BOOZE IN OLD TOWN TORONTO

A VIRTUAL MUSEUM OF CANADA COMMUNITY MEMORIES EXHIBIT

As the muddy town of York was struggling to become the metropolis of Toronto, booze was an important component of life, commerce, manufacturing and economics.  

A new virtual exhibit produced for the Virtual Museum of Canada by the Enoch Turner Schoolhouse Foundation tells the story of the main breweries and the enormous enterprise of the Gooderham and Worts Distillery located in Old Town Toronto.   

The exhibit presents 120 early photographs and illustrations of the places where booze was made along with the personalities behind those businesses. Included are images of the hotels and taverns where the early citizens enjoyed their tipple, some of the fascinating materials used to market the products and the efforts of the temperance movement to banish the evils of drink through prohibition.  Bringing the story into the present day, the exhibit illustrates the adaptive reuse of old booze-making sites in the Old Town.

The Enoch Turner Schoolhouse Foundation gratefully acknowledges the support of the Virtual Museum of Canada, the Ontario Heritage Trust, Civitas Cultural Resources, Informa  Market Research and the Gooderham and Worts Neighbourhood Association.