Why I Love Toronto

Alumnae Theatre (Former Fire Hall No. 4)

I love my office job because on some days I get to go on adventures! In my retail jobs the only real adventure you could take was to the bank to get coin for the registers. Anyways one day my adventures took me to the east end of Toronto to a box office, where I had to pick up tickets for my co-workers so they could attend a gala the next night. After I had picked up the tickets I was to assist someone with moving a prop a bit further east. I had gotten to my first destination rather quickly and decided to explore the area while I waited for my ride to the next place. As I was walking I noticed what looked like an old fire hall. As I turned the corner I noticed that it was a fire hall that has been converted into the Alumnae Theatre.

Before I discuss the current tenant of the building, let me tell you a bit about the buildings days as a fire hall. The Edwardian Classical fire hall was designed by A. Frank Wickson (who didn’t do many building in Toronto). The building was a rebuild of an existing fire hall that once stood on the same property. Mostly known for its architectural features the building is noted for its arched gables, contrasts in brick and stone and that beautiful second storey window.  My favourite feature would be the isoclines tower which is where the hoses were dried as well as the brick detailing around the second storey window, which has similarities to my dream house on Sussex Ave. Today much of the exterior is the same however the interior underwent a major renovation in 1972 by Ron Thom whose task was to convert the fire hall into the Alumnae Theatre. One of the major changes to the exterior was the elimination of the former garage doors which today are two large windows that allow you to peer into the theatres facility.

But what is the Alumnae Theatre? Well it was a club formed in 1919 by female graduates of the University of Toronto, in which the club was once affiliated with. The mission of Alumnae still remains relatively the same as it did in 1919 with just one major change. Many people in 1919 did not get the chance to see theatre because it was not as readily available and therefore, it became the Alumnae’s mission to bring theatre to Toronto by staging club premieres of famous plays. Today of course we know that theatre is thriving in the city with major theatre houses owned by the Mirvish Family and little ones like the Alumnae Theatre. Other parts of their mission statements which have been maintained since their inception include presenting the best in classic and contemporary plays and to provide women with the opportunity to be in theatre.

I have to say the one reason I love this facility is because two pieces of Toronto’s history have collided. The first is an architectural history and the second is a cultural one. Together their story is

Why I Love Toronto

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Dating on a Budget: The University Students Guide to Dating in Toronto

Toronto Neighbourhoods

Toronto has so many amazing, unique and diverse neighbourhoods that are great for dates! Each Toronto Neighbourhood has a specific charm to them and it is because of that, that a simple neighbourhood walk can be a great date option. Below of three of things that could you do on your neighbourhood walk. .

Architecture:

There are just some many things to discover and experience in Toronto. For example, if you are an architecture lover then I suggest exploring the Annex which has homes that vary in styles such as Victorian, Queen Anne, English Cottage, Georgian, Tudor and Richardsonian Romanesque. Maybe you would like to see some posh homes like in the Bridle Path, Forest Hill. If you are more into the architecture of the Annex then you must hit up Parkdale for some of the most stunning buildings.

Personally there is this one house located in the South Annex where I took a date once after we had a little architecture walk. The home was abandoned and I took her up to the steps and we sat there as U of T students passed by getting ready for a night out. This house is my favourite make-out spot because of its creepy style and beautiful bay windows.

Food and Culture:

If you two are food lovers, then may I suggest in the summer visiting some of the street festivals that many of Toronto’s Neighbourhoods host? Try some cuisine from Italy, Poland or Greece with festivals such as Taste of the Danforth, Taste of Little Italy or the Polish Festival. Many of these communities will have some great food tasting options for cheap. It is at these festivals that vendors will stand outside their restaurant to give you a sample tasting of what they have inside with the hopes you’ll make a full meal out of it. I personally love grabbing some pasta and gelato when I’m at The Taste of Little Italy. The other great part is that there is live entertainment. I remember at the Polish Festival there was this band playing to a crowd of dancing teenagers, adults and older folks. These couples were dancing underneath the stars and you could tell by their faces that it was a great date night. One of my best dates was at Salsa on St. Clair and it was because my date thought it would be unique and romantic to experience something different together –and it was. I think her favourite part was seeing me whisked away by some elderly lady and dancing with her.     

Another awesome option for you food lovers is Kensington Market. Kensington has every type of food known to man. Want to have a pie? Then share a pie from Wanda’s Pie in The Sky! Grilled Cheese…yep they have a shop dedicated to it! Feeling a Spanish mood and maybe want some empanada’s? Well that’s covered as well! They also have a bunch of small convenience stores where you can buy some fruit to have a small spontaneous picnic.

Window Shopping/ Looking:

There is nothing like walking through one of Toronto’s neighbourhoods main streets and peering into the windows. I love walking through The Junction because they just have some odd shops, my favourite being the appliance store that has washers from when my grandmother came to Canada. When Dasha and I saw that store we stood there for at least 10 minutes pointing things out and laughing at what was stylish back then.

