Sport & Leisure

From the 1920s to the 1950s, Sunnyside Amusement Park was one of the best sites for sports and entertainment in Canada. It boasted, among other attractions, a roller coaster, merry-go-round, Ferris wheel, a well-used lakeside boardwalk, the Palais Royale dance hall, a band shell and a softball stadium. All that remains is the Bathing Pavilion and swimming pool, and the Palais Royale.

Sunnyside rides, c 1923 (courtesy Toronto Harbour Commission Archives).

The arrival of the Great Western Railway in the mid-1850s set up a conflict that would intensify over the years between public amenities and private interests. Highways followed. Most of Sunnyside was lost through the widening of Lakeshore Boulevard and the construction of the Gardiner Expressway in the 1950s. A network of pedestrian/cycling bridges over the transportation corridor now connects the old shoreline to the new park system and lakeshore.

Sports clubs emerged as the growth of the financial, commercial and industrial sectors combined with a rapidly expanding population, provided both the funds to start such organizations and the audiences to enjoy them. Toronto has had its fair share of sports triumphs (and failures), many of which happened on or near the waterfront.

A selection of sites from this theme is laid out in the trail The Active Waterfront.

The Stories

A Whale of a Tale at Toronto’s First Zoo , 1881
Front St. W. and York St.
Babe Ruth Hits First Pro Homer at Hanlan’s Point , September 05, 1914
Toronto Islands
Five-Year-Old Rows Across Toronto Bay to see Prince of Wales , September 07, 1860
Toronto Islands
Greatest Team and Stadium in Minor League Sports , April 29, 1926
Bathurst St. and Lake Shore Blvd W.
Marilyn Bell Swims Lake Ontario , September 08, 1954
Budapest Park
“Of all the World’s Great Heroes, There’s None that Can Compare” , 1812
Grenadier Pond, High Park
Riverdale Farm: A Turn-of-the-Century Ontario Farm in the City , 1880
201 Winchester St.
SkyDome Opens to a Downpour , June 03, 1989
1 Blue Jays Way
The Inside Track: The First Queen’s Plate , June 27, 1860
High Park Ave and Humberside Ave
The Maple Leafs’ Last Stanley Cup and the Hillman Hex , May 02, 1967
Nathan Phillips Square
The Playground by the Lake , 1920
Sunnyside Pavilion
Tom Longboat: Long-distance Superstar , 1907
Simcoe St. and Wellington St. W.
Toronto's Historic Sporting Arena , November 12, 1931
60 Carlton St.

Click to enlarge

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- 43.645315 -79.382396
  A Whale of a Tale at Toronto’s First Zoo
  
  A Whale of a Tale at Toronto’s First Zoo 1881 Front St. W. and York St.
- 43.627129 -79.390522
  Babe Ruth Hits First Pro Homer at Hanlan’s Point
  
  Babe Ruth Hits First Pro Homer at Hanlan’s Point September 05, 1914 Toronto Islands
- 43.627595 -79.389449
  Five-Year-Old Rows Across Toronto Bay to see Prince of Wales
  
  Five-Year-Old Rows Across Toronto Bay to see Prince of Wales September 07, 1860 Toronto Islands
- 43.636428 -79.399846
  Greatest Team and Stadium in Minor League Sports
  
  Greatest Team and Stadium in Minor League Sports April 29, 1926 Bathurst St. and Lake Shore Blvd W.
- 43.636453 -79.448643
  Marilyn Bell Swims Lake Ontario
  
  Marilyn Bell Swims Lake Ontario September 08, 1954 Budapest Park
- 43.641223 -79.466890
  “Of all the World’s Great Heroes, There’s None that Can Compare”
  
  “Of all the World’s Great Heroes, There’s None that Can Compare” 1812 Grenadier Pond, High Park
- 43.667224 -79.361689
  Riverdale Farm: A Turn-of-the-Century Ontario Farm in the City
  
  Riverdale Farm: A Turn-of-the-Century Ontario Farm in the City 1880 201 Winchester St.
- 43.641650 -79.390039
  SkyDome Opens to a Downpour
  
  SkyDome Opens to a Downpour June 03, 1989 1 Blue Jays Way
- 43.660095 -79.467998
  The Inside Track: The First Queen’s Plate
  
  The Inside Track: The First Queen’s Plate June 27, 1860 High Park Ave and Humberside Ave
- 43.652430 -79.383715
  The Maple Leafs’ Last Stanley Cup and the Hillman Hex
  
  The Maple Leafs’ Last Stanley Cup and the Hillman Hex May 02, 1967 Nathan Phillips Square
- 43.637861 -79.455754
  The Playground by the Lake
  
  The Playground by the Lake 1920 Sunnyside Pavilion
- 43.645986 -79.385515
  Tom Longboat: Long-distance Superstar
  
  Tom Longboat: Long-distance Superstar 1907 Simcoe St. and Wellington St. W.
- 43.662050 -79.379730
  Toronto's Historic Sporting Arena
  
  Toronto's Historic Sporting Arena November 12, 1931 60 Carlton St.
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