Educational facility.
Details of Site Location: The Blue School had two locations: the first was within “College Square” bounded by Adelaide, Richmond, Jarvis, and Church Streets; the second at the southeast corner of Jarvis and Lombard Streets.
Boundary History: In its first location, the school stood 114′ from the western border of College Square and 104′ from the southern boundary; the remainder of the Square was playground. The second location was a large lot at Jarvis and Lombard.
Current Use of Property: The current uses of both sites are by large commercial buildings, some privately owned and others by the government of Canada.
Historical Description: The first classes for children’s schooling in Toronto were held in houses. One of these was on King Street, where a stone room had been built onto the home of the Reverend George O’Kill Stuart, rector of St. James Church. (This site was plaqued in June 2000.) In 1812, a second school was opened by the Reverend John Strachan in a barn at King and Yonge Streets. The new District Grammar School building of 1816 was a frame structure, 55′ long by 40′ wide in two storeys. The gables faced east and west. On each side of the school were two rows of five windows, with sashes. At the east end were four windows paired at each floor. The west end had five windows and the front door. In 1818 the exterior of the building was painted blue – hence the name for the school. Dr. Strachan gave lectures on natural philosophy, and the ticket price was two guineas. The money was used to purchase the paint. The interior was of unpainted pine; four pine posts located four feet from each corner supported the ceiling. The teacher’s platform with its 8′ desk was at the southeast corner of the room, two steps above the floor. Along the whole length of the northern and southern sides were narrow desks set close to the walls with benches on their outer sides. Running out at right angles to these were a series of shorter desks with double slopes and benches on each side. In 1825, Strachan retired from teaching to become Bishop of Toronto. His successor at the school was Glasgow born Samuel Armour. In 1829 Upper Canada was founded and the Blue School was refurbished and moved to the southeast corner of Jarvis and Lombard. When Upper Canada College moved to Russell Square, the Blue School was left vacant. In 1834 the Royal Grammar School moved into the Blue School building, but in 1864 the Royal Grammar School moved to Dalhousie Street north of Gould. At this point, the Blue School became a junkyard and was demolished in 1870.
Relative Importance: Used as a school for 48 years, the Blue School was the first educational facility to have a building of its own. It is the starting point for the development of public education in the city under government auspices.
Planning Implications: As the beginning of the school system, the Blue School deserves special recognition. Plaques should be mounted at both of the properties where it stood.
Reference Sources: Henry Scadding, Toronto of Old (1966); C.P. Mulvaney, Toronto Past and Present (1884); City of Toronto Archives.
Acknowledgements: Cabbagetown Preservation Association; Maps Project.