Woodbine Heights

[Joe]

Wow! Really? I go in there all the time and I never would have guessed that! You'd certainly never know from just looking at the place from the outside.

Yes, and apparently the entrance to the theatre was on the Danforth side - where the pharmacy is now... with stairs down into the lobby. Again, go in to the Valumart from the rear parking lot, and look through the windows looking down at the store.... you can almost visualize the theatre and projection booth...

 

[Joe]

Upper Midway

Apparently, this area was called "Upper Midway" at one time... from an Inside Toronto article:

This walk was part of an important neighbourhood event called Jane's Walk, named after the celebrated urban theorist and activist, Jane Jacobs.

The walk took place along a stretch of the Danforth once known as "Upper Midway" which extends from Greenwood Avenue to just past Woodbine Avenue.

After the Second World War this stretch of the Danforth was one of the nicest shopping areas in Toronto and was part of my childhood experience thanks to my father's butcher shop at Woodbine Avenue.

http://www.insidetoronto.com/insidetoronto/article/72981

 

[Goldie]

Apparently, this area was called "Upper Midway" at one time... from an Inside Toronto article:

http://www.insidetoronto.com/insidetoronto/article/72981

The quote from Inside Toronto should be taken with a grain of salt!
I lived in the Danforth neighbourhood for many, many years and NEVER heard of "Upper Midway."
I'd certainly like to read about the origin of this odd term. Perhaps it relates to the early 1900s.

By the way, in the 1930/40/50s era there were many movie theatres on Danforth between Broadview and Woodbine.
I can recall at least 8: Century, Granada, Iola, Odeon, Palace, Allenby, Oxford and Prince of Wales
And north of Danforth: Cameo, Donlands and Community

 

[EVCco]

Interesting!
Quoting from this Jane's Walk flickr page:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/janeswalk/sets/72157605040655124/

"The Midway Annex is just one year shy of its centennial as a part of the city. A midway was the name of an area between the City of Toronto (whose western boundary was just east of Greenwood) and the Town of East Toronto (whose eastern boundary crossed Danforth about a half kilometre east of Woodbine). In its entirety, Midway, which was annexed in 1909, ran down almost to Queen."


Never heard the name either, but I certainly prefer it to the newer, gimmicky BIA names that parts of the Danforth are currently being rebranded as; such as "Crossroads of the Danforth" or *cringe* "Danforth Mosaic" .....

 

[Joe]

Midway

I lived in the Danforth neighbourhood for many, many years and NEVER heard of "Upper Midway."
I'd certainly like to read about the origin of this odd term. Perhaps it relates to the early 1900s.

Yeah, the article says it was after WWII - but I was thinking early 1900s would make more sense... when the Danforth streetcar was new to the area, etc.

I do like the term for the area too... I like Danforth East, but Midway or Upper Midway identifies the area well - gives it some individuality.

 

[EVCco]

just an update in regards to the 'yuppification' of the area,
since i last posted here a few months ago:

the 'marketeria' has closed
the health food store has closed
the art gallery appears to be closing
and i think the costume store might be closing too....


..whether they'll be replaced by even more upscale establishments
or more auto mechanic shops remains to be seen

 

[SayBlade]

Just came across this thread. Was looking for historic info about this stretch of Woodbine Ave between O'Connor and Danforth. Neat to know there was a theatre there at one point. There is a site What Was There where you can upload an historic photo of something and it will be placed in such a way that you can view it on Google Street View and toggle between the old and the current. I am looking for any photos and information about Madill's Store which I am pretty sure was at the northwest corner of Barker and Woodbine and is now Terry's Milk.

http://www.whatwasthere.com/

 

[SayBlade]

Just came across this thread. Was looking for historic info about this stretch of Woodbine Ave between O'Connor and Danforth. Neat to know there was a theatre there at one point. There is a site What Was There where you can upload an historic photo of something and it will be placed in such a way that you can view it on Google Street View and toggle between the old and the current. I am looking for any photos and information about Madill's Store which I am pretty sure was at the northwest corner of Barker and Woodbine and is now Terry's Milk.

http://www.whatwasthere.com/

I should add a correction that I now think it is Empire Cleaners 1250 Woodbine at the northeast corner of Dunkirk and Woodbine. I hope to get a good scan of the original photo of Madill's store to show a comparison. I just found out that the building is for sale and that in the past couple of weeks there was one building taken down behind the store. Fortunately, I got a screen shot from google maps. More to come.

http://bit.ly/zkzGsL

 

[SayBlade]

Addendum

Here is the photo of J.F. Madill Cash Grocer in 1920 on the north west corner of Dunkirk and Woodbine. I am sure of it by comparing the buildings to the left and right. This is where Woodbine Heights Baptist Church got its beginning. I still have three or four more photos coming.

 

[saleen01]

interesting....thats my drycleaner...LOL...
i grew up in this area...my parents own the grocery store at woodmount and sammon ave.

 

[Danforthist]

Woodbine Heights may not be the hippest (yet), but it EXCEPTIONALLY walkable, and a great option for middle-income folks who want to live a car-free life IN the Toronto. The StreetSmart Walk Score of Woodbine / Mortimer is 92! http://www.walkscore.com/report/woodbine-ave-and-mortimer-ave-toronto-on-canada

 

[dbone66]

Woodbine Heights may not be the hippest (yet), but it EXCEPTIONALLY walkable, and a great option for middle-income folks who want to live a car-free life IN the Toronto. The StreetSmart Walk Score of Woodbine / Mortimer is 92! http://www.walkscore.com/report/woodbine-ave-and-mortimer-ave-toronto-on-canada

Has this area improved over the past few years? I'm relocating to Toronto with 2 kids. I like the idea of living in a walkable area and also being near the subway, but gun shots and muggings mentioned in the earlier posts sound bad. I understand most of Toronto is going through gentrification making it tough to find affordable housing. The houses in this area are less expensive. If the area is turning around and families are moving in then maybe it's worth a closer look. Thanks!

 

[Cecelle]

Has this area improved over the past few years? I'm relocating to Toronto with 2 kids. I like the idea of living in a walkable area and also being near the subway, but gun shots and muggings mentioned in the earlier posts sound bad. I understand most of Toronto is going through gentrification making it tough to find affordable housing. The houses in this area are less expensive. If the area is turning around and families are moving in then maybe it's worth a closer look. Thanks!

It's a great neighbourhood with lots of young families. It give the appearance of being a bit rough around the edges but we've been here for four years and have no complaints. It's not perfect -- break-ins are not unheard of and there are some unsavoury elements hanging around. That said, we can walk to anything we need, I'm 25 minutes to my job downtown, my kids go to a great school, and the community is great. Check out DECA (Danforth East Community Association) for more info.