1886 Wesbroom: City of Toronto [Bird’s Eye View]

“This bird’s eye view [...] shows more clearly than either maps or streetscape photographs the congestion of the downtown core and the unrelenting zeal with which the grid pattern of streets—first laid out for Simcoe in 1793—had been stretched across the landscape on either side of the arrow-straight line of Yonge. Standing out against this pattern are the few attempts to mitigate the worst aspects of the grid plan: natural changes like King Street / Kingston Road, which turns northeast on the right side of the view; the carefully planned avenues like Spadina (with its crescent at the north end) and University; and the park-like green spaces scattered throughout the city [...]

If proof were needed that the Victorians, just as much as the Georgians, were proud and capable city builders, this bird’s eye view provides it amply. A celebration of their creation, it is a lasting testimony of what had been created in Toronto.”

- William Dendy, Lost Toronto

Click the image to view a full-size version. 

City of Toronto
Lithograph by W. Wesbroom, 1886 (? see note below)
Toronto Lithographing Company

Image courtesy Toronto Public Library: CHPC accession number 975-29 Cab III. Another copy is held by the Thomas Fisher Rare Books Library at U of T: G3524 .T61 1886. The image above is a photograph I took in person; if and when the TPL digitizes the map I’ll use their scan.

The Toronto Lithographing Company seems to have done especially fine work, wouldn’t you say?

Advertisement: The Globe, May 22, 1886 

Note: Dendy’s Lost Toronto — which uses this bird’s eye view as its cover — gives an approximate date of 1878. Derek Hayes’ Historical Atlas of Toronto indicates 1884. These may be slightly different prints, or they may be the same and there just isn’t agreement on the actual date...

The Osborne Collection at the Toronto Public Library (Lillian H. Smith branch) features this cropped jigsaw puzzle of the map in their Canadiana holdings:

Lovely.

See Also [Bird’s Eye Views]
1870 Canadian Railway News Bird’s Eye View of Toronto
1876 PA Gross Bird's Eye View of Toronto
1876 Gascard City of Toronto Bird’s Eye View from the Northern Railway elevator
1892 Toronto Railway Company Map Shewing Toronto Street Railway Lines
1893 Barclay, Clark & Co. Bird’s Eye View Chromolithograph

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1791 Jones: An accurate Plan of a Survey [...] of the River Trent (head) [North shore] of Lake Ontario to Toronto

“This important survey by Augustus Jones established the eastern sideline (now Victoria Park Avenue) and the baseline (now Queen Street) for Dublin (York) Township. The township lines formed the basic framework for all later development and thus determined the eventual northwest-southeast orientation of Toronto. The survey recorded here began 90 miles east of Toronto at the Bay of Quinte and laid out the fronts of 11 townships between there and York. Wherever possible, the baselines of townships were laid out parallel to the lake shore.”

- Isobel Ganton & Joan Winearls, MAPPING TORONTO'S FIRST CENTURY 1787-1884

Note that York township was briefly named Dublin (and Scarborough, Glasgow), prior to Simcoe’s arrival in 1793. It is likely Surveyor General Andrew Russell who wrote in the revised name in 1856.

Click the image to view a full-size version. 

An accurate Plan of a Survey [words missing] of the River Trent (Head) [words missing - North shore?] of Lake Ontario to Toronto [words missing] by Augustus Jones, 1791.
Source: Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources, Office of the Surveyor General, Plan Ref: SR5803 O6-4
Copyright:  2013 Queens Printer Ontario
Winearls, MUC no. 316

The above detail shows only the westerly York portion. View the entire map here (note: it’s quite long horizontally!).

The following, slightly more detailed survey of Dublin by Jones, was a copy made by John Frederick Holland. The horizontal 'front line' line is what later became Lot (then Queen) Street. ‘Toronto Fort’ indicates the location of Fort Rouillé.

I’m curious what that peninsula south of lot 23 is supposed to be.

Click the image to view a full-size version (PDF).

Plan of Eleven Townships fronting on Lake Ontario beginning at the River Trent and extending westerly to Toronto as laid out and surveyed by Augustus Jones Dy PL Survr, A true copy by Jn Fk Holland [Sgd] Samuel Holland Surveyr Genl, 1791.

Image courtesy of Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources, Office of the Surveyor General, Plan Ref: 2391 K25
Winearls, MUC no. 316 (2)

“Augustus Jones (circa 1763-1836) was a Loyalist. He was appointed a Deputy Surveyor in 1791 and was responsible for the survey of most of York Township, Yonge Street, part of Dundas Street, the new part of the town of York, and many townships east of Toronto and in the Hamilton area. He did little surveying after 1799, but retired to his land, marrying the daughter of a chief of the Mohawks.”

