This Park Has a Story to Tell

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PHOTO OF THE WEEK
One of Canada’s Most Expensive Residences

What happened to one of the most expensive residences ever constructed in Canada?

In 1909, the Province of Ontario wanted to build a new government house, and ultimately selected a 14 acre site in North Rosedale.

Between 1911 and 1915, Chorley Park, or the fourth Government House, was built here.

It was a magnificent building, designed in the French Renaissance style with detailed turrets that gave the house a castle-like appearance.

The book Lost Toronto described Chorley Park as follows: The house was conceived on a scale that far outshone even the governor general’s residence...

The expenses of maintaining the house became the subject of political debate and in 1937 the building was closed.

During World War Two, it was used as a military hospital.

In 1960, under Mayor Nathan Phillips, the city bought the house for $100,000 in order to destroy it and create a municipal park.

ANNOUNCING A NEW SECTION: MUST READS
Unbuilt Toronto: A History of the City That Might Have Been

“Unbuilt Toronto explores never-realized building projects in and around Toronto, from the citys founding to the twenty-first century. Delving into unfulfilled and largely forgotten visions for grand public buildings, landmark skyscrapers, highways, subways, and arts and recreation venues, it outlines such ambitious schemes as St. Alban’s Cathedral, the Queen subway line and early city plans that would have resulted in a Paris-by-the-Lake.”

Click Here to pick up your own copy on Amazon.

RARE TORONTO FACTS
Did You Know…

Toronto’s Old City Hall, designed by architect E.J. Lennox, features hidden caricatures of city councillors and even a self-portrait of Lennox himself, subtly carved into the building’s stonework as a cheeky response to political tensions during its construction.

VIDEO OF THE WEEK
Abandoned since the 1960's | The Story of Toronto's Ghost Tower - Documentary (Short Film)

Here is the link:
Click here to watch