Heritage Banner Project
Original Ten Blocks
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Celebrating History and Architecture:
The Original Ten Blocks of the Town of York - 1793
The St. Lawrence Neighbourhood Association’s “Original Ten Blocks” Heritage Banner Project brings local history to life along King Street East.
As part of this initiative, twelve banners have been installed on street poles along King Street between Berkeley Street and George Street — the east and west boundaries of the Original Ten Blocks of the Town of York, dating from 1793.
Each banner commemorates a historic building that once stood, or still stands, at a nearby King Street address.
By making heritage visible in the public realm, the project aims to instill civic pride, educate residents and visitors, and reinforce the unique identity of the St. Lawrence neighbourhood and the original old town of Toronto.
These banners not only enhance the streetscape but also serve as distinctive markers of historical and cultural significance in one of Toronto’s oldest and most storied neighbourhoods.
As part of this initiative, twelve banners have been installed on street poles along King Street between Berkeley Street and George Street — the east and west boundaries of the Original Ten Blocks of the Town of York, dating from 1793.
Each banner commemorates a historic building that once stood, or still stands, at a nearby King Street address.
By making heritage visible in the public realm, the project aims to instill civic pride, educate residents and visitors, and reinforce the unique identity of the St. Lawrence neighbourhood and the original old town of Toronto.
These banners not only enhance the streetscape but also serve as distinctive markers of historical and cultural significance in one of Toronto’s oldest and most storied neighbourhoods.
The Buildings
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1. 197 King St. E.; the Nealon House, 1888
2. 200 King St. E.; Christie, Brown & Company, 1874 3. King St. E. at Frederick; Alexander Wood House, c. 1801 4. 204 King St. E.; Adam Brothers Harness Manufacturing Co., 1903 5. 214 King St. E.; W.A. Drummond Dairy Supply Co., 1911 6. 215 King St. E.; Bank of Upper Canada, c. 1818 |
7. 230 King St. E.; Imperial Bank of Canada, 1908
8. 240 King St. E.; Frank Rosar, Undertaker, c. 1884 9. 254 King St. E.; Noble's Tavern, 1847 10. 260 King St. E.; Drug Trading Company, 1915 11. 278 King St. E.; Maryville Lodge, c. 1794 12. 299 King St. E.; Berkeley House, c. 1795 |
The Walking Tour
The green rectangle outlines the Original Ten Blocks of the Town of York, dating from 1793.
Centred along King Street East, the original ten blocks encompassed the area from George Street to Berkeley Street, west to east, and from Adelaide Street (then called Duke Street) to Front Street (then called Palace Street), north to south.
This is where the City began.
Centred along King Street East, the original ten blocks encompassed the area from George Street to Berkeley Street, west to east, and from Adelaide Street (then called Duke Street) to Front Street (then called Palace Street), north to south.
This is where the City began.
The History
1. 197 King Street EastThe Nealon House, 1888
Prior to the construction of the Nealon House hotel on the south side of King Street East between George and Frederick, the site was occupied for 27 years (1860–1887) by Thomas O’Connor’s two-storey grocery and retail shop. In 1888, James Nealon commissioned the hotel at a cost of $1,200. Following Nealon’s untimely death in 1890, Daniel and John Kennedy acquired the property. Five years later, John O’Connor assumed proprietorship of the hotel until 1914. By 1911, room rates were advertised at $1.50 per day. The Nealon House continued in operation until the 1930s. In her book Toronto City of Commerce 1800–1960, Kate Taylor recounts how, in 1935, wrestling promoter—and then‐owner of Nealon House—Jack Corcoran, hired notorious criminal Norman “Red” Ryan as an “evening greeter”. Ryan, twice incarcerated at Kingston Penitentiary, deceived Corcoran and the public into believing he had reformed, only to be unmasked and killed during an attempted robbery. The hotel reopened in 1938 under George Flett’s management and had a long run as the Riviera Hotel until 1871. It then became The Domed Stadium Hotel from 1972 to 1988. Throughout nearly a century—from its founding in 1888 through the mid-1990s—197 King Street East operated continuously as a hotel and tavern. An antique shop called Beethoven Hall occupied the first floor from the mid-1990s into the 2000s. The building remains an important example of surviving 19th-century commercial architecture on King Street East, and is now once again a hotel, "Sonder by Marriott Bonvoy - The Nealon Apartments". |
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2. 200 King Street East |
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Christie, Brown and Company, 1874
