North Toronto

Steve Pitt is a Toronto-based freelance writer and an award-winning journalist. He has written many young adult and children's books, including Day of the Flying Fox: The True Story of World War II Pilot Charley Fox.

If all the history books on the subject of Toronto were assembled on one
table, casual browsers might be forgiven if they came to believe that
Canada’s largest city ends abruptly at Bloor Street. Other people,
many of whom have lived all their lives somewhere between Bloor’s
Tavern and Hog’s Hollow, think that their part of the city was always
thus—urban, crowded, and ahistorical. This book, written by Don
Ritchie for the North Toronto Historical Society, seeks to change these
perceptions.

North Toronto was born in 1794, when a company of Queen’s York
Rangers began cutting a military road called Yonge Street. They began
mid-forest, at a point later known as Eglinton Avenue. Although soon
connected to the sputtering village of York, North Toronto would remain
a separate entity until 1912. In its heyday, North Toronto had its own
town council, fire and police departments, and even streetcar system.

Ritchie is not an academic but a 75-year resident of North Toronto.
Although his professional background includes careers in both book
publishing and historical interpretation, the text in this book is a
personal journey. His background works for and against this subject. The
writing, particularly in the chapter on the 1837 rebellion, is sometimes
muddled. On the other hand, as a child of the soil Ritchie has a
mudlark’s talent for reaching into the soft murk of local history and
coming up with the long-lost gem. He writes with humor and directness,
and his text is informative and engaging. Unfortunately missing is an
indexed map for readers who care enough to want to know where edifices
like “Beaver Hall” and “The Preventorium” actually stood: try
finding Heather Avenue on the map provided.

With its few flaws noted, the overall quality of this book is still
exceptional. North Toronto should serve as an inspiration to other
historical societies that are struggling in a larger community’s
shadow.