Overview

The Beaches is one of Toronto's best known and most admired neighbourhoods. It has no striking works of architecture or splendid public spaces, no must-see galleries or public institutions, and no associations with historic events or great celebrities the sort of things that create neighbourhood reputations and draw visitors. It does, however, have an attractive character, and it is this character that Richard White seeks to understand, offering insights into how it came to be and why it has endured. With an eye to the broader historical context, The Beaches recounts the neighbourhood's initial colonial settlement, its development as a lakeside recreational community in the late nineteenth century, its emergence as a streetcar suburb after 1900, its maturation in the 1920s and 1930s, its relative decline in the 1950s and 1960s, and its revival in the 1970s and beyond. Utilizing a wide range of archival records, including council minutes, plans of subdivision, newspapers, public land records, city directories, assessment rolls, and historical photographs as well as the present-day landscape The Beaches reveals the various forces, public and private, local and international, that shaped this cherished urban neighbourhood.

Full Product Details

9781487526467

Table of Contents

Reviews

"""In this fascinating book, one of Toronto's leading planning historians takes a deep dive into the processes of land development, property speculation, and city-building that produced Toronto's Beaches neighbourhood. This detailed study is revealing not just of how this iconic bit of Toronto was built, but also of the largely unregulated processes of land development that produced Toronto's nineteenth and early twentieth century urban fabric. Add to this the tale of competing amusement parks, electrification of the street railways, and conflicts over public access to the waterfront and beaches, and we have an important new resource on Toronto history.""--Andre Sorensen, Professor of Human Geography, University of Toronto ""Informative and a real pleasure to read. Including plenty of illustrations, Richard White shows us how the Beaches (not The Beach, he insists) was transformed from weekend resort to suburb to city neighbourhood. In so doing, he prompts us to think about what it is that makes us like, and care about, particular places.""--Richard Harris, Professor Emeritus of Urban Geography, McMaster University ""A compelling account of the chaotic development of a beloved urban neighbourhood. The book ranges over topics such as land speculation, recreation, house-building styles, individual enterprise, and the evolution of a sense of community. A thoughtful book that makes delightful reading.""--Roberto Perin, Professor Emeritus of History, York University"

Author Information

Richard White is a historian, author, and former lecturer of Canadian history and urban planning history at the University of Toronto.

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