Camden Street Quick Lunch/The Stem

If your in the Queen and Spadina area and are looking for a Quick lunch the Avenue Open Kitchen Diner on Camden Street is highly recommended. It's not very big but the food is great.
Your basic burger, fries, corned beef, Greek salad kind of place.
Sorry, no frittata with raspberry drizzle here.

The counter at lunch.

Sadly, the Stem on Queen is no more.
The former owner.
Photo by Rebecca Baran.
The sign comes down...
The counter.
Through the window after it closed.

Ford Model T Assembly Plant on Dupont Street.

Ford of Canada began assembling cars at this purpose built factory on Dupont Street in 1915. The cars were shipped here in kit form by rail and assembled. There was a test track on the roof and the ground floor was the showroom. Ford sold the building in 1924 and transferred the operation to the Danforth. Being an efficient man and disliking waste, even the dimensions of the shipping crates for parts were strictly specified as the crates themselves were incorporated into the floors of the cars being assembled.
The Factory and Showroom in 2010.

A shot of the ground floor showroom.
An interesting photo from the archives that prompted this article.
Labelled Dupont and Christie 1912?, it shows what appears to be a brand new Model T
overturned in a ditch. It's quite possible that a customer, having taken delivery of his new car promptly crashed it outside the factory. It's just speculation of course but the salesmen at McBride Cycle on Dundas had countless stories of customers wrecking their new motorcycles right in front of the showroom.

Dupont and Christie/Then and Now

Looking west along Dupont across Christie in 1925.

2010.

Edward and Elizabeth/Then and Now

The S/E corner of Edward and Elizabeth Streets looking towards Bay in the Summer of 1931 prior to construction of the new Bus Terminal.

2010.
Looking west along Elizabeth from Bay.
Although the Terminal had not yet been built the site was still being used to ferry passengers.
Note the diner in the background. Even in the 1930's people wanted a "Quick Lunch"
Looking south down Bay.
An artists rendering of the new terminal.

Coming soon! The sign says it will be ready in three months!Two weeks later ....Completed on time! No wonder everyone wanted a "Quick Lunch", they had to get back to work!
As it looks today.
Some shots of the Art Deco interior when it was new.
The Grand Staircase.
The ticket kiosks.
The first bus to depart from the new terminal.
It's a testament to the men and women that worked on the new terminal that it was built on time, to a high standard of craftsmanship and that it's still standing and functional eighty years
later. How long does it take to get new cabinets in a kitchen these days?
A vintage matchbook from the Terminal Restaurant courtesy of the Chuckman Collection.
Looking north on Bay, 1950's.
A Greyhound Vista Cruiser from the early 1960's departs from the terminal.

Experimental Ford TTC Bus 1935

What I assume to be a prototype bus built by Ford for the TTC in 1935. I've never seen one like this before nor have I seen any photos of one in service.

Dupont and Christie/Then and Now

The N/E corner of Dupont and Christie in the mid 1940's, showing the bus loop and the old Evening Telegram offices in the distance.

2010.
The Telegram offices on Dupont with the Planter's Peanut Building in the background.
Another shot of the loop looking north.

John and Stephanie Street/Then and Now

The S/W corner of John and Stephanie in 1938.
John Street is named after John Graves Simcoe, the founder of York and the first Lieutenant Governor of Upper Canada.

The same corner in 2010.

Courthouse Square

The Courthouse Square behind the old Adelaide Street Courthouse. Although it appears quiet and peaceful today, this wasn't always the case. According to a plaque on Alan Brown's website:

"Between 1826 and 1838, Court House Square was used for a variety of religious and political gatherings. David Willson and his Children Of Peace (builders of Sharon Temple in Newmarket) held assemblies here. Supporters of William Lyon Mackenzie rallied here after his ejections from the Legislative Assembly in 1832. With its proximity to the Home District Court House and the jail, the square was used for public floggings and for punishment in the stocks - their last recorded use: Ellen Halfpenny, for drunken and disorderly conduct in 1834. The first hanging here was on 23 October 1828: Charles French for the midnight shooting of Edward Knowlan. The most famous hangings, and the last performed here, were on 12 April 1838: Samuel Lount and Peter Matthews, for their participation in the 1837 Rebellion."

Ontario Cottage on Lippincott

A nicely maintained Ontario Cottage on Lippincott Street.

Bloor and Indian Road/The and Now

Looking west along muddy Bloor Street at Indian Road in 1913.

2010.

???.

Toronto's First Cinema

Toronto's first purpose built theatre was the Theatorium at 183 Yonge Street near Queen.
Built in 1906 it later changed it's name to the Red Mill.

A shot of the Red Mill.

John and Richmond/Then and Now

The west side of John Street south of Richmond in 1912.

2011 and the two warehouses to the left have survived.

Church and Wellington/Then and Now

Looking south at the intersection of Church, Wellington and Front during track work in 1913.

A current perspective in 2011.

A composite.