Looking northeast towards the corner of Spadina Ave and College St in the Discovery District of Toronto.
The archive photo features the former Broadway Methodist Tabernacle, which stood at the corner from 1889 to 1930. Designed in the Romanesque style by architect E.J. Lennox, this impressive church featured a corner tower that rose over 130 feet high. The church had a capacity for over 1,800 congregation members and was described as “a magnificent and imposing edifice.”
In the 1920s, the church was renamed Broadway United Church; however, its membership was declining, and the final service was held in 1929. Afterward, the congregation joined with College Street United Church. The Broadway United Church property changed hands twice before the grand old structure was demolished in 1930.
That same year, the current four-storey commercial and office building was constructed in its place. Designed by architect Benjamin Brown, this building features Art Deco elements. Over the years, it has housed various businesses, including Tamblyn Drugs and Tip Top Tailors, and continues to accommodate a variety of businesses and offices today.
Then and Now
SOURCE
- City of Toronto Heritage Register
- Heritage Toronto
- Ontario Heritage Trust
- Biographical Dictionary of Architects in Canada
- The Toronto Daily Star Newspaper Archives: Feb 21, 1930, pg 30 (Broadway Tabernacle, northeast corner of College St & Spadina Ave)
- The Globe Newspaper Archives: Feb 22, 1930, pg 15 (College St & Spadina Ave, northeast corner)
- The Globe Newspaper Archives: Oct 29, 1930, pg 14 (Broadway Tabernacle, northeast corner of College St & Spadina Ave)
- The Globe Newspaper Archives: Mar 4, 1931, pg 14 (College St & Spadina Ave, northeast corner)
- Photo: Denise Marie for TorontoJourney416
- City of Toronto: Maps
- Toronto City Directory courtesy of Toronto Public Library
