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Yonge Street Subway construction views

series1949-1955Fonds 1128 > Series 381

2,174 of 2,495 descriptions below digitizedOpen enclosing description at source ↗

This description was harvested from its parent's finding aid, but the source catalogue gave no direct link for it. The link opens the nearest enclosing description; look there for Fonds 1128 > Series 381.

Where

Yonge StCorrect the locationNearby on the big map
Held by
City of Toronto Archives via City of Toronto Archives
Dates
1949-1955 (indexed as 1949–1955)
Level
series
Extent
ca. 2,400 photographs : b&w negatives ; 11 x 13 cm; ca. 14 photographs : b&w ; 21 x 26 cm
Scope & content
Series consists of approximately 2,400 images, most of which are negatives, documenting the construction of the Yonge Street subway from the letting of the contract on July 7, 1949, through every stage of construction, until crowds were pouring through all the transfer terminals at Eglinton, Davisville, St. Clair, Rosedale, Bloor and Wellesley in June 1955. The Toronto Transit Commission commissioned Canada Pictures to document this significant development in urban mass transit. The images provide views of downtown streets and traffic, the excavation of Yonge Street, the building of the decking at street level, the construction of the stations, and the construction of the underground tunnels and station platforms. They document problems encountered such as faulty concrete and leaking walls, and they show the heavy equipment required for a project of this scale including cranes, pile drivers, shovels, bulldozers, and trucks. Workers are shown digging in the tunnels, laying rails, pouring cement, and rolling/smoothing terrazzo inside the stations. There are photographs of the tours of the subway which were arranged for visiting journalists and dignitaries, including Metropolitan Toronto Councillors and the Governor General of Canada, Sir Rupert Alexander. As the construction was nearing completion, photographs were taken of the tunnels showing the finished track, station platforms, ticket booths and turnstiles. The exterior and the interior of Toronto's new subway cars were also documented, while TTC buses and street cars were photographed in context with the new trains and subway stations. There are also 75 photographs documenting the official opening of the subway on March 30, 1954. These images show crowds and dignitaries, including Fred Gardiner and Alan Lamport, attending ceremonies and special events at the Davisville Station, the Royal York Hotel, and Union Station. There are also photographs of women in TTC uniforms with models of the new trains, and crowds of people lining up at various stations to use the transit system on opening day. includes both close-ups and distance shots, construction workers and transit riders, ordinary usage and special events. Among the special events was the Official Opening on March 30, 1954, where a smiling Mayor Allan A. Lamport clasped Transit Commissioner William McBrien in a two-fisted handshake (microfiche # 234/274; and original 21 x 26 cm print). The building of the Yonge Street subway was a landmark not only in Toronto's transportation history, but also in its labour history. This series provides an extensive, sometimes dramatic, visual record of events and their impact on planning and development in Toronto in the early 1950s.
Location
  • Yonge St · street · confidence 35% · street · found as “Yonge Street”
Correct the location
Subjects
Yonge Subway Line (Toronto, Ont.); Gardiner, Frederick G., 1895-1983; Lamport, Allan, 1903-1999; Davisville Subway Station (Toronto, Ont.); Union Station (Toronto, Ont., 1927-); CONSTRUCTION; EXCAVATION; PUBLIC TRANSIT; WORKERS; LOCAL HISTORY; CONSTRUCTION MACHINERY; SUBWAY STATIONS; ROADS; TERRAZZO; CONCRETE
Harvested
2026-10-23T00:33:59Z · source datestamp n/a · toronto
Original metadata as harvested (toronto)