The Winchester Hotel is a preserved commercial building, located at 531 Parliament Street, in Cabbagetown, Toronto. The former hotel building was listed as a heritage building by the city in 1975 and was designated under Part IV of the Ontario Heritage Act in 1995.[1]
| Winchester Hotel | |
|---|---|
 Building shown in 2007. | |
 | |
| General information | |
| Architectural style | Second Empire (exterior), Art Moderne (interior) |
| Address | 531 Parliament Street, Toronto |
| Year(s) built | 1880, 1888 |
| Renovated | 1941 |
| Technical details | |
| Material | red brick |
| Floor count | 3½-storey Winchester Hotel with 2½-storey south wing |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect(s) | Thomas Kennedy (1880 building), Benjamin Swartz (1941 alterations) |
| Architecture firm | Kennedy and Holland (initial building) |
| Official name | 531 Parliament St |
| Designated | 1995 |
It was one of the five or six major hotels in Toronto when it was built, until the King Edward Hotel opened in 1903.[2]
The building was designed by architect Thomas Kennedy in the 1880s. It was known for having a dome on the roof, with a flagpole "that was visible throughout the city" [3]
Plans to bring a Tim Hortons to the site in 2005 caused consternation among local residents and heritage activists. [3]
Heritage details
editThe building currently known as the Winchester Hotel opened in the 1880s as the Lakeview Hotel. It once had a lantern mounted atop a cupola on the roof, that was removed, either in 1941 when it was given an Art Moderne facelift, or in 1954 (sources are unsure). A replica was added in 2021, using the same architectural firm that was renovating Massey Hall at the time.[4] Its listing on the Canadian Register of Historic Places notes: "The imposing 3½-storey red brick Winchester Hotel with a 2½-storey red brick south wing, and the adjoining two-storey red brick Winchester Hall are located on the southeast corner of Parliament Street and Winchester Street in the Toronto neighbourhood of Cabbagetown.” [5]
References
edit- ^ City of Toronto. 531 PARLIAMENT ST (Technical report).
- ^ Filey, Mike (2004). Toronto Sketches 8: The Way We Were. Dundurn. ISBN 1-55002-527-9.
- ^ a b Shulgan, Christopher (May 16, 2005). "Winchester Hotel battle brews". Globe and Mail. Retrieved April 3, 2024.
- ^ Leblanc, Dave (January 19, 2021). "A heritage building gets a proper capping off". Globe and Mail. Retrieved 2023-08-14.
- ^ "Winchester Hotel and Winchester Hall". HistoricPlaces.ca. Retrieved 2023-08-14.