McCaul Street 1920's-50's

[TheWestofCanada]

Street Car Loop

I've spent the better part of three days checking out this site, which I just discovered. It is amazing.

I always assumed the McCaul TTC loop was where it currently is today; however, the photos clearly show that at one time it was across the street. I had a condo at 89 McCaul from 1993-2003, and in May rented one of the apartments in the hotel section of 53 McCaul for a week while visiting Toronto. From my sixth floor balcony, I took a photo of that "shadow" from the worker's cottage. I passed by that shadow thousands of times while living on McCaul, and was always fascinated by it.

How exciting to see the photo with the actual structure. Too bad there weren't any residents in it.

As for the current TTC loop, I had assumed that the Grange was forced to build around it. Now I wonder if it was moved at the time Village by the Grange was built (circa 1978). The funny thing is, while I was visiting in May the management of the hotel portion of 53 McCaul had put up a sign saying they had a petition for people to sign requesting that the loop be moved because of the noise. The loop has been there for 31 years at least. Isn't it a bit late to be complaining?

I didn't really notice the noise, but I was on the sixth floor. When I lived at 89 McCaul I was on the second floor, and suffered through two years of jackhammers at 7:00 a.m. every day during the renovation of the ground floor, then suffered another two years while OCA built the Kleenex box. The streetcar loop was nothing compared to that, though if you were on the second floor at 53 McCaul, maybe it would be unbearable.

I don't know if anyone can confirm this, but there is always water running in the streetcar tracks at the loop. It's an incredible waste of water. I have always assumed that maybe this was done to keep the screeching down of the streetcar wheels against the track.

 

[ShonTron]

i completely agree. the loss of that particular synagogue is quite tragic. we have a fair number of lovely large old churches left, but no significant synagogues in the downtown. i guess the one on St. Andrew in Kensington Market is the most important one left?

There's the Holy Blossom Synagogue that was converted to a Eastern Orthodox Church on Bond Street. A few synagogues were converted to churches later on.

The streetcar loop on McCaul was always on the east side of the street as far as the streetcar maps go, I believe in the same location as always under VotG.

 

[TheWestofCanada]

you can still see the outline of the small workers cottage on the side of the 20's warehouse, on the west side of the street

Yes, but that is not the same worker's cottage as is shown in the picture of the streetcar loop from March 5, 1929. See the below photo that I took in May that shows the entire worker's cottage roof line on the west side of the street, and it is different than the roof line in the streetcar loop. My photo looks northwest, and the 1929 photo looks southeast. Would have been really cool if they were the same, though.

 

[TheWestofCanada]

And, of course, there is no Grange Park in the 1929 photo.

 

[wwwebster]

I used to live at the northwest corner of McCaul & Baldwin from 1986 to 1991. Here's an image I shot in the late '80s. The house/shop is gone now, but it was built before the 1884 Goad's fire insurance plan (182 McCaul/2 Baldwin). It appeared in The Northern Pikes' video "Kiss Me You Fool."

 

[Urban Shocker]

Yes, interesting to still see the shadow of the cottages ( identified in the Nov. 28th 1938 photo as being at 48-50 McCaul ) today on the side of Prime Gallery at 52 McCaul.

I don't recall the streetcar loop as having been on the west side of McCaul when I was at OCA from '71 to '76 though. The east side, opposite the College, was open land ( with bricks scattered about ) in those days, just before Village by the Ganges was built.

With the row houses on the east side that were demolished for the streetcar loop shown in those photos dated Jan. 18th 1929, you can do a "before" and "after" to match up the trees that survived with the Feb. 16th and March 5th 1929 shots of the brand new loop. And by the time of the June '29 photo all the rubble had gone and someone was watering the grass.

 

[wwwebster]

Further to post # 35, I managed to find a 3" x 5" print of 182 McCaul in my collection, taken in daylight, circa late '80s.

 

[TheWestofCanada]

After Village by the Grange was closed in, the smoke shop that was located in the courtyard by Ginsberg and Wong moved into 182 Baldwin, didn't they? Now that those expensive townhouses have replaced it, I think the smoke shop is on McCaul south of Baldwin, on the west side.

 

[wwwebster]

Westof...

My old landlord's shoe store occupied both ground-floor shops (182 McCaul / 2 Baldwin) when I moved in, but he later leased out 2 Baldwin to Cotton Basics, and then later to a tobacconist, though I don't recall which one.

 

[NewOwner]

You're on the wrong side of the street, this photo is of the East side! The buildings shown are 33-35 McCaul. With the McCaul St. loop to the north.

 

[Pro-catastrophe]

.

 

[Pro-catastrophe]

Westof...

My old landlord's shoe store occupied both ground-floor shops (182 McCaul / 2 Baldwin) when I moved in, but he later leased out 2 Baldwin to Cotton Basics, and then later to a tobacconist, though I don't recall which one.

Weird! I had a girfriend and some friends that lived in this apartment for years. When she was there they were above a tobacco store (I think it's located down the street now). I remember they always used to talk about their landlord, Mr. Nissanbaum and even named their fish after him.

We had a lot of good times here. I think her and her roommates were the last tenants before they demolished it. That house was in rough shape.

I'll make sure i check out that video. Thanks!

 

[Pro-catastrophe]

Further to post # 35, I managed to find a 3" x 5" print of 182 McCaul in my collection, taken in daylight, circa late '80s.

Oops. Meant to reply to this post.

 

[wwwebster]

We had a lot of good times here. I think her and her roommates were the last tenants before they demolished it. That house was in rough shape.

It was a great apartment, in spite of its rough condition. A friend who lived there for 12 years refers to it as The Taj McCaul.

 

[androiduk]

Yes, but that is not the same worker's cottage as is shown in the picture of the streetcar loop from March 5, 1929. See the below photo that I took in May that shows the entire worker's cottage roof line on the west side of the street, and it is different than the roof line in the streetcar loop. My photo looks northwest, and the 1929 photo looks southeast. Would have been really cool if they were the same, though.

I don't think the above outline will recover from this