Parkdale is great area for antique window shopping, whereas Kensington is great for thrift shopping and where I believe a romantic montage could occur. The best part about a lot of the places is that you can probably find yourself a cheap deal on something and give it to your date as a romantic souvenir.   

There are just so many things to be found in Toronto and a neighbourhood walk is great date for there is guaranteed to be something to always talk about, from that vintage store to that houses architecture to a mural.

Planning a neighbourhood date can also create some excitement for the day. Instead of saying “Let’s go grab a Starbucks,” try saying “Let’s go grab a coffee somewhere in Cabbagetown.” Sure there may still be a Starbucks you end up at, but think of the adventure you could have by just saying coffee and the neighbourhood. The date won’t know what to expect and it will leave a little mystery. You could walking for a while before deciding what coffee shop to go to! For mystery and endless conversation, the neighbourhood walk is a great cheap date options.

That is how to Date on a Budget in Toronto.

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William George Storm

Birth: October 29 1826 (England)

Death: August 8 1892 (Toronto)

Biography: William George Storm came to Canada in 1830 with his parents Thomas Storm and Mary Hopkins. The family settled in what was then known as the city of York. As Storm got older he went to work for his father who was a contractor. Eventually he found that his ability to draw and his vast knowledge in construction would be suited in the profession of architecture.

In 1849 he worked under Frederick William Cumberland and eventually in 1852 was taken on as a partner and started the firm Cumberland and Storm. The partnership eventually dissolved in 1863, but the firm name was still in use 3 years after the partnership ended. Storm eventually partnered with Charles Albert Walton, but only for a brief period until he decided to work by himself. However, many note that after Cumberland left the partnership his career suffered greatly.

Even though William George Storm did not contribute to a number of buildings that I have covered on my blog, I believe it is still important to note him as an architect. He not only worked with Cumberland who has a number of buildings on my list, but University College is on of my favorite colleges at U of T and I always love running my fingers along that wrought iron fence at Osgoode Hall in the summer.

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Why I Love The Architects of Toronto

Henry Sproatt and Ernest Rolph

Henry Sproatt

Birth: June 14, 1866 (Toronto, ON)

Death: October 4, 1934              

Biography Sproatt: Henry Sproatt spent time in New York City training and eventually was considered an authority of Gothic architecture. Before meeting partner Rolph, Sproatt partnered with Frank Darling and John Pearson.

Ernest Rolph

Birth: January 21, 1871 (Toronto, ON)

Death: May 4, 1958

Biography for Rolph:  Rolph, who was once a student at the still functional Jarvis Collegiate, gained his knowledge of architecture from working with David Roberts. Rolph eventually took a job as an architect and engineer working with the Canadian Pacific Railway.

Biography for Sproatt and Rolph (firm): Sproatt met Rolph when Rolph joined him as a draftsman in the firm Darling, Sproatt and Pearson. Sproatt and Rolph went into partnership in 1899. The pair would make a number of famous Toronto landmarks in their 35 years together. Their most famous buildings are on the University of Toronto campus. In the partnership Sproatt was considered the principal designer. Rolph acted more as the administrator and businessman of the firm. The partnership ended when Sproatt died.  

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Haunted Toronto

University College                                                                                                   

The look of University College is both beautiful and terrifying. The Gothic towers, the wrought iron detailing, the colour of the brick and the arched doorways are what make this building beautifully creepy.  However, something else makes this building creepy and that is the terrible murder that occurred and the evidence that still remains.

As the kids on Are You Afraid of The Dark? would say – “submitted for the approval of the Midnight Society, I call this story…”  The Legend of Diabolos and Reznikoff.

The story is about Diabolos, a sculptor and Reznikoff, a stones man, who both worked on the University College building. However, their feud was not over the building or their jobs, but like most stories that have male feuds, the issue was that both men loved the same woman.  Reznikoff was set to marry this woman, but Diabolos convinced her to leave Reznikoff and take all of his savings with them. Reznikoff found out about the plan and both men fought at the southwest corner of the building. Reznikoff had an axe and attempted to strike Diabolos, but missed him and hit the door instead. In fact the mark that Reznikoff made still remains on the Croft Chapter House door today, but back to the story.  Diabolos, armed with a dagger, ran to the third floor of the tower and hid. Then when his opponent approached Diabolos attacked and killed Reznikoff. After Reznikoff died, Diabolos threw his body down the tower well, which was covered up after the construction of the building was complete. It wasn’t until the fire of 1890 that his body was found.

Many say that at night when they are walking through University College they can here banging and creaking, and many believe that is Reznikoff that makes those sounds. 