- Ganton/Winearls, ibid.

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1834 Bonnycastle/Tazewell: City of Toronto: The Capital of Upper Canada

Act to Incorporate Toronto
Courtesy TPL: 352.07135 T5916 BR

“The Town of York was incorporated as the City of Toronto on March 6, 1834, and this map was produced to record the event. It was the first separately published map of the city. The boundaries of the city and its liberties -- areas appended to the city to provide room for expansion -- are shown in the small inset map. The northern boundary of the city proper was 400 yards north of Queen Street [aka Lot Street -N.], an indication that the southern part of the park lots had been developed by the early 1830s.

Note the clusters of public buildings: those of municipal significance east of Yonge at the edge of the Old Town and the provincial buildings in the New Town. The "Lands Reserved for a Public Pleasure Ground" and a "Proposed Esplanade" on the waterfront indicate an early interest in keeping the area for recreational uses.”

- Isobel Ganton & Joan Winearls, MAPPING TORONTO'S FIRST CENTURY 1787-1884

City of Toronto: The Capital of Upper Canada 1834
Respectfully dedicated to His Excellency Sir John Colborne K.C.B. &c // by H.W.J. Bonnycastle and lithographed by S.O. Tazewell.
Winearls, MUC no. 2066

Re-drawn 1919 by Wm. R. Gregg.

Click the image to view a full-size version. 

Image courtesy of Toronto Public Library (though it’s not in the Catalogue as of Feb 2013, ahem. It’s from the Special Collections Dept. I had to do a bit of extraction work...): An Act of Incorporation.

“Samuel Oliver Tazewell, formerly a Kingston watchmaker and jeweller, introduced the new art of lithography to Canada and produced his first lithographed map in 1831.

Lithography is a method of printing from an image on the surface of a stone. Requiring less skill than copper-plate engraving, it was ideal for maps because the draftsman could draw directly on the stone or transfer a map from paper to the stone.

Tazewell built his own press and used local stone, both of which may have contributed to the roughness of his printing (note the map to the left). However, the newspapers of the day (see the Patriot, 11 Apr. 1834) hailed the new printing method for its speedy production of multiple copies and noted its particular usefulness. for advertising lots for sale.”

“Henry William John Bonnycastle (1814-1888) was the son of R.H. Bonnycastle, and the 1834 map of Toronto that he drew is closely related to the 1833 plan prepared by his father. Educated at Upper Canada College and Sandhurst, he served as a Brigade Major during the 1837 Rebellion.”

- Ganton/Winearls, ibid.

This following map drafted by  J. G. Chewett was drawn up 3 years later, and similarly runs from the Military Reserve to the Don River, north to Lot St.

Click the image to view a full-size version.

Toronto. [Sgd] J.G. Chewett S.G. Office 12th June 1837; Surveyor General’s Office Toronto 12th June 1837 J.W. Macaulay Survr Genl
Image courtesy Toronto Public Library: MsX.1921.2. Winearls, MUC no. 2072

See Also
1834 Chewett Plan of the City of Toronto and Liberties

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1802 Chewett: Plan of 916 1/4 acres, in the Township of York in Upper Canada -- The property of the Honble. D.W. Smith Esqre. Surveyr. Genl.

This 1802 map, drawn by William Chewett (the father of James Grant Chewett), depicts some of the extensive property owned by David W. Smith, the Surveyor General of Upper Canada who came to York as part of Simcoe’s entourage. The first parliament buildings are indicated by the notation, Govern: Houses, protected by a Blockhouse.

Of specific note is the Maryville estate, on which Smith established one of the town’s first major houses in 1796. The land, at King and Ontario to the east of the town, was purchased from John Kendrick. Smith was a master carpenter, and built the impressive structure according to his own tastes [Kendrick’s original house was subsumed and became the drawing room].

Click the image to view a full-size version. 

Plan of 916 1/4 acres, in the Township of York in Upper Canada. The property of the Honble. D.W. Smith Esqre. Surveyr. Genl. - including Park Five, which contains about 100 acres, & 16 1/4 acres, at the east end of the city of York on which is the lodge lately called Maryville. [Sgd W. Chewett Senr Surveyr & Dftsmn

Image courtesy of Toronto Public Library: Ms1889.1.6
Winearls, MUC no. 2028

Maryville (also occasionally spelled 'Maryvale') Lodge was a large wooden Georgian-style house painted bright yellow (instead of the conventional white). Surrounding it were formal gardens and a circular driveway, and numerous support buildings.

