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articles
timeline America The World at large links (opens in new window)
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Toronto
1810, known as York
Metropolitan Toronto covers a lot of land, but in 1793, it was little more than a survey and a collection of tents. The area however, had a long history tied to ancient trails that ran between Lake Frontenac (Ontario) and Lake Toronto (Simcoe). For many years it was known as the Toronto Carrying Place. Then it tentatively fell into French hands with a series of forts commanding the Humber River. When New France surrendered to the British, the land reverted to the Mississauga, only to gain a new spurt of colonization following the American Revolution when Loyalists headed for Canada.
A town is built in the wilderness At this time, the acting capital of Upper Canada was Niagara (now Niagara-on-the-Lake) which Simcoe had renamed Newark. Newark, like Kingston was considered too close to the American border for safety and a new location for government was sought. Simcoe set his heart on a capital located in the centre of the colony, specifically, to be built on La Tranche and named Georgina (now London, ON). Some claimed it was inaccessible but the choice was ultimately doomed when Lord Dorchester decided it was impossible to garrison both Georgina and Toronto. Toronto would have to serve double duty. It had none of the favourable attributes offered by other towns but none of their disadvantages. It existed as 10 muddy blocks with one or two houses and a good harbour at the cross-roads of two ancient Indian trails. There were no local roads. In 1794 it officially became the capital of Upper Canada just as tensions with the USA eased, and officials were asked to move from Newark to the new town.
With war no longer an issue and Governor-in-Chief Lord Dorchester counting pennies, the defences at York remained light and the navy remained at Kingston where it could be provisioned more cheaply. A second survey was arranged for York, this one by Alexander Aitkin, to include the harbour and lay out a grid of 10 square blocks bounded by George, Berkeley, Adelaide and Front streets. Land to the east was set aside for Parliament buildings and a garrison. To the west the land was marked for public buildings like the church, jail, hospital and market. North of Queen St, the land was divided into 100 acre lots to be awarded to government officials as compensation for moving to York. Thus the very newness of Toronto gave Simcoe an opportunity to gift his friends with property. These lots were about 3 x 33 acres and filled the space between present day Queen St. and Bloor, inhibiting northern expansion of the city. Under Simcoe's plan, the town was confined by estates to the north, the lake to the south and military and government use to the east and west. In Simcoe's mind this would force the town to remain compact. Mr. and Mrs. Simcoe, their children, and sundry others moved up from Newark and settled in under second-hand tents aquired from the estate of Capt. Cook (who once served with Simcoe's father at Quebec). One tent was designated "the canvas house" and became the first Government House of Upper Canada and Simcoe's home. It had two rooms, one of which was set aside for the children and their nurse. The tents were pitched where Fort York now stands and sheathed with wood against the winter. For the first few years of York's life, activity centered around clearing land and building roads. A sawmill was built on the Humber (1794) and another on the Don (1795, Todmorden Mills) followed by a gristmill in 1796. For immigrants and visitors from Europe, the dense forests that hugged the site were awesome, monotonous and wearying. To people raised in North America, they were a familiar obstacle. No-one felt any compunction about cutting them down by the hundreds. Roads and Communication One more road was undertaken -- Kingston Road from Toronto to the Bay of Quinte was constructed under contract to Asa Danforth, and was completed by July 1, 1800. The road was 33 feet wide on a 16 inch bed. Two townships were sold to pay him and 40 labourers for the work. Danforth received $90/mile and his workers each received wages and 200 acres of Crown land on completion. Roads within and around the town were made and maintained by the citizens. Those who refused to pitch in, were fined and the money used to pay someone else to do the work. This consisted of levelling the land, filling in the worst holes and sometimes adding a gutter to collect melt and rain water. Most of the raods and paths were dirt (or mud in spring). Here and there a merchant put in a flagstone sidewalk. The public footpath was irregular in width and height and some people were more inclined to take care of their section than others. The first laws to regulate their condition were not passed until 1816.
