The Miss Toronto Beauty Pageant mural is located on the building at 1249 Queen St W, home to The Rhino Bar & Grill, in the Parkdale neighbourhood of Toronto.
Jean Ford Tolmie was crowned the winner after competing against over 65 hopefuls in the contest’s inaugural year. The archive photo shows her along with the four runners-up. The 1926 pageant was held at Sunnyside Bathing Pavilion in front of a crowd of 30,000, where Jean was crowned with flowers. The pageant was later moved to Exhibition Stadium & Grandstand in 1936.
If you look at the mural closely, you’ll notice the architecture of the Sunnyside Bathing Pavilion in the background, including the columns and decorative fence
Then and Now
SOURCE
- City of Toronto Heritage Register
- Heritage Toronto
- Ontario Heritage Trust
- Biographical Dictionary of Architects in Canada
- Photo: Denise Marie for TorontoJourney416
- Vintage Photo: City of Toronto Archives
- City of Toronto: Maps
- Toronto City Directory, courtesy of Toronto Public Library
