Toronto, Ontario, Canada (York)
1869 - Toronto

Toronto. - The chief city of the Province of Ontario, is situated in latitude 43' 39' 24" north, and longitude 79° 2? 30" west, on the north-west shore of Lake Ontario, and facing the Bay, a beautiful and spacious sheet of water, oval in form, and accessible to craft of all kinds. It was founded by Lieutenant-Governor Simcoe, who, having formed extensive plans for the improvement of the colony, resolved upon the foundation of a Provincial capital, and caused the first survey of the site to be made in 1793, by Bouchette, of the Royal Engineers. The place was called York until 1834, when it was incorporated, and the name changed to Toronto. In 1813 York was captured by the Americans, under General Pike, who was killed at the storming of the fort, but was held only for a few days, while in the meantime the Government House, public buildings, and all stores that could not be carried away, were burned. The site of the city is nearly level, sloping gently from the water's edge. The form is that of a parallelogram, the streets intersecting at right angles ; the two chief thoroughfares, containing the principal mercantile establishments, are named King and Yonge : the former runs parallel with the Bay, and the latter intersects it, extending northwards for upwards of thirty miles, forming a sort of irregular village, and passing through a rich and prosperous country. The public buildings are numerous, and many of them very handsome. The principal are University College, a spacious Gothic structure, standing amidst the retired retreats of the Queen's Park, with beautiful avenues leading from Yonge and Queen Streets, Trinity, Upper Canada and St. Michael's Colleges, the Provincial Normal School Buildings, the Magnetical Observatory, situated in the Queen's Park, established by the British Government at the request of the Royal Society of England in 1840, the General Hospital, St. James' and St. Michael's Cathedral, and the numerous churches, Osgoode Hall, the seat of the Superior Courts of Law and Equity for Ontario; the Crystal Palace, built for the use of the Provincial Exhibition, the Provincial Lunatic Asylum on Queen Street and its branch in Queen's Park, the St. Lawrence Hall, Mechanics' Institute, Masonic Hall, Merchants' Exchange, Western, British American, Royal, and Edinburgh Insurance Buildings, the Telegraph and Globe printing offices, and the several banking establishments. The Queen's and University Parks, the Horticultural Gardens and Normal School Grounds are tastefully laid out and open to all for pleasure and recreation. Toronto is the seat of the Provincial Government, and the several public departments are located here.. The industrial establishments are extensive, thriving and rapidly extending their capacity and improving their productions. The city is well supplied with water, and is lighted by gas. The spacious land-locked harbor affords every facility for any possible extension of trade and the connection with all parts of the Dominion and the United States, by means of the Grand Trunk, Great Western and Northern Railways, and by navigation in summer, combined with the steady energy and enterprise of her citizens, and her centralized position, make the future of Toronto progressive and prosperous. Estimated city assessment, 825,000,000. Distant from Montreal 333 miles, Kingston 105 miles, Hamilton 45 miles, London 114 miles, Collingwood 93 miles, New York 500 miles, Boston 693 miles. Population 60,000.

The Province of Ontario Gazetteer and Directory: Containing Concise Descriptions of Cities, Towns and Villages in the Province...
Henry McEvoy January 1, 1869 Robertson & Cook

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