Exhibition Place
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Exhibition Place is on the Toronto lakeshore, a few kilometers west of the central downtown. Every August the Canadian National Exhibition (CNE) is held on the grounds, with games and a midway being the primary attraction.
The eastern entrance to the Place is marked by the Princes' Gates, a beautiful structure that was named after H.R.H. Edward, Prince of Wales, and his brother, Prince George, who visited in 1927. The Gates were originally to be named "The Diamond Jubilee of Confederation Gates" in honour of the 60th anniversary of Canadian confederation. The proposed name was changed when CNE officials learned of the princes' tour of Canada.
Exhibition Place is probably as old as the Exhibition itself, which dates back to the 1880s. There has been many structures built on the grounds over the years, including the Food Building, Horse Palace, Automotive Building, a Marine Museum and a Medieval Times Dinner and Tournament. The area was also home to the Hockey Hall of Fame from 1961-1993 and now serves as the Canadian Sports Hall of Fame.
During the Second World War the CNE became Toronto's main training grounds.
In the early 1970s a permanent amusement park called Ontario Place was built on artificial islands to the south of the Place. Its features are more 'kid-friendly' and based on a more creative sense of fun; it was also home to Canada's famous warship the HMCS Haida until 2003 when it was moved to Hamilton.
The "Ex" Place was also home to Exhibition Stadium, which was built in the late 1800s and was re-modelled over the years. It served as home to the CFL's Toronto Argonauts between 1958 and 1988 and the Toronto Blue Jays (AL) between 1977 and 1989. The two teams left for SkyDome (now Rogers Centre) in 1989. After it lost most outdoor concerts to the nearby Molson Amphitheatre at Ontario Place, its usefulness was at an end. The stadium was demolished in 1999 and now serves as parking and allows a more sprawling midway at the CNE.
The late 1990s, however, saw a new building arrive at the "Ex." The National Trade Centre at Exhibition Place hosts large trade shows and an adjoining facility called Ricoh Coliseum was re-modelled in 2004 from the old, worn down coliseum to host the Toronto Roadrunners, and later the Toronto Marlies, of the AHL.
There is a GO Transit stop called Exhibition that is at the grounds and a streetcar loop on the Harbourfront line that connects the Ex with the Toronto subway system's Bathurst and Union Station stops.
Exhibition Place is also home to the WindShare wind turbine, and is home to an annual CART race, the Toronto Molson Indy.