Background

The Toronto Harbour Commissioners was formed on 19 May 1911 by a Federal Act of Parliament, and the Commissioners immediately undertook to reshape the harbour for industrial, commercial and recreational purposes. THC staff prepared the bold and innovative Waterfront Plan of 1912, which incorporated a modern port, boulevard drives, aquatic courses and even a bridle path. By 1950 many of the Plan's components were complete, and the Commissioners were ready for a new phase of planning and construction, introduced by the coming of the St. Lawrence Seaway. The THC dredged the harbour to Seaway depth and built new marine terminals to fill the expected demand for cargo storage and handling facilities. Today the Toronto Port Authority continues to be responsible for shipping and navigation in the harbour, the operation of Port of Toronto facilities, the Toronto City Centre Airport and the Outer Harbour Marina.

The Collection

Toronto's waterfront development is documented by textual records, large holdings of photographs and plans, and by a library of published and unpublished books and reports and periodicals. One focus of the collection is port and airport planning, harbour development and coastal engineering. Another important aspect of our holdings is property management. We have an excellent selection of photographs illustrating amusements and recreation: everything from Sunnyside to the Wrigley marathon swims. Access to the records is facilitated by use of our on-line databases and optical disk technology.