no slouch yourself!

 

[Goldie]

Thanks, DSC..........just enjoying myself.

 

[Happy Guy]

113 St. Joseph Street, the site of the Convent of the Sisters of the Precious Blood:

1932 (with a description from the Toronto Star):

"In this quiet house on St. Joseph street (Toronto) dwell the sisters of the Precious Blood cloistered from the world".:

View attachment 121043

1966 (photo by Boris Spremo):

"Grim Old Convent on St. Joseph St. will have serenity shattered by wreckers; A Sister of St. Joseph walks by the structure which; for nearly 100 years; has sheltered Precious Blood nuns".

View attachment 121044

Today:

View attachment 121045

Just a personal memory when I saw these photos. In the early years of the 1960s I was an altar boy at St. Basil's Church across St. Joseph Street from this convent. On a couple of occasions, the church pastor handed me the plain beige biscuit tin in which the communion wafers (unconsecrated of course) were kept and asked me to get a refill from the nuns at the convent. I would enter a small, dark reception room and press a buzzer. There was a wooden grate with a sliding panel behind it on an interior wall. In a few minutes, the panel would slide back and a dim figure of a nun would appear behind the grate. I would show her the tin and state my request. Wordlessly, the panel was shut. Over to one side a wooden turntable was built into the wall. It would begin to rumble and turn revealing a shelf. I placed the tin on the shelf and the turntable rumbled back. After a few minutes, the turntable turned once more and the shelf re-appeared with the tin now full. As I removed it and headed to the door, the turntable returned to its closed position.

At the end of the 1960s I was a student at the University of St. Michael's College and was among the first students to use the new library built on the site of the old convent. This post reminded me of my personal connection to a piece of nineteenth-century Toronto architecture and life. Thank you.

 

[Gebbois-LTIA]

Ever so neat. We just completed the renovations of the temperature and humidity controls for the Hart House
Art Gallery. Never thought of this as art, but go figure, I like it!

 

[Goldie]

King at Jarvis 1971

Google street view:
https://www.google.com/maps/search/...ata=!3m4!1e1!3m2!1s5s5JY3GlX-jUhS56sXP1iA!2e0

 

[J T CUNNINGHAM]

"King at Jarvis 1971"

Realising of course, The East Wing, within it's entirety, was only four years old at the above take.
(1967)

Regards,
J T

 

[adma]

I hope you realize that the "now" shot is catercorner from the "then" shot.
Oh, re the "then" shot, you can see the horse trough peeking out to the left of the bottom of the corner pier. (Where and when was that moved?)

 

[J T CUNNINGHAM]

LOL

Yes! The Bank - Dominion Bank, was one of the early tenants - S/W corner, while, surprisingly, one of that Bank's Founders was Austin, he being in another venture on the N/E,
it being that within the second pic.
When the St Lawrence Hall was being renovated for the 1967 Canada Festivities, the Entire East Wing of that building collapsed within and upon the intersection, it having to be
completely rebuilt, from the ground up.
The horse trough, I believe, is now stationed on the S/S of Adelaide, within the park one block to the North.
As a throw-in, you may remember my family's relationship with The Austin Family and the Dominion Bank; it has become even more of a surprise, aside I too having had a
one as well, during the 1970's, one of my former business partner's old school buddies, is an Austin Cousin.

Regards,
J T

 

[DSC]

I hope you realize that the "now" shot is catercorner from the "then" shot.
Oh, re the "then" shot, you can see the horse trough peeking out to the left of the bottom of the corner pier. (Where and when was that moved?)

Yes, wrong corner! The horse trough is on the King Street side of St James Park just to east of Victorian Garden.

 

[Goldie]

I hope you realize that the "now" shot is catercorner from the "then" shot.
Oh, re the "then" shot, you can see the horse trough peeking out to the left of the bottom of the corner pier. (Where and when was that moved?)

My greatest appreciation to you, adma ---- I was not aware of that stupid mistake!
Oh, the horror! I'm kicking myself.
At the time of my post, I was thinking of Front & Jarvis and knew that the St. Lawrence Market would be "catercorner."
Certainly a poor excuse.

 

[r937]

I'm kicking myself.

dude, chill

i still love you. man

 

[Goldie]

dude, chill

i still love you. man

Rudy, you've made my day !!!

 

[J T CUNNINGHAM]

"Yes, wrong corner! The horse trough is on the King Street side of St James Park just to east of Victorian Garden. "

It is now, contrary to my above "North side of the park" comment, but was originally, view S/W King/Jarvis corner, on the West side of Jarvis, South of King.

Regards.

Report

 

[Mustapha]

Then. Looking SW at the SW corner of Simcoe and Richmond. c1970-ish? Not much in the Then picture. The building looks like one of those mid 19th century upper class homes that dotted this area along with small industry up until the 80s. I do remember that building housing an auto glass business before demolition. The two cars in the picture were the attractant for me. 60/70s Muscle Cars were affordably priced up until about 15 years ago. Then Boomers inheriting wealth from the Greatest Generation chasing even the commoner models have put prices waa-y up.


'Dairy Barn'? What the heck was that? Don't look at the logo. Don't.

Now. This afternoon.