Smith’s residency at Maryville did not last long: Smith departed Upper Canada for health reasons in 1802. One of the factors behind the existence of many records relating to Maryville was that Smith had them created as documentation for the attempted sale of the property, to CB Wyatt -- his successor in the Surveyor General post.

Chewett’s next map shows the layout of Maryville in some detail:

Plan of Maryville, at the east end of the City of York in Upper Canada, containing about 16 1/4 acres - the property of the Honble. D.W. Smith Esqre. Surveyor General. [Sgd] W Chewett Senr Surveyr & Dftsmn

Image courtesy of Toronto Public Library: Ms1889.1.7
Winearls, MUC no. 2027

Thomas Stoyell was the next occupant of Maryville Lodge, which later became a small private school. The house was demolished in 1854.

Following are two depictions of Maryville Lodge. The Poole painting gives an idea as to the yellow coloration of the structure.

Maryville Lodge circa 1805 by Charles W. Jefferys, “after drawing in Library's ms. collection, D. W. Smith Papers, vol.B15, p.90 (ca 1805). Reproduced (with clouds in a different hand added on a separate sheet mounted above drawing) in Evening Telegram series 'Landmarks of Toronto' 11 January 1889, and in Landmarks of Toronto v.1, p.287.”

Maryville Lodge painting by Frederic Poole, 1912 based on Jeffery’s drawing.

Images courtesy of Toronto Public Library: B 1-54b and JRR 521

Here’s a purported aerial sketch of the property:

See Also
1797 Smith Plan for the enlargement of York

More on Maryville Lodge:
See p21 onwards in Toronto: No Mean City by Eric Ross Arthur & Stephen A. Otto [there is a very detailed plan of the house itself and a front elevation by Chewett]

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1860 Tremaine's Map of the County of York, Canada West

George Tremaine compiled large wall maps of most of the counties of southern Ontario in the 1850s and 1860s. The maps identify names of owners or tenants, houses of subscribers, and names of estates. This map is for York County.

Small black squares indicate buildings such as residences, inns, schools, churches, and factories. Illustrations of major buildings border the right-side of the map. There is also a list of the names, professions and residences of subscribers to the map (Yes, the names are legible!).

An inset map of Toronto appears in section 1 below.

My genealogist friends seem to reference this map a lot, so I thought I had better include it [Can anyone point me to an online index of the names on the map? That would be a useful accompaniment I think].

Click on the image to view a full-size version of the [approximately] corresponding numbered area. 



Tremaine’s Map of the County of York Canada West, Compiled and Drawn by Geo. R. Tremaine from Actual Surveys Toronto Published by Geo. C. Tremaine 1860

Images courtesy University of Toronto Map and Data Library: G3523 .Y6 1860 a. (See also: LAC). Winearls, MUC no. 404
[Thanks to Robannz for attempting to stitch it all together -- we tried making a monster file of all 12 sections, but it was too unwieldy to deal with.]

An advertisement for the Tremaines, appearing in the 1862 edition of The Canadian Almanac, W.C. Chewett & Co. I’m kind of curious to see what Tackabury’s map looked like, aren’t you?

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ca. 1855 Magnus: City of Toronto

“This map was produced as letterhead for writing paper by Charles Magnus, a printer specializing in pictorial letterheads.

Whether the letterhead was commissioned by a stationer for general sale, or was designed for a single customer is not known. However, the 'X' on the map may mark the point from which the letter was written.

This map is an early example of the delineation of the shape of the built-up area, in this case by the use of hatched lines.”

- Isobel Ganton & Joan Winearls, MAPPING TORONTO'S FIRST CENTURY 1787-1884

Click the image to view a full-size version. 

City of Toronto C.W. Lithograph of Charles Magnus, ca. 1855; signed August 10, 1857.
Image courtesy of Stephen Otto.
Winearls, MUC no. 2127

Magnus also produced this view of the city, from atop the roof of the Jail at the foot of Parliament St. The corner of Front and Berkeley is in the right foreground:

Click the image to view a full-size version. 

Canada West. Toronto.
Published by Charles Magnus & Co., ca. late 1850s.
Image courtesy The Winterthur Library, Charles Magnus collection.

Magnus’ work here is almost certainly based on Edwin Whitefield’s Toronto, Canada West (see next image).

Whitefield’s 1854 bird's-eye view “illustrates a city of over 40,000 inhabitants centred along the harbour and the original City Hall, the site of today's South St. Lawrence Market and the Market Gallery. The busy harbour and Toronto's original shoreline came up to the back of City Hall, where The Esplanade is today. Not long after this image was created, the shoreline would undergo reclamation to allow for the railways.”