By the 1880s, Christie, Brown and Company was the largest biscuit manufactory in Canada, producing more than 400 kinds of cakes and biscuits. William M. Christie had emigrated to Canada from Scotland in the late 1840s when he was 19 years old. Having apprenticed as a biscuit maker in Scotland, he found work at the Mathers & Brown Bakery in the Yorkville neighbourhood. After winning awards for his biscuits, he partnered with his former employer Alexander Brown to form Christie, Brown and Company. In the late 1870s, Christie became the sole owner. His ability to transform his business from hand production in a small shop to a large steam-powered manufactory was one of his keys to success. The Christie Romanesque Revival-style factory on Adelaide was built in 1874. Previously the company had been on Francis Street (a north/south street that ran through St. James Park), and before that, it was located on George Street, on a section of which is now Moss Park. Because of the company’s success, the factory expanded and by 1892, it spanned the entire block between Frederick and George. By 1907, they had added two additional storeys to the factory. Around that same time, still needing more space, the company took over the premises along King Street. They hired architects Sproatt & Rolph to design an eight-storey office building in the Edwardian Classicism style in 1914. In 1928, the Christie family sold the business to the National Biscuit Company (Nabisco Brands Ltd) and in 1954, no longer needing the Adelaide-King Street complex, Nabisco sold the factory to greeting card maker William E. Coutts Company, otherwise known as, Hallmark Cards. Bill Coutts started his greeting card business in 1916. He had learned the retail business during his 12-year employment at Ryrie Brothers (which became Birks Jewellers). In 1931, Coutts entered a business arrangement with greeting card makers, the Hall Brothers, based in Kansas City. After buying 40% of Coutts’ interest in the company in 1948, the Hall Brothers, who were now operating under the name Hallmark Cards, bought the balance of the company ten years later, in 1958. In 1971, George Brown College acquired the property and remodelled it in 1977 as its St James Campus. Named after George Brown, a Father of Confederation who co-founded The Globe (the forerunner to today’s Globe and Mail newspaper), the community college was established in 1967. The collection of late 19th- and early 20th-century buildings on this block received heritage status in 1978. |
3. King Street East at Frederick Street |
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Alexander Wood, Merchant, c. 1801
Alexander Wood came to Upper Canada from Scotland in 1793, settling in the Town of York four years later. His original home was on King Street, between Bay and York, in the heart of what is now Toronto's financial district. Going into business with William Allan, he established himself as one of the city's leading merchants. He contributed to many civic duties being gazetted lieutenant in the York militia in 1798 and appointed a city magistrate in 1800. After terminating his partnership with William Allen in 1801, Wood opened his own store across the street on the north side of King where he imported quality goods from London and Glasgow, Scotland. Alexander Wood became embroiled in a sex scandal in 1810 when, during a rape investigation, he privately required suspects to undress. To quell public outrage over his methods, he fled to Scotland, only to return two years later amid lingering ridicule. Despite this controversy, Wood served as treasurer or executive member of nearly every Town of York society, managed businesses, handled land transactions and became one of Toronto’s most respected inhabitants. He died in Scotland in 1844 at age seventy‑two. |
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4. 204 King St. E. |
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Adam Brothers Harness Manufacturing Company, 1903
The first building on this corner was the two-storey brick Georgian style home of Laurent Quenton St. George, a dry goods merchant. Built between 1807 and 1810 it was the first brick residence in the town. When Quenton left Canada, his home was rented to the Canada Company, a private British land development company that was granted over a million hectares from the British Crown, which it sold or leased to British, Irish, and Scottish settlers. The company used Quenton’s home as its headquarters until 1895. (The Canada Company’s operations gradually wound down starting in 1856 and it ceased operations in 1953). The Quenton Str. George home was demolished in 1902 to make way for the Adam Brothers building, the six-storey commercial building now at 204 King Street East. which was completed in 1903. John and Charles Adam, owners of the Adam Brothers Harness Manufacturing Company, occupied the building until 1917, producing horse harnesses, blankets, collars, and sweat pads. After 2017, The Timothy Eaton company used the building as a warehouse for five years. In 1923, the building, now referred to as the Adams Building, reopened to multiple commercial tenants. It hosted numerous businesses on its six floors including Cordage Distributors, maker of rope, cordage and twine (for 16 years), and Brooks Lamp & Shade Company (for 10 years). In 1944, eyeglass maker Hermant Percy Ltd. (renamed the Imperial Optical Company Ltd.) moved in and by the 1950s they were the main tenant, before being replaced by the Safety Supply Company, who also occupied the building next door. The Safety Supply Co. remained in the Adams building until 1986. In the 1990s, the Adams Building was bought by Allied Properties, renovated, and amalgamated with 210-212 and 214 King Street as an office complex. |
5. 214 King St. E. |
