[URBAN NOTE] "A Short History of One Spadina Crescent"
Torontoist's Jamie Bradburn describes the storied history of One Spadina Crescent.
Since it was built 140 years ago, One Spadina Crescent has had many close calls with the wrecking ball. That it is around to undergo revamping by the University of Toronto’s John H. Daniels Faculty of Architecture, Landscape, and Design is miraculous given threats ranging from proposed sporting venues to the Spadina Expressway. The site’s recognition as a gateway to the university is a long-overdue honour.
One Spadina’s church-like presence was no accident. Architect James Avon Smith specialized in religious structures, including Church of the Redeemer at Bloor and Avenue and at least 90 other churches across Ontario. For Knox College, the building marked the Presbyterian theological school’s fifth location in 30 years. When the building opened in October 1875, the Globe praised it as “an ornament to the city,” well-positioned to allow Knox students to enjoy a stronger intellectual grounding through exposure to courses at nearby U of T (which Knox didn’t formally join for another decade).
Within a decade there were public calls to knock the building down. Some neighbours felt that Spadina Crescent should have been used as earlier landowner Robert Baldwin had once envisioned it: a public park with a magnificent view south along Spadina Avenue. While some felt Knox was all but squatting on the property, documents proved land deals between the college and a Baldwin heir were perfectly legal.
Since it was built 140 years ago, One Spadina Crescent has had many close calls with the wrecking ball. That it is around to undergo revamping by the University of Toronto’s John H. Daniels Faculty of Architecture, Landscape, and Design is miraculous given threats ranging from proposed sporting venues to the Spadina Expressway. The site’s recognition as a gateway to the university is a long-overdue honour.
One Spadina’s church-like presence was no accident. Architect James Avon Smith specialized in religious structures, including Church of the Redeemer at Bloor and Avenue and at least 90 other churches across Ontario. For Knox College, the building marked the Presbyterian theological school’s fifth location in 30 years. When the building opened in October 1875, the Globe praised it as “an ornament to the city,” well-positioned to allow Knox students to enjoy a stronger intellectual grounding through exposure to courses at nearby U of T (which Knox didn’t formally join for another decade).
Within a decade there were public calls to knock the building down. Some neighbours felt that Spadina Crescent should have been used as earlier landowner Robert Baldwin had once envisioned it: a public park with a magnificent view south along Spadina Avenue. While some felt Knox was all but squatting on the property, documents proved land deals between the college and a Baldwin heir were perfectly legal.