Grow or go By the early 1800s, tensions were growing again with the USA. Major-General Sir Isaac Brock was in command of the troops and fought to ensure the colony was prepared for war. The British navy on the Lakes was stronger than the American, but the number of British soldiers and local militia available was small and the Americans were a prosperous, growing population. He spent the next five years shuffling between towns strengthening the defences, arguing with government for better preparedness, and concerning himself with the loyalty of the many settlers in Upper Canada who immigrated from the States and maintained relations with American families and friends. One of Brock's projects was improvements to the garrison at Fort York but this could not prevent American invasions. On April 27, 1813, the American army attacked York with 2700 men and 14 ships armed with 85 cannon. The Canadian defense force consisted of 700 British soldiers, militia and Indian allies with only 12 cannon. The Americans landed west of the fort and after 6 hours of serious fighting the British were forced to retreat, blowing up the gunpowder magazine as they did so which killed many of the invaders. British commander Major-General Sheaffe retired his force to Kingston and the local militia surrendered. The Americans occupied the town for only 6 days, during which they looted homes and stores, carried off supplies and burined the Parliament Buildings and Government House. In July they returned to burn the barracks and other buildings, but again, they left and while they were gone the British rebuilt Fort York. When the Americans invaded a third time, in August 1814, they were unable to defeat the garrison or access the town.
Only after the end of the War of 1812, did demand begin to outstrip supply. Some of the estates were broken into lots for sale and as the burgeoning city of Toronto prospered, those who held onto land longest found it was finally valuable. Little effort was made to level the land or fill in the ravines that made building difficult. Wooden bridges spanned the creeks where necessary and if they weren't wide and were not always above water, that was too bad. Again, this would change after the war. By 1842 only Garrison Creek remained. The others had been filled in. In York/Toronto, in 1810, the population of around 630 was divided by class and ethnicity. There were some 85 servants, a few free black people, a few French Canadians and a number of ex-soldiers, some Germans and other immigrants. Officially there were no slaves since Simcoe had abolished slavery in Upper Canada. The top tier of society was formed by a handful of educated families that intermarried and controlled the government. The next tier included merchants, and the bottom tier was formed of labourers and tradesmen. Apart from these lived the 3 companies of the 41st Regiment in the Garrison. By 1825 there were still only 1677 people in town, but by 1833, there were 9000. Paralleling the expansion in population was the increase in building. Each town lot was one acre in size. In 1793 there 12 houses in York and a new fort. In 1810 there were 74 town lots and the buildings included
On back lots were a number of buildings occupied by craftsmen: furniture makers, saddlers, carpenters, wheelwrights, tinsmiths, iron-mongers, bricklayers and plasterers. The government rented offices in private houses as needed. Some attempt was made to keep the buildings on the south side of the town residential only with businesses and workmen's houses on the northern limits. But the original layout of 10 blocks had expanded north to Duchess St and west to Victoria St and obviously, people didn't relocate. Outside the town were 4 saw and grist mills on the Don and Humber Rivers and of course the military buildings. In 1797, the new Lt.Gov of Upper Canada, Peter Russell, one of the Family Compact built a 2-storey defensible barracks in York near the garrison. And a Governor's Residence or Government House was built near the Garrison in 1800. Every family was responsible for disposing of their own garbage, often burying or burning it on their lots. There were few regulations until the cholera epidemic of 1831-32. An 1802 edict ensured that wood leavings were burned only on Wednesday and Saturday at sunset; butchers had to bury their offal or remove it from town. The streets were not cleared of dung from the many horses and other animals that passed. Despite Simcoe's recommendations about building styles and set-backs, most people chose to build in whatever style suited their background and skills. Every building was unique and carpenters were in such demand and paid so well that embellishments were limited. Most of the homes were plain log (usually squared logs) or frame one storey buildings. Only two buidings were brick. Most had cedar shingles and some may have had earth floors, although most would have wooden ones.
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