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W.A. Drummond Dairy Supply Company, 1911
The four-storey building at 214 King Street East was completed in 1911 and first occupied by the W. A. Drummond & Co. Dairy Supply Warehouse. William A. Drummond was born in Thorold, Ontario but grew up in Toronto. He worked as a buyer for a few companies including Simpsons and then became general manager for the J.C. Woods department store. In 1903, he joined the business of William J. Whitten at 173 King Street East. Whitten had established his hardware store in 1869 and had “as an incidental sideline, to meet the needs of a small group of customers, carried a limited stock of dairy supplies”. By the 1910s, dairy farming was transitioning from mostly manual labor to more mechanized processes. Drummond expanded the dairy supplies line taking over the Whitten business. The company stocked “Everything for the Dairy”, that is, dairy, cheese and ice cream businesses including refrigerating machinery, motorized ice cream churns, Babcock milk testers (a bottle designed to test fat content in milk), milk cans or vats, and even steam engines, boilers and pasteurizing equipment. After five years, the company moved its showroom, offices, and warehouse to 77-79 Jarvis (where the Vu Condominium stands). The vacated 214 King Street East building became home for the McLaren (now Imperial) Cheese Company and several other small businesses for a short period before Peerless Carbon & Ribbon Co. Ltd took over some space in 1921, quickly expanding to all floors of the building. Owner John Joseph Seitz had worked his way up to become a partner in Creelman Bros. Typewriter Company. In 1903, he reorganized the business as the United Typewriter Co. Limited which sold the popular Underwood typewriter. Diversifying, he started the Peerless typewriter ribbon company and acquired another ribbon outfit named Newsome and Gilbert. Peerless remained at 214 King Street East for 35 years, leaving in 1956 when the Safety Supply Company moved in. After the Safety Supply company left in 1992, the building underwent renovations and became a retail building. Furniture stores Up Country Canada, then InDesign, were the building’s first retail tenants. Currently it houses a contemporary furniture design store, Design Within Reach or DWR. |
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6. 215 King St. E. |
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Bank of Upper Canada, c. 1818
Before any bank was established in Upper Canada, merchants and residents managed money through a combination of coins, paper promises, credit‑debt relationships, and barter. The Bank of Upper Canada was established in 1821 mostly due to efforts of two influential citizens, Reverend John Strachan and William Allan. York was then too small for a bank, and its promoters were unable to raise the minimal 10% of the £200,000 required capital for start-up. The bank succeeded only because its promoters had the political influence to have that minimum reduced by half, and the provincial government subscribed for 2000 of its 8000 shares. William Allan had a general store built on the southeast corner of King and Frederick streets in 1818. When he was made the first President of the new Bank of Upper Canada, he split his store into two with the west side of the building acting as the bank from 1822 to 1827. Its entrance was on Frederick Street. In 1827, the Bank of Canada moved from Allan’s store into a building specifically designed and built as a bank; it still stands on the northeast corner of George and Adelaide streets. William Allan’s store on the southeast corner of King and Frederick streets reverted to retail, eventually becoming the shop of fruit dealer John Stinson. Stinson had first opened a crockery and glassware store next door at 217 King Street East in 1871, but by 1879, had expanded into William Allan’s adjoining shop and shifted to selling fruit, continuing there until 1907. The building was demolished in 1915. William Allan remained president of the Upper Bank of Canada until 1835. Allan was one of the most influential figures in the early Town of York, having risen from merchant to trusted civic leader. He co-ran one of York’s earliest general stores, acquired substantial landholdings (including Moss Park), and held numerous key public roles, such as a Justice of the Peace, Home District treasurer, postmaster, and customs collector. A Major in the militia during the War of 1812, he helped negotiate York’s surrender and profited significantly from wartime supply contracts. As well as being the founding president of the Bank of Upper Canada, he was also the vice president of the Welland Canal Company, and first president of the Toronto Board of Trade. His reputation for integrity made him a trusted advisor on finance and policy in Upper Canada. |
7. 230 King St. E. |
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Imperial Bank of Canada, 1908
