Industrial food production site.
Details of Site Location: 145 Front Street East, southwest corner of Frederick.
Boundary History: The meat packing business vanished as the building was taken over by the J. & J. Taylor Safeworks, altered, and added to.
Current Use of Property: The much modified main building still stands with commercial tenants, but the other buildings have vanished.
Historical Description: William Davies was born in England and apprenticed to a provisioner. In 1854 he came to Canada and tried farming, but he decided that he liked provisioning better and set up a stall in the St. Lawrence Market where he cured hams and bacon. As his trade increased rapidly, he built a two-storey plant for packing pork at Front and Frederick. The J. & J. Safeworks incorporated this building into their plant, where it still stands in greatly modified state. In 1879 he built a new plant on the south side of Front at the Don River. He also built a huge ice house to keep ice taken from the Don River and the harbour. At his new plant, he began slaughtering and processing hogs. He was first in Canada to install an artificial refrigeration unit in 1891. He developed an export market for his cured meats by shipping them to his brother in England, and this side of the business continued to grow. In 1891 Joseph Flavelle joined the firm and the company was reorganized as the William Davies Company Limited with Flavelle in charge. The company flourished and the export trade was actively pursued. It established a chain of retail meat and grocery stores – another Canadian first. The company was particularly successful during the World War I. In 1920 a severe recession in the export trade began and all packing houses suffered losses. In 1927, Canada Packers was formed by the amalgamation of the Harris Abattoir Company and the William Davies Company Limited. Previously, Harris Abattoir had absorbed Gunns Limited and the Canadian Packing Company. J. Stanley McLean was the first president of the new company. The William Davies plant on Front Street was sold and demolished, and trade relocated to the two Harris abattoirs in West Toronto.
Relative Importance: The importance of the Davies Company is recognized throughout the industry: it was a major contributor to the local economy. Joseph Flavelle and the evolution of a company into an empire have also been widely acknowledged.
Planning Implications: The Front Street site has been designated, but a plaque is needed to explain the size and complexity of the Davies business and the evolution of the company.
Reference Sources: Goad’s Atlas (1884, 1890, 1910); J.S. Willis for Canada Packers, This Packing Business; Michael Bliss, A Canadian Millionaire – The Life and Times of Sir Joseph Flavelle, Bart., 1858–1939.
Acknowledgements: Maps Project.