Rare Maps of Toronto

[thecharioteer]

As many of you know, I love old maps, and we've all seen various editions of the Goad Fire Insurance Maps. The Toronto Public Library has recently revamped their website and have posted high-res versions of maps from their extensive collection.

Here are a few:

1792:

1797:

1802:

1802: An elegant survey of the property known as Berkeley House, now part of 333 King Street East:

1810, the Don River:

1815:

1816:

1833: A different way of looking at the City:

1848:

1852: Early version of Harbourfront:

1853: Proposal for "undergrounding" the railroads:

1854: Plan of subdivision for the Allan estate:

1855: Plan of subdivision for part of the Denison estate:

1877: Plan of Yorkville:

1880: Plan of the location for the new Provincial Parliament:

 

[Mustapha]

Good grief, there are hundreds of them...

http://www.torontopubliclibrary.ca/search.jsp?N=37910&Ntt=toronto+maps

 

[r937]

Good grief, there are hundreds of them...

http://www.torontopubliclibrary.ca/search.jsp?N=37910&Ntt=toronto+maps

what a gold mine!

great material for "then and now" shots

 

[brewster]

What a great find. My only problem is trying to wrap my brain around the thought that the parliament building's were not there at some point in time.

 

[thecharioteer]

In some ways, the maps revolve around dreams, dreams of the city as it could be but ultimately the dream of real estate.....subdivisions and real estate....has anything changed?

1853:

1884:

1887:

1910:

1913:

 

[adma]

Funny how the Belt Line (or at least, connected land trusts) still seemed to be a real estate factor by 1910--as well as how ambitiously garden-suburbish Cedarvale's original scheme was (hey, Dunington-Grubb must have had pretensions of being a Canuckistani Raymond Unwin)

 

[thecharioteer]

Re: the Belt Line

1890:

 

[Mustapha]

Re: the Belt Line

1890:

How very interesting; a proposed, never realized racetrack in the area of Cortleigh Blvd between - I'm guessing - approximately Alexandra Wood and Mona Drive.

 

[thecharioteer]

Rosedale:

1854:

1877:

1881:

1884:

1905:

Yorkville 1878:

 

[Edward Skira]

Puts my collection of Toronto maps to shame. My favourite is rather recent. A gas station map that contains the outlines of the proposed Spadina and Crosstown highways.

 

[brewster]

cedarvale by Mr T.O., on Flickr

 

[brewster]

1910:

Dufferin and Eglinton by Mr T.O., on Flickr

 

[thecharioteer]

Great comparisons, Brewster!

In the beginning, the ur map of Toronto, 1788:

Followed by the iconic (and more realistic) map of 1793 showing the original 10 square blocks in the Town of York:

1814:

The Phillpotts map of 1818:

Water-lots, 1837. Note that the straight line along the waterfront was related to the windmill at Gooderham and Worts:

Lots for sale in the west end 1834 (another upside-down map):

1837:

The Garrison 1850:

 

[thecharioteer]

Map by Sir Sandford Fleming, 1851:

Boulton map, 1858:

1860:

1884:

1889 (dreams for the Portlands):

1910, further dreams, proposed by the Board of Trade:

 

[DSC]

Charioteer said (about 1837 map above) : "Water-lots, 1837. Note that the straight line along the waterfront was related to the windmill at Gooderham and Worts" The Windmill Line Co-op on Scadding Avenue (The Esplanade at Berkeley/Parliament) is just about on this line, which is still used in descriptions of land in this part of the City. Their website is http://www.windmill-line.coop/