A visual history of Parliament Street is a post that probably could have been compiled a long time ago given the stature and visual interest of the subject in question. Named after the provincial legislative buildings that once sat at the corner of Front Street, Parliament has its other legacies, from its history as an industrial hub to the role that it played in the construction of the Bloor Viaduct.
Parliament is one of the streets that has drag appeal. Like a few other streets I've written about, between Gerrard and Wellesely, Parliament has the character of a main street, serving a community which has been built around it. And this is, of course, the case for the most part. While the street originated as a trail that John Graves Simcoe would use to commute from the parliament buildings to Castle Frank, by the early 20th century it had developed a vibrant commercial scene to the north and a booming industrial presence to the south.
Along with the old Gooderham & Worts Distillery, which sprawled beyond the current confines of the "District" back in the day, evidence of former industrial activity can be spotted in the form of the Victory Soya Mills Silos, just to the south. Even in the aerial shot from the 1970s (or perhaps early 80s), it's possible to spot the degree to which the southern end of the street had a grittier character.
In general, Parliament was a fairly well to do thoroughfare until the post-war era, when it was surrounded by middle-sized single dwelling homes. With the arrival of large-scale housing developments, the street's character slowly changed to adapt to the residents who made up a more culturally and economically mixed group.
See Also:
A history of Toronto in photos
PHOTOS
Former Parliament buildings (Front & Parliament), 1856
660-664 Parliament, 1913
674 Parliament, 1913
Pre-Bloor Viaduct, 1915
Looking south on Parliament from Howard, 1915
Queen & Parliament, 1917
Bloor Viaduct near Parliament, 1917
Parliament Street dump, 1926
Parliament Street subway, 1927
Old CPR crossing, 1932
352 Parliament, 1937
Looking south from 243 Parliament, 1938
Parliament near St. David, 1938
141 Parliament, 1940
287-307 Parliament, 1942
237 Parliament, 1943
Joy Oil Station at 317 Parliament, 1947
243 Parliament, 1947
325 Parliament, 1947
Eclipse Theatre, 1949
375-379 Parliament, 1949
367-371 Parliament, 1949
307 Parliament, 1957
Queen & Parliament, 1959
151 Parliament, 1960s
Parliament & Gerrard, 1962
Aerial view of Distillery & Corktown, 1970s
Foot of Parliament, 1979
Former Consumer Gas Building (now 51 Division), 1980s
King & Parliament, 1994
Photos from the Toronto Archives