Toronto's Historical Plaques
Learn a little of Toronto's history as told through its plaques.
St. James' Cathedral
There are two plaques in Toronto about St. James' Cathedral.
You will find both of them on this page.
Here on the north-east corner of Church Street and King Street East stands one of the great cathedrals in Toronto. An Ontario Archaeological and Historic Sites Board plaque in front of the church says this:
York's first church was built here in 1803-07 with the aid of public subscriptions and a government grant. That frame building was enlarged in 1818-19 and replaced by a larger one in 1831. The first incumbent was the Rev. George Okill Stuart, who served from 1800 to 1812 when he was succeeded by the Rev. John Strachan, later first bishop of Toronto. The second church was burnt in 1839. Toronto's first cathedral was then erected on this site but was destroyed in the great fire of 1849. The present cathedral was begun in 1850, opened for divine service in 1853, and completed in 1874.
Location Co-ordinates: 43.650163 -79.373930
Photo by Alan L Brown - March 2004
A 1997 Heritage Toronto plaque on the lawn says this:
In 1796 the first Anglican priest arrived from England to minister to the citizens of York. The following year the Province set aside this piece of land for the building of a church. The present Cathedral, the fourth church erected on this site, opened in 1853, replacing the previous structure destroyed in the Great Fire of 1849. The first Bishop of Toronto, the Right Reverend John Strachan, along with a number of his parishioners, played an important role in the early development of the city and province. Over the years, the cathedral, the Mother Church for Anglicans in the diocese of Toronto, has been a place of worship, prayer and outreach in the heart of a busy community.
Photo by Alan L Brown - September 2006
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