The Princes’ Gates are located at Exhibition Place (at Strachan Ave and Lake Shore Blvd W) in Toronto. They are one of two main entrances to the grounds and The CNE, the other being the Dufferin Gate.
About the Grand Gates
The iconic eastern gates were built in 1927 to commemorate the 60th anniversary of Canadian Confederation. Designed in the Beaux-Arts style by Toronto architects Chapman & Oxley, the structure features cement sculptures, created by Charles McKechnie. The arch is flanked by nine Ionic columns, each representing one of the nine provinces that were part of the Confederation at the time.
Originally, the entrance was to be named “The Diamond Jubilee of Confederation Gates.”
How Did the Gates Get Their Name?
In early August 1927, officials learned that H.R.H. Edward, the Prince of Wales, and his brother, Prince George, would honour that year’s exhibition with their presence. As a result, officials held a special meeting and decided to rename the new eastern entrance gateway The Princes’ Gates, in tribute to the two royal princes.
Both brothers attended the official opening of the Canadian National Exhibition on August 30, 1927. During the ceremony, Prince Edward cut a purple-and-white ribbon to dedicate the new gates.
The Princes’ Gates Sculptures
High atop the gates is the Goddess of Winged Victory, leading Canada into the future. She’s 3.6 m (12 ft) tall and holds a crown overhead in her left hand and a maple leaf in her right. The Goddess stands in a ship of state protected by seahorses in waves. The four sculptures around her include:
- Two figures, each holding a beehive representing labour
- Two figures, each having a cornucopia representing agriculture and fruits of the harvest
Ontario’s Coat of Arms at the end of the two curved walls, each has the following sculptures:
- A woman holding grain sheaves represents farming
- A man with his hand on a cogged wheel with chains near his feet and drawings in his lap representing industry and construction
Goddess of Winged Victory Gets Replaced
The Princes’ Gates received heritage status in 1973. The Winged Victory sculpture was severely weathered and, in 1987, replaced with a polymer resin replica. Until then, she held a lamp in her right hand, which was replaced with a crown. In 1994, the other four sculptures were replaced with poured concrete, the medium in which they were initially made.
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Princes’ Gates Photos
One remarkable item that almost goes unnoticed and is circled in red is the aluminum-suited man in the Bell Rocket Belt soaring to the right of the sculptures high atop the Princes’ Gates. The flyer wearing the backpack-like device was a Bell Aerosystems scientist (CNE Archives)
The Princes’ Gates
“This entrance to the Canadian National Exhibition grounds was built in 1927 to commemorate 60 years of Canadian Confederation. The stone and concrete gates were designed by the Toronto firm of Chapman and Oxley and are a fine example of monumental architecture in the beaux-arts mode. Sculptor Charles D. McKechnie created the statues. The Winged Victory atop the central arch is flanked by figures representing the CNE’s commitment to progress through industry, education and the arts. The gates were opened officially on August 30, 1927 by Edward, Prince of Wales, and Prince George. They have been known ever since as the “Princes’ Gates.”
Ontario Heritage Foundation, Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Recreation
Princes’ Gates
“These monumental gates were erected in 1927 to mark the 60th anniversary of Canadian Confederation. Designed in the Beaux-Arts style by the Toronto firm of Chapman and Oxley, the gates – including the sculptures – were constructed of “artificial stone” made from cement. The sculptures were modelled by Charles D. McKechnie.
Designed during a period of great national confidence, the gates use the style of ancient Greece and Rome to celebrate both Canada and the Canadian National Exhibition. Originally named “The Diamond Jubilee of Confederation Gates,” the structure was renamed the “Princes’ Gates” for Edward, Prince of Wales, and his brother Prince George, who were both present at its official opening on August 30, 1927.”
Heritage Toronto 2003
Designing the CNE’S Grand Entrance
“The design of a grand eastern entrance to the Canadian National Exhibition (CNE) was the result of visionary waterfront planning by Toronto architect Alfred H. Chapman. In the early 1920s, he was commissioned by the CNE to plan a major expansion of the fairgrounds, and by the Toronto Harbour Commission (THC) to design the western waterfront. In 1922, his firm, Chapman and Oxley, also completed the design of nearby Sunnyside Amusement Area for the THC.