The Imperial Bank of Canada operated from 1873 until 1961, when it merged with the Canadian Bank of Commerce to form the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce or CIBC. The branch at 230 King Street East was built in 1908 and designed by the prominent architectural firm Darling & Pearson, who embraced the Classical architectural style commonly used for banks. In this case, they employed Edwardian Classicism, intended to convey security, dignity, and fiscal integrity. Stone facades were used to symbolize stability and wealth. This branch was one of six Imperial Bank buildings the firm designed in Toronto; they also designed a total of 12 branches for the Canadian Bank of Commerce. The bank vacated the building in 1997 after 89 years. In 2005, developer Camrost Felcorp completed a 17-storey condominium on the site, named King’s Court, which incorporates the original bank façade and preserves the rotunda entrance with its mosaic lobby floor bearing the initials IBC. |
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8. 240 King St. E. |
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Frank Rosar, Undertaker, c. 1884
In 1870, Frank Rosar joined his father-in-law John Solleder in the funeral business. Solleder had established himself as a coffin maker and undertaker in 1861 and by 1866 he was established on King Street East. Rosar had immigrated from Germany via Buffalo and was working as a moulder when he married Rosie Solleder in 1863. The company operated under the name Solleder, Rosar & Company and was located at 240 King Street East. Sometime between 1880 and 1884, the original wood-framed building was replaced with a 3-storey brick structure. The business also had a small building on the corner of King and Power streets near the House of Providence and St. Paul’s Roman Catholic Basilica. Two of Frank and Rosie’s sons worked alongside him, making it a true family business. A few years after Frank died in 1904, the business was re-established at 180 Sherbourne Street under the management of Rosie and her sons. In 1925, the business moved to a larger building further north at 467 Sherbourne Street, where it remains in operation today. Over the decades, the King Street building housed a variety of businesses, including the National Shoe Polish Co. (1921–1925), Harding & Sons, printers (1928–1933), Samuel Ossea Machinery Supplies (1944–1959), and ACA Welding and Machinery Repair (1962–1986). At some point the 3rd-storey was removed. In the late 1980s, Strata, a custom furniture studio owned by Ross Colquhoun, operated in the space for several years. Betty’s Pub on King opened in 1992 and remained until 2022, when it vacated the building to make way for a new residential development by Emblem (currently awaiting the start of construction). |
9. 254 King St. E. |
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Noble's Tavern, 1847
In 1847, a two-storey Georgian-style tavern was built for William Noble on the northeast corner of King and Princess Streets; it was known as the Stag Inn until 1856. The tavern was taken over by Joseph Duggan and operated by him until 1872. In 1890, brewer Robert Davies acquired 254 King Street East adding Noble’s Tavern to a group of a hundred hotels across Toronto that was supplied by the Davies family’s breweries. From then until the early 1920s, the building functioned as a hotel under various names and proprietors, including the Standard Hotel, O’Connor Hotel, and the Princess Hotel, which operated from 1905 to 1921. By this time, King Street East had become fully industrialized. In 1921, the Florentine Statuary Company purchased the Princess Hotel and, in 1926, expanded into the adjacent storefront at 256 King Street East. Co-owned by Massimo Magi and William Davis, the company produced dolls and decorative pieces. They weathered the Depression years by shifting to the manufacture of metal lamps and lamp shades, remaining in business through the 1950s. Toscany continued figure casting at the site until 1974, when the space became part of the Drug Trading Company complex. In 1988, modern furniture retailer Ziggurat Concepts moved into the space. Owner Bob Gilbert, who had previously opened his store at 251 King Street East in 1986, claimed it was one of the first home décor stores on this part of King Street East strip now referred to as KEDD, the King East Design District. Ziggurat was succeeded by an interior design studio called “visitor parking”. The building sat vacant from 2012 until September 2014, when South Street Burger became the final tenant of the building prior to the redevelopment of the property. |
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10. 260 King St. E. |
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Drug Trading Company, 1915
The address of 260 King Street East designates the entire city block bounded by Princess on the west, Ontario on the east, King Street on the south, and Adelaide Street to the north. Until the recent development, a small surface parking lot was surrounded by low-rise office buildings that originally made up The Drug Trading Company complex. The Drug Trading Company was founded in 1904 by a group of pharmacists who wanted to work together to get better prices on products they needed. The company accumulated the properties on the block bit by bit starting in 1905 until its last acquisition in 1976. The first new building they added to the block was a 1915 four storey warehouse on Ontario Street designed by Ewart G. Wilson. A second portion—a laboratory—was added to the warehouse in 1927-8 by W. J. Lewis following the original design by Wilson. By 1932, a 5th storey was added to the 1915 and 1927 additions. This building, built in three phases, was called the North Building. It has elements of the Renaissance Revival style with a round-arched arcade, repeated round arched