Yonge–Eglinton is a neighbourhood in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

, Ontario, Canada, at the intersection of

Yonge Street Yonge Street (; pronounced "young") is a major arterial route in the Canadian province of Ontario connecting the shores of Lake Ontario in Toronto to Lake Simcoe, a gateway to the Upper Great Lakes. Once the southernmost leg of provincial Hi ...

and

Eglinton Avenue Eglinton Avenue is a major east–west arterial thoroughfare in Toronto and Mississauga in the Canadian province of Ontario. The street begins at Highway 407 (but does not interchange with the tollway) at the western limits of Mississauga, as a ...

. It is central to the area of

Midtown Toronto Midtown is one of four central business districts outside the city's downtown core of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Located in the north of Old Toronto, its borders are roughly defined by St. Clair Avenue to the south and Eglinton Avenue or Lawr ...

, one of four

central business district A central business district (CBD) is the commercial and business centre of a city. It contains commercial space and offices, and in larger cities will often be described as a financial district. Geographically, it often coincides with the "city ...

s outside

Downtown Toronto Downtown Toronto is the main central business district of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Located entirely within the district of Old Toronto, it is approximately 16.6 square kilometres in area, bounded by Bloor Street to the northeast and Dupont Stre ...

. The

City of Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most pop ...

defines its boundaries as Briar Hill Avenue to the north,

to the east, Frobisher Avenue and a line in that direction west to Elmsthorpe Avenue, then north to

, east to

Avenue Road Avenue Road is a major north–south street in Toronto, Ontario. The road is a continuation of University Avenue, linked to it via Queen's Park and Queen's Park Crescent East and West to form a single through route.''Toronto Pocket Street Atla ...

and north to Briar Hill. According to a survey conducted in 2017 by ''

Toronto Life ''Toronto Life'' is a monthly magazine about entertainment, politics and life in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. ''Toronto Life'' also publishes a number of annual special interest guides about the city, including ''Real Estate'', ''Stylebook'', ''Eatin ...

'', it was the highest-ranked neighbourhood in

Greater Toronto The Greater Toronto Area, commonly referred to as the GTA, includes the City of Toronto and the regional municipalities of Durham, Halton, Peel, and York. In total, the region contains 25 urban, suburban, and rural municipalities. The Greater ...

in terms of housing, crime rate, transit, health, entertainment, people and employment. It is geographically central to the city of Toronto and surrounded by a number of the country's highly affluent neighbourhoods, including Forest Hill,

Lytton Park Lytton Park is a neighbourhood in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is located in the "North Toronto" municipality, within the former city of Toronto ( Old Toronto). The neighbourhood is centered on 'Lytton Park' (hence the name). Its boundaries includ ...

and Lawrence Park.

History

The neighbourhood was first settled by Europeans in the early nineteenth century, who founded the farming village of Eglinton. The area was part of the largest cattle grazing region in

Upper Canada The Province of Upper Canada (french: link=no, province du Haut-Canada) was a part of British Canada established in 1791 by the Kingdom of Great Britain, to govern the central third of the lands in British North America, formerly part of the ...

. The region was the first in North America to extend the use of cowbells to all cattle. Prior to this, it had been standard practice for a cowbell to be attached to only the best and leading piece of livestock."A Brief History of Toronto", ''Maclean's Magazine'', Dec. 1991, p43 To honour this proud and storied heritage, the

City of Toronto government The municipal government of Toronto ( incorporated as the City of Toronto) is the local government responsible for administering the city of Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a rec ...

named a local street "Cowbell Lane." In 1837, the

Battle of Montgomery's Tavern The Battle of Montgomery's Tavern was an incident during the Upper Canada Rebellion in December 1837. The abortive revolutionary insurrection, inspired by William Lyon Mackenzie, was crushed by British authorities and Canadian volunteer units ne ...

took place just north of the

and

intersection. In 1884 the

Metropolitan Street Railway The New York Railways Company operated street railways in Manhattan, New York City, United States between 1911 and 1925. The company went into receivership in 1919 and control was passed to the New York Railways Corporation in 1925 after which a ...

began operating a horse-drawn streetcar route on Yonge Street from

to the village. Rapid housing development soon followed. As the population grew the area was incorporated in 1890 into the town of

North Toronto North Toronto is a former town and informal district located in the northern part of the Old Toronto district in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Currently occupying a geographically central location within the city of Toronto, the Town of North Toronto ...

. North Toronto was then annexed to Toronto in 1912. In 1922, the

Yonge streetcar line Beginning operation in 1861, the Yonge streetcar line was the first streetcar line in Toronto and the first in Canada. It started off as a horsecar line and closed in 1954 operating two-unit trains of Peter Witt motors pulling a trailer. Under the ...

was extended north to replace the Metropolitan line passing Eglinton Avenue to terminate at Glen Echo Road. In 1954, the

Yonge subway Yonge is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Charles Duke Yonge (1812–1891), English historian and translator of Philo of Alexandria * Charles Maurice Yonge (1899–1986), British marine biologist * Charlotte Mary Yonge (1823� ...

line opened its first twelve stations with its north terminus at Eglinton and remained so until 1973 when the line was extended north to

York Mills York Mills is a neighbourhood in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is centred around Yonge Street and York Mills Road located in the district of North York. In 2010, it encompassed the fourth and seventh most affluent postal codes in Canada. It is re ...

Economy

A number of businesses have their corporate headquarters at the intersection, including

Canadian Tire Canadian Tire Corporation, Limited is a Canadian retail company which operates in the automotive, hardware, sports, leisure and housewares sectors. Its Canadian operations include: Canadian Tire (including Canadian Tire Petroleum gas stations a ...

TVOntario TVO Media Education Group (often abbreviated as TVO and stylized on-air as tvo) is a publicly funded English-language educational television network and media organization serving the Canadian province of Ontario. It is operated by the Ontario ...

and the

Heart and Stroke Foundation The Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada is a Canadian charity dedicated to advocacy, education, and the funding of research surrounding heart disease and stroke. Nomenclature In November