The Gladstone Hotel

Anyone that knows me also knows that I love old buildings.  As I travel to and from work along Queen Street every day I see quite a few older buildings.  Queen Street has an abundance of older buildings as it was one of the main thoroughfares through Toronto from the very beginning. 

Queen Street looking east towards Dufferin St - The Gladstone Hotel in the distance (circa Nov 1897)

The Gladstone Hotel is located in Parkdale on Queen Street just east of Dufferin.  The neighbourhood is a bit run down and ‘artsy’ but is turning around these days and still has a certain charm about it.  The Gladstone Hotel has always caught my eye because of it’s distinctive architecture (very Victorian and ornate).  You can just tell when taking a closer look at this hotel that a lot of attention was paid to detail during it’s construction.  There are castings of lions and dragons which decorate the building in many places.  There’s a lot of ornamental brickwork and even the flagpole holders have ornate iron work.  It’s really a beautiful building which we can still enjoy today due the current owner’s efforts at restoring the building.  The Gladstone Hotel was built in 1889 and it is the oldest continuously operating hotel in Toronto.  The first photo is courtesy of the Toronto archives.  Over the past year I made several trips out to the Gladstone to take some photos which follow.  I hope this gives you a sense of what I see when I pass the Gladstone each day.