Details of Site Location: Sullivan Street west of Spadina Avenue.
Boundary History: The home was a large house on an acre of land.
Current Use of Property: Housing.
Historical Description: An asylum established for a year in 1847 was clearly unable to accommodate the flood of immigrants that came in the following years. So many people were carried off by cholera and it was women and children who were left destitute. By 1852, a solution was proposed by the Reverend Stephen Lett, who was rector of the Church of St. George the Martyr. He became the founder of the home and campaigner, with the support of his congregation, for funding its construction. The Honourable Robert Baldwin offered a lot of the former lands of Peter Russell, which his family had inherited, and the Honourable William Cayley assisted in this donation. A temporary home on Bay Street was used in 1852. Patron of the home was Mayor J.G. Bowles, who helped to arrange a concert by the great Jenny Lind, the proceeds from which were donated to the home. The Warden and Vestry Office of St. George’s Church administered the operation of the home, which was completed in 1854. It was designed to hold 30 children, but was enlarged twice to hold 70. An infirmary was added in 1864/65. Overcrowding forced a move, and a new site on the west side of Dovercourt Road at St. Anne’s Road was obtained in 1882. The new home at this location was opened in 1883. The old building remained in place, and was used by the Edith L. Groves School in 1926. This was a vocational school for girls, which became Heydon Park Secondary School in later years.
Relative Importance: This home was the first formally organized facility to undertake the care of children orphaned for one reason or another. While it received public support, it was a church-inspired and -operated facility, as were most such charitable institutions of the 19th century. The function was later taken over by the Orange Order, which opened a large facility north of the city on Yonge Street.
Planning Implications: The site merits plaquing in an area extremely rich in history that is largely unknown by present residents. In plaquing this site, supported by a world-famous singer, it would be important also to acknowledge the role of the churches in the 19th century in charitable and social services to the community. It would also be appro-priate to recognize the roles of two very famous men: Baldwin, Father of Responsible Government; and Cayley, a successful businessman whose 1830 house, “Drumsnab,” is the oldest one still standing in the city.
Reference Sources: Church of St. George the Martyr (history of), 1945; John Ross Robertson, Landmarks of Toronto; Toronto Reference Library.
Acknowledgements: Maps Project; Community History Project.