Haunted Toronto 

1 Spadina Crest. 

Creepy gothic looking exterior? Check. Old and covered in vines? Check. Mysterious Murder? Check. Eyeballs? Check. Military Hospital? Check. So far this building is looking pretty good for a potential haunting. However, one of Toronto’s most famous ghost websites has never actually received reports of a haunting in this building. In fact it wasn’t until a supposed Ghost Hunter fell to her death that rumours of the building being haunted took full force. 

There are many reasons this building could be haunted. The first is the fact it was it was a military hospital during World War One. I have no doubt the building saw a number of deaths and tragedies during its years as a hospital. Not to mention the woman behind one of the world’s greatest mysteries (Amelia Earhart) used to work here. So could the building be haunted by patients who died in the facility?

There was also a brutal murder that took place in the building back in 2001 when a Fine Arts lecturer David Buller was stabbed to death in his office. His murder has yet to be solved. Therefore, if the building is haunted could it be his ghost waiting for his murder to be solved?

Also a woman fell to her death in 2009 after jumping from the roof tops of the building. The woman and her companion were called Ghost Hunters by many media outlets. However, that statement was recalled. Could her tragic and untimely death have led to a recent haunting?  

Even though there have been numerous rumours of the building be haunted there has been no reported paranormal activity. No odd sounds, lights flickering or anything of the sort. People have just spread a story about the building being haunted by one of the three tragedies that have occurred on the property. 

Oh and P.S. the building also houses the Eyeball Bank of Ontario, which for me is creepier than any haunting.  

Haunted Toronto Trinity College One reason I love U of T buildings is because they have this creepy aged look to them which makes the scary yet beautiful. Now Trinity College has this beautiful copper dome that I think that is the main reason why it strikes fear in people and why many think it is haunted.  However, this haunting is not of a tortured soul, but of a man’s dedication to the college and establishment he helped create. There have been a number of ghost stories floating around (pun intended). The ghost who supposedly haunts the building is its founder John Strachan who died the day after halloween. John Strachan, who was the first Anglican Bishop of Toronto, got a provincial charter to establish Trinity with the intent of an Anglican alignment. No of course the home where Trinity currently sits was not its original. In fact it was built on the grounds of what is now Trinity Bellwoods Park. However, being the first Anglican Bishop of Toronto and building an institution he was so proud of, it is no wonder why John Strachan may haunt the current Trinity College. Many say that around the time of his death/ Halloween you can see Strachan in his bishop robes going around the college to check on its progress. This is a man who works even from beyond the grave. 
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Haunted Toronto

Trinity College

One reason I love U of T buildings is because they have this creepy aged look to them which makes the scary yet beautiful. Now Trinity College has this beautiful copper dome that I think that is the main reason why it strikes fear in people and why many think it is haunted. 

However, this haunting is not of a tortured soul, but of a man’s dedication to the college and establishment he helped create. There have been a number of ghost stories floating around (pun intended). The ghost who supposedly haunts the building is its founder John Strachan who died the day after halloween. John Strachan, who was the first Anglican Bishop of Toronto, got a provincial charter to establish Trinity with the intent of an Anglican alignment. No of course the home where Trinity currently sits was not its original. In fact it was built on the grounds of what is now Trinity Bellwoods Park. However, being the first Anglican Bishop of Toronto and building an institution he was so proud of, it is no wonder why John Strachan may haunt the current Trinity College. Many say that around the time of his death/ Halloween you can see Strachan in his bishop robes going around the college to check on its progress. This is a man who works even from beyond the grave. 

Haunted Toronto

Ontario Legislative Building or Queens Park

Today I bring you to the place where the province of Ontario is governed. Now this political building could be haunted for a number of reasons. the first being that the bricks used to build the Legislative were made by inmates that the Toronto Central Prison. Which we have come to learn was one of the harshest prisons in Ontario if not Canada. The second is that the land the Legislative building is on was once owned by U of T and was the site of the old Kings College building. However the province repossessed the property and was held to be the possible site of Parliament until Ottawa was named the capital of Canada. Instead of giving the building back to U of T, the province turned it into the Women’s Mental Hospital or as many referred to it as “The University Lunatic Asylum.” It eventually was torn down to build the Ontario Legislative Building. 

With all that, there have been reports of three common hauntings in the Ontario Legislative Building. Some people have reported seeing a ghost coming down the grand staircase. Others are said to have seen three women in the building. One wearing a white gown, the other a checkered dress and the final one is said to be hanging from a hook in the basement. Finally a man in soldier’s uniform can sometimes be seen walking around the building. 

What is interesting is that 4 out of the 5 ghosts I have mentioned are women. Are these women former patients from the Asylum? Well usually the rule is that if you tear down a haunted building the spirits are released, but what if some part of the old asylum is still present today? If these women are former patients then something from that old asylum may be still holding them to that building. Let’s just agree that Queen’s Park is creepy.