- City of Toronto, Market Gallery History

Some artistic liberties have been taken: the St. James and St. Michaels cathedral steeples were not actually completed until several years after this painting.

Click the image to view a full-size version. 

Toronto, Canada West. From the top of the Jail, by Edwin Whitefield, 1854.
Image courtesy City of Toronto Culture, A82-28 [See also: LAC]
[I’d love to get a larger version of this -- if anyone has a line on a better resolution print, let me know!]

A B&W key to Whitefield’s lithograph...

Click the image to view a full-size version:

Key to the Picture of Toronto In 1854 Showing Location of the Principal Buildings and Wharves
Image courtesy Toronto Public Library: B 4-68a

A photo-mechanical reproduction of the same drawing (with slight variations in the text) is in 'Landmarks of Toronto' v.5, facing p.578

“Charles Magnus was a print publisher, map dealer, bookseller and stationer working in New York City from 1850 to 1899 who issued over a thousand different letter sheets, maps, song sheets, envelopes, and separate prints. His best known works were city views and Civil War related material. Much of his work was copied from other printmakers. He often altered or combined design elements from several sources, rarely crediting the original artist. [Emph. added - N.] Many of his works after 1865 were based on photographs, which he often altered, drawing in figures or re-drawing lines for clearer reproduction.”

- The Winterthur Library, Magnus Finding Aid description

Gratuitous bonus - J.G. Howard’s 1836 watercolour of the Jail, from which the above perspective was supposedly taken:

Image courtesy Toronto Public Library: 938-1-2 Cab II

Gratuitous bonus 2: Toronto, C.W., in the Summer of 1851 by Francis Hincks Granger.

View of Front St. from the Old Windmill to the Old Fort, giving a different perspective. For reference, the Gaol is #8. The artist, Francis Hincks Granger, was a scene painter for the Royal Lyceum Theatre, Toronto. He painted this watercolour "on the spot."

Image courtesy Toronto Public Library: JRR 341. A simple Key to the painting may be found here.

A black and white version may be found in John Ross Robertson’s Landmarks of Toronto (Vol II). His somewhat rambling key may be found here.

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1818 Phillpotts Plan of York

‘Although this topographical plan was made by the military to record the overall defensive situation at York, it gives us an excellent picture of the amount of land that had been cleared and built-up by 1818. The Old Town was fairly densely settled, although the grounds around most houses were large enough to accommodate vegetable gardens, poultry, and livestock. Settlement in the New Town was still very sparse.

York was still essentially a village and had grown little since 1813, an indication that the area set aside for the town was for many years too big for the population.

To the north of Queen Street the small amount of clearing and settlement followed the streams and the narrow rectangular shape of the park lots.’

- Isobel Ganton & Joan Winearls, MAPPING TORONTO'S FIRST CENTURY 1787-1884

“Phillpott's map of Toronto may be considered one of the city's fundamental maps. The map graphically shows the development within the original city blocks as well as the newer developments to the west and north. The map bears the stamps of the Board of Ordnance and the Inspector General of Fortifications.”

- Library and Archives Canada description

Click the image to view a full-size version (PDF).

Plan of York Surveyed and Drawn by Lieut. Phillpotts, Royal Engineers.
Map courtesy Library and Archives Canada: NMC 17026. Winearls, MUC no. 2040 (2)

Although Phillpotts performed the survey in 1818, he did not draw the map until 1823.

‘George Phillpotts was a lieutenant in the Royal Engineers, when he made the fine 1818 map of Toronto. He was appointed aide-de-camp to Sir John Colborne in 1833 and was assistant Quartermaster General during the 1837 Rebellion.

The Royal Engineers were stationed in Toronto from the earliest period of British settlement and made reconnaissance sketches and topographical maps for the defense of Toronto as well as plans of the fort and military property. Unlike the civilian surveyors who were primarily concerned with property lines and boundaries, the military were more interested in the shape of the land and location of forested or cleared lands, passable roads, buildings, and other landmarks. Some of their maps of Toronto were the most detailed produced at the time.’ - Ganton/Winearls, ibid.

The following copy of the map was possibly done in 1907 (see archivist’s note, bottom left).

Click the image to view a full-size version (5 MB).

Original image scan courtesy City of Toronto Archives: MT 109. Large version liberated by W. Xavier Snelgrove. See also the version posted by U of T.

For contrast, here is a third, differently coloured and lettered copy of the Phillpotts plan (it appears to be the most recent -- note 'copy of Stamp'):

Click the image to view a full-size version.

Image courtesy Toronto Public Library: T1818-2/4Mlrg

Bonus
Here’s an almost cartoony version, created for J.R. Robertson’s Landmarks of Toronto:

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