St. Michael's Cathedral Rectory

Photos by Alan L Brown - May, 2008

Here at 200 Church Street, just south of Dundas Street, is an historical plaque of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Toronto in the bushes out front. Here's what it says:

Formerly known as St. Michael's Palace, the Cathedral Rectory is the official residence of the Catholic Bishops and Archbishops of Toronto. In April 1845 work began on both the Cathedral and Rectory, which were designed in a Gothic vein by the distinguished architect, William Thomas (1799-1860). Consisting originally of a single two-storey structure facing Church Street, the Rectory was blessed by Michael Power, the first bishop of Toronto, on December 7, 1846. In 1852 Bishop de Charbonnel added the three-storey north wing to accommodate his fledgling St. Michael's College which in 1856 moved to its present site, "Clover Hill", adjacent to the University of Toronto. New rooms and a cloister were added at the south end of the Rectory to link it with St. John's Chapel, which Archbishop Walsh dedicated on June 7, 1891. Around the turn of the century a third storey was added to the original structure. in 1981 the Rectory, one of Toronto's oldest residences, was renovated and restored to enhance its original Victorian Gothic design. To mark the event this plaque was blessed and dedicated by His Eminence, G. Emmett Cardinal Carter, Archbishop of Toronto, on Sunday, March 28, 1982.

Plaque Location Co-ordinates: 43.655453 -79.377122

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Related Toronto plaque pages
St. Michael's Cathedral
St. Michael's College

More religious buildings

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Here are the comments for this page.

Posted March 15, 2009
I may be related to John Joseph Lynch. Do you know if he had a sister named Bridget that moved to Canada with her husband Dennis O'Connor?

Posted November 29, 2008
I am Irish and I have been doing some research into my family history having found an old trunk in my fathers house when he moved after 80years. The trunk belonged to John Joseph Lynch Archbishop of Toronto. It held his prayer books and some personal belongings. They would have been sent back to Ireland following his death on 12th May 1888. If anyone is interested I would be glad to follow this comment up with them.

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