History
Clarence Square
The park across from the SoHo Hotel Toronto is reminiscent of British Regency design and was originally laid out in the 1830s by British military engineers as part of the military reserve lands west of the Town of York. Clarence Square is considered one of the oldest remaining park spaces in Toronto. It can be seen on this map from the mid-1800s, and may also be one of the oldest purpose-built urban parks still existing in Canada.
Toronto’s Elite
Two of the grandest houses ever constructed in Toronto were situated on Clarence Square. On the north side was the home of Hugh John Macdonald, son of Sir John A. Macdonald, the nation’s first prime minister. Since that time, a row of historical townhouses now occupies that land.
On the south side of the square was the residence of John Gordon, president of the Toronto Grey and Bruce Railway, who built a magnificent mansion in the detailed Italianate style. By 1911, it would be replaced by the still-standing Steele-Briggs Seed Warehouse at 49 Spadina Avenue, which shipped seeds across Canada.
The Great Fire of 1904
This infamous fire started around Bay and Wellington and devastated a large part of Toronto’s commercial and industrial centre. Over 100 businesses were burnt out, most of them manufacturers and importers of fabrics and clothing, paper goods, books, drugs, chemicals, hardware, and machinery. The image shows the aftermath looking west down Wellington Street where the fire started at 58 Wellington Street West, the current location of the TD Tower.
Industrialization
After the Great Fire, the 1900s soon saw the area shift with a massive influx of factories. The large mansions that originally dominated the area would be demolished and replaced by manufacturing factories. The area became known as the Garment District as numerous textile factories and warehouses had been built due to the proximity and easy access to both shipping and rail lines. The arrow in the image points up to the southeast corner of Clarence Square, and the location of the hotel to the right appears to be vacant land in this post-war era image.
Soho Metropolitan
The architectural firm that designed this modern multipurpose structure is Page and Steele, architects. The building completed construction in April 2003. The building was divided into a condominium, with the first four floors allocated to become Toronto’s first modern luxury boutique hotel (the Soho Metropolitan) in the downtown core. It would be part of a small Canadian chain of Metropolitan Hotels, including properties in Vancouver and another in Toronto named Metropolitan Toronto. By 2019, the Soho Metropolitan would separate ties from the Metropolitan chain. It was renovated and rebranded as SoHo Hotel Toronto, a member of the Preferred Hotel Group.
SoHo Hotel Toronto
Today, SoHo Hotel Toronto is now an independent Canadian-owned and operated five-star hotel in the heart of Toronto's Entertainment District. Known for its quiet luxury aesthetic, eclectic art, and spacious accommodations, the Hotel offers one of the most walkable locations downtown with rooms overlooking Clarence Square. The hotel has become an award-winning boutique hotel in downtown Toronto, renowned for its personalized service and distinctly Canadian point of view that has been recognized by leading travel organizations including Tripadvisor, Condé Nast Traveller, and the MICHELIN Guide.
