Fort York
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FortYork-Blockhouse.jpg
Fort York is an historic site of military fortifications and related buildings on the west side of downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The fort was built by the British Army and Canadian militia troops in the late seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries, to defend the settlement and the new capital of the Upper Canada region from the threat of a military attack, principally from the newly independent United States.
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Founding
In 1793, Lieutenant Governor John Graves Simcoe authorized a garrison on the present site of Fort York, just west of the mouth of Garrison Creek on the north eastern shore of Lake Ontario. Simcoe recognized Toronto was an ideal site for settlement and defence because of its natural harbour and relative distance from the United States. Simcoe had decided to make Toronto (at that time called York) the capital of Upper Canada, and the government, the first parliament buildings and the town were established one and a half miles east of the fort.
Buildings
Early builings were built by Royal Engineers:
- Brick Barracks 1815
- Officers Barracks and Mess 1826
- Junior Officers Barracks 1930
- Blockhouse # 2 1813
- Brick Magazine 1814
- Blockhouse # 1 1813
- Stone Powder Magazine 1815
Rebuilding of Fort York began in 1932-1934 and restoration in 1985.
The War of 1812 and Since
On April 27, 1813 combined American Army and naval forces attacked York from Lake Ontario, destroying Fort York and burning the settlement of York and the temporary parliament buildings, after defeating outnumbered British, Canadian militia and First Nations forces. Following several more US raids over the summer, the British garrison returned to Toronto and rebuilt the fortifications, most of which are still standing today.
The British Army occuppied Fort York from 1793 to the 1850s and tranfer to Canada thereafter to 1932. However, the City of Toronto owned the Fort from 1903 onwards.
Fort York was used as a military establishment until 1880, and again during the First and Second World Wars.
Units
Army units stationed at Fort York over the years:
British
- Queen's Rangers
- 1st Foot
- 6th Foot
- 8th Foot
- 13th Hussars
- 19th Light Dragoons
- 24th Foot
- 30th Foot
- 32nd Foot
- 43rd Foot
- 49th Foot
- 66th Foot
- 68th Foot
- 71st Foot
- 82nd Foot
- 83rd Foot
- 93rd Foot
- 104th Foot
- Canadian Voltigeurs
- Glengarry Light Infrantry
- Royal Canadian Rifles
- Royal Canadian Artillery
- Royal Engineers
- Royal Newfoundland Fencibles
- Royal Supply and Miners
Canadian
- 2nd Battalion of Provisional Militia
- 3rd Battalion of Provisional Militia
- 6th Battalion of Provisional Militia
- 10th Toyal Grenadiers
- 48th Highlanders of Canada
- Durham Militia
- Enrolled Pensioners
- Garrison Battery of Artillery
- Home Guards
- Incoporated Militia
- Queen's Lancers
- Royal Canadian Artillery
- RCA Dragoons
- Royal Canadian Regiment
- Royal Volunteers
- Toronto Calvary
- York Militia and Colours
- Toronto Field Battery
Fort York Today
Fort York now houses Canada's largest collection of original War of 1812 period buildings. The fort offers casual visitors and booked groups a number of exciting services year round. During the summer months, the site comes alive with the colour and the pageantry of the Fort York Guard and is complimented with tours by professional historical interpreters. In the off-season months, the fort is busy providing educational programs for booked tour groups including school, scout, guide, and day care groups.
In the 1950's Fort York was almost torn down to make way for the Gardiner Expressway. Highway planners eventually rerouted the elevated highway to the south of the grounds, and continues to be a visual barrier to Lake Ontario to this day.
The reclaimed land to the south of the fort are also in the process of being developed with new condo towers eventually limiting any possible reconnection with Lake Ontario.
Related links
References
- Historic Fort York 1793-1993 by Carl Benn, National Heritage and National History Incorporated 1993