Do You Know How Cabbagetown Got its Interesting Name?

Originally considered Toronto’s “skid row,” Cabbagetown has evolved into a “living museum” featuring some of Toronto’s most well-preserved Victorian homes, the manicured St. James Cemetery, Riverdale Farm, and a number of interesting community events including an annual international short film festival. Today, Cabbagetown is considered to be the neighbourhood that lies below Bloor Street, above James Street, to the west of Don River and to the east of Sherbourne Street. However, these fluid borders have evolved dramatically throughout the city’s history and the original Cabbagetown actually encompassed several neighbourhoods including Moss Park, Regent Park, St. Jamestown, and Trefann Court. Throughout its history, Cabbagetown has been home to a range of residents including important political figures, immigrants, and social activists - each group putting their own stamp on the inner-city neighbourhood and redefining its borders.

John Graves Simcoe's "Castle Frank" - pen and ink drawing - 1820 - via torontopubliclibrary.ca

1800s: Immigrant Landing Pad

The neighbourhood we know as Cabbagetown today was originally known as the village of Don Vale. This quaint suburb sat just outside the borders of the City of Toronto and was home to small farm plots, the Don Vale Tavern, the Fox’s Inn, Lamb’s Glue Factory, and Toronto’s oldest cemetery, the Necropolis. The neighbourhood was also originally the site of Upper Canada Lieutenant Governor John Graves Simcoe’s summer camp and was later the site of the original Toronto General Hospital.

William Lyon Mackenzie gravestone in Necropolis Cemetery - 1922 - via torontopubliclibrary.ca

By the end of the 1800s, Cabbagetown was officially incorporated into Toronto, and evolved into a landing site for working class Irish, Polish, and Macedonian immigrants, many of which were employed in the industries cropping up along the city’s lakeshore. The name “Cabbagetown” is said to have been inspired by the neighbourhood's immigrant population. After fleeing famine and arriving in Toronto with little money in their pockets, many families dug up their front yards and planted cabbage to put food on the table. The epithet was popularized by Toronto’s prosperous British residents who were offended by these front-yard gardens.

Toronto General Hospital - 1900 - via torontopubliclibrary.ca

During the neighbourhood’s beginnings, Cabbagetown referred to the area south of Gerrard Street, while the neighbourhood above Gerrard was still referred to as Don Vale. It was at this time that the primarily working-class neighbourhood entered a period of prosperity lasting until World War I. Many of these settlers began building the brick Victorian-style houses that the neighbourhood is known for today.

Queen and Church, showing Don Station on the left - 1907 - via torontopubliclibrary.ca

1900s: Toronto’s Largest Slum

After the First World War, the neighbourhood received another wave of immigration and a number of poor residents settled in Cabbagetown. The area became increasingly impoverished and soon became known as one of Toronto’s largest slums. The area’s trademark Victorian brick houses began to deteriorate, and in the 1950s a large portion of the original neighbourhood was cleared to make way for the Regent Park housing project.

Queen and Church - 1910 - via torontopubliclibrary.ca

In the late 1960s, Trefann Court was scheduled to be demolished to create a series of high-rise housing projects. The city had plans to expropriate the homes and intended to evict over 1,500 residents from the neighbourhood. John Sewell (later the mayor of Toronto from 1978-1980) joined forces with the Trefann Court Urban Renewal Area and led the fight against the levelling of the working class and poor neighbourhoods. Due to Sewell’s efforts and widespread opposition, the city eventually abandoned its plans to raze Trefann Court.

Looking northeast on Parliament Street - 1954 - via torontopubliclibrary.ca

Later, Sewell was also influential in preserving Toronto’s landscape in his efforts opposing the building of the Spadina Expressway. In Cabbagetown, local opposition also prevented the demolition of several Victorian mansions in order to make way for a Don Valley Parkway exit. Together, these events initiated a change in Toronto urban planning in the early 1970s.

Berkeley Street - 1973 - via torontopubliclibrary.ca

1970s: Urban Renewal

As Toronto’s approach to urban planning shifted, so did the character of Cabbagetown. Young professionals began to move in and restore Victorian row houses, many following in the footsteps of Sewell and becoming activists for the neighbourhood and its historical homes. Resident, local businessman, and real estate agent Darrell Kent played a crucial role in restoring many of the the neighbourhood’s Victorian homes. Kent identified as gay and was also responsible for making Cabbagetown one of the first “queer-friendly neighbourhoods” in Toronto. The earliest gentrifiers hailed from Toronto’s gay community and these pioneers are responsible for helping Cabbagetown transition from Toronto’s seediest neighbourhood to a flourishing and vibrant heritage community.

BILD Walking Tour in the east end

2000s: Heritage District

Today, Cabbagetown is home to the “largest continuous area of preserved Victorian homes in North America” according to the Cabbagetown Preservation Association. Many of the homes in the neighbourhood have been restored, and Cabbagetown is an official Heritage Conservation District and protected by municipal bylaw. The neighbourhood’s variety of architectural styles, Victorian streetscapes, heritage cemeteries, and the Riverdale Farm make the area a “living museum.” The Cabbagetown People project also aims to preserve the social history of the inner-city neighbourhood and recognizes the residents that have been influential in the area’s history.

Cabbagetown is now home to a number of annual festivals and community events. The annual Cabbagetown Festival is held the second weekend every September and features a parade, arts and craft fair, tours of historical homes, and the Cabbagetown Short Film & Video Festival.

Demolition in Regent Park

Additionally, Regent Park is now undergoing its own revitalization phase, driven primarily by The Daniels Corporation. Like the pioneers who worked to make today’s Cabbagetown a thriving community, Daniels has been working with the community and funding programs to help revitalize the neighbouring Regent Park.

Last year, Daniels worked with TD, who donated $250,000 to the CCL&D to improve the now-named TD Centre for Learning, funding a financial literacy program to help Regent Park residents learn how to manage money and save for a new home. Daniels is also responsible for First Home BOOST, a down payment program for first-time homebuyers that offers interest-free loans to reduce monthly carrying costs. President Mitchell Cohen even co-wrote an original theatrical production, “The Journey: A History of the Regent Park Revitalization,” to raise awareness and discuss the neighbourhood’s history.

The Bartholomew in Regent Park by Daniels

Daniels’ North tower of One Park Place is already occupied, while the South Tower is nearly complete. In January, Daniels also announced The Bartholomew, a variety of condo suites and 30 townhomes just steps from the neighbourhood's new Aquatic Centre. Just as today’s Cabbagetown has been undergoing a major gentrification since the 1970s, Regent Park now begins its period of revitalization, adding yet another chapter to the long history of the neighbourhood.