High Park
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High Park is one of the largest parks in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It spans 398 acres (1.6 km²) in the city's West End. It stretches south from Bloor Street West, west of Parkside Drive and east of Windermere Avenue. At its southern end, the park is separated from Lake Ontario by Lake Shore Boulevard West, the Gardiner Expressway, the Canadian National railway line, and The Queensway.
Except for a small tract of land surrounding the Colborne Lodge, the park was ceded to the City of Toronto by architect, surveyor, and engineer John George Howard in 1873. Colborne Lodge was the retirement home of John and his wife, Jemima Howard. The park was originally named after its donor. Due to a condition in Howard's will forbidding the consumption of alcohol in the park, High Park is the last "dry" area of the City of Toronto, and its seasonal restaurant and banquet hall is one of the few unlicensed premises in the city.
The original grant was not appreciated by the city fathers of Toronto, as they felt the park was too far away from the city to be of any use to its citizens. However, as the city grew, the park became more central and it was soon served by the College Street street-car line, although since the opening of the Bloor-Danforth Subway in 1968, there has been a subway stop at the park's northern border.
The landscape in the park is varied, with manicured gardens in the western side, and unkempt forest in the east. Between these extremes, there are sports fields, vegetable gardens, a small zoo, and restaurants. During weekends in the summer, the roads through the park are closed to allow unfettered pedestrian access through the park.
Grenadier Pond is located at its western edge. Local legend states the pond was named after British soldiers, or Grenadiers, who fell through its frozen waters when crossing to defend the city in the War of 1812. Today, Grenadier Pond is renowned for its multiple species of bird and marsh wildlife.
Numerous buried rivers course within the park's boundaries. In 2003, city workers found strong evidence of the pre-glacial Laurentian River System when capping two artesian wells. The wells began spewing a plume of water, sand, shale and gravel 15 metres into the air. With this discovery, geologists have finally pinpointed the southern terminus of this ancient river system whose southerly flow begins near Georgian Bay. The watercourse, flowing 50 metres below the surface in pure bedrock, has remained undisturbed for thousands of years.
The "Dream in High Park" hosts outdoor Shakespearean plays during the summer, which are popular with Torontonians.
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The park includes several attractions, including a set of baseball diamonds, tennis courts, several playgrounds, hillside gardens, a zoo and a 'trackless train' - a tractor that tows two wagons decorated to look like a red and white train. High Park is also home of an outdoor municipal swimming bath complex that includes a splash pad.
High Park lends its name to the many residential areas that border it. Indian Road, Village by the Park, and Swansea can all be considered part of High Park. Only the areas immediately north of the park, along High Park Avenue, and west of the park, along High Park Boulevard, can claim no other name.