openings in its upper storey, and finials along the roofline. The Renaissance Revival style was popular in late 19th and early 20th century North America for commercial and institutional buildings. Until recently, an Italian pizza restaurant, Mangia e Bevi, operated from the ground level. The Drug Trading Company also bought several properties on the east side of Ontario Street, and in 1942, they had Margison and Babcock Engineers design a new administration building at 25 Ontario Street with distinctive Art Moderne and Art Deco influenced architecture and stone bas relief carvings. This building is now incorporated into the EQ Bank Tower. The Drug Trading Company vacated the premises in 1984 and moved to a new facility in Scarborough. The 1980s saw King Street East evolve to become a design strip and in 1986, this building and the entire complex were sold to the Ontario Design Centre, which was developed by John Easton and Robert Phillips. The complex was repurposed by architect Hiro Nakashima with post-modern sensibilities. |
11. 278 King St. E. |
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Maryville Lodge, c. 1794
King Street East between Ontario and Berkeley streets is historically significant to the early Town of York. Where the SAS Institute building stands today is where Maryville Lodge was located. This Georgian home was built by David W. Smith in 1794. Painted bright yellow it was one of the first distinguished homes in the Town of York. The property had a large formal garden, an orchard, and several outbuildings including a dovecote, a structure that houses pigeons. In European fashion, particularly among the British gentry, dovecotes were common on manor estates and signified status, as well as providing food, i.e., pigeon meat. Smith came to John Graves Simcoe’s notice as an ensign in the 5th Foot (later the Northumberland Regiment) and as a clerk to the Hesse District land board (one of the original four districts created in Upper Canada in southwestern Ontario), appointing him Surveyor General of Upper Canada. Smith arrived in York in 1792 to take up his post for the next five years. He was considered by some as Simcoe’s most capable subordinate. It was his advice that determined the location of townships to be surveyed and opened to settlement and his name appears on many early maps and surveys of Upper Canada. Smith was elected a member of the House of Assembly in 1792, 1796, and 1800, and was Speaker in 1797 and 1801. He returned to England in 1802. Dr. Thomas Stoyell acquired Smith’s property and authorized its subdivision, which would then become known as "Stoyell’s Block." The Maryville home was demolished in 1854. |
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12. 299 King St. E. |
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Berkeley House, c. 1795
The Globe and Mail building at 351 King Street East was designed by Diamond Schmitt Architects and completed in 2016. On this property there once stood one of the most socially important houses in the small Town of York, John Small’s Berkeley House. [The Globe & Mail has commemorated the heritage of the Berkeley house in their lobby with a video telling the story of the property, displaying artifacts of archaeological discoveries and the re-recreation of two sections of wall made from the original foundations of Berkeley house. ] Major John Small benefitted from his relationship with John Graves Simcoe in that he was appointed Clerk of the Upper Canada executive council in 1792. The main business of the council was to confirm land grants and sales to Loyalists and others settling in York. His appointment and role allowed Small to amass a fortune through land speculation. In 1795, he purchased a log home that had been built two years prior by former Sergeant George Potter and incorporated it into a new substantial, white stuccoed, double-gabled house called the Berkeley House. The home sat near the southwest corner of King and Berkeley streets. Unfortunately, John and his wife Elizabeth became embroiled in a sex scandal. Elizabeth had snubbed Marianne White, the wife of the Attorney General of Upper Canada John White. In retribution, White spread rumours about Elizabeth and her supposed affairs. On January 3, 1800, a duel was fought between John Small and John White. White was hit and died 36 hours later. Small was tried and acquitted and he kept his position of Clerk until he died in 1831. His wife Elizabeth did not fare as well, as she was shunned by society. Marianne White returned to England. The Small’s youngest son Charles Small succeeded his father as chief clerk of the Executive Council of Canada. He inherited and enlarged the house into a "rambling villa" giving it a fashionable makeover. Despite his parents’ infamy, the Berkeley House became the social centre of life in the 1820s. By the 1870s, the area had become industrialized, and Charles’ heirs subdivided the home into three apartments which they leased to various tenants. It was bought by the Copland Brewing Company and demolished in 1925. |
Credits |
Concept:
- SLNA Heritage Committee
- Toronto Digital Archives
- Toronto Public Library
- Nell Chitty Design
- Cityscape Displays
- Kristine Morris, SLNA Heritage Committee
- St. Lawrence Neighbourhood Association
- Ward 13 Participatory Budgeting, 2023
- Thanks to the Old Town Toronto BIA for their
assistance with this project