Working with engineers from the THC and the City of Toronto, Chapman’s plan used landfill to extend the shore of the lake farther south, allowing for the construction of what is now Lake Shore Boulevard. Designed to dramatize the visual impact of the eastern entrance to the CNE grounds, the boulevard would be highlighted a few years later, in 1927, by Chapman and Oxley’s monumental Princes’ Gates”
Heritage Toronto 2013
Piazza Princes’ Gates
“In 2005, a design competition was held for the revitalization of the important public space in front of the Princes’ Gates. Building on strong connections between Canada and Italy, design teams consisting of firms from Milano and Toronto were invited to submit proposals. An international jury selected the winning team of Sering + Sistema Duemila (Milano) – The MBTW Group (Toronto). Their design interprets the theme, “Canada Past, Canada Present, Canada Future,” and presents the revitalization project as a beacon of shared culture, friendship and design between Milano and Toronto.
The landscape elements of this redesigned piazza celebrate the Princes’ Gates, and the Canada-Italy connection. Ten long bands of Canadian granite interpret the original symbolism of the Gates’ columns into the surface of the piazza – each is engraved with the motto of a Canadian province. Seating blocks at the end of the granite bands are marked with the name of the corresponding province or a territory. The blocks are crafted of twinned pieces of granite – representing Milano and Toronto – joined together by light.
The Princes’ Gates Revitalization Project is central to the twinning agreement between Milano and Toronto to promote business, trade and cultural relations between the two cities. This public project was also generously supported by the private sector.”
Piazza Princes’ Gates was officially opened on July 19,2006
The Warriors’ Day Parade
“At the end of the First World War (1914-1918), activities took place across Canada to commemorate the country’s wartime efforts and to honour the over 60,000 Canadians lost. One of the most significant and lasting events was a veterans’ parade held at the Canadian National Exhibition in 1919. Edward, Prince of Wales, opened the Exhibition and conducted a military review of the thousands of veterans who attended. In 1921, the annual parade became the highlight of the Exhibition’s new Warrior’s Day (later Warriors’ Day). The Warriors’ Day Parade has marched through the Princes’ Gates since 1927, honouring the veterans and the over 100,000 who perished in the Boer War, the Great War, the Second World War, the Korean War, and in peacekeeping missions around the world.”
Ontario Heritage Foundation, an agency of the Government of Ontario
Located near the Princes’ Gates, at the Strachan Ave entrance to Exhibition Place
“The Princes’ Gates were officially opened on Tuesday August the thirteenth – MDCCCCXXVII – by H.R.H. the Prince of Wales accompanied by H.R.H. Prince George
First to pass through these gates was a Veterans Parade under the auspices the Canadian Legion, the British Empire Service League for review by H.R.H. the Prince of Wales”
SOURCE
- City of Toronto Heritage Register: 100 Princes’ Blvd
- Heritage Toronto plaque
- Ontario Heritage Trust: Princes’ Gates plaque
- Ontario Heritage Trust: The Warriors’ Day Parade plaque
- The Globe Newspaper Archives: Aug 6, 1927, pg 15
- The Globe Newspaper Archives: Aug 30, 1927, pg 2
- The Globe Newspaper Archives: Aug 31, 1927, pg 1
- The Globe and Mail Newspaper Archives: Aug 25, 1965, pg 11
- Photos: Denise Marie for TorontoJourney416
- Vintage Photos: City of Toronto Archives, Archives of Ontario, Library and Archives Canada & CNE Heritage
Who really designed the Princes gates? The company of Chapman and Oxley take credit but did someone in the firm do the actual design?
Hi Mary, Thank you for your question. Through all of my research, the Princes’ Gates are credited to the architectural firm of Chapman and Oxley. There is an article written specifically by Alfred H Chapman, titled “The Princes’ Gates” in the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada (RAIC) Journal, Volume 4, Number 10, October 1927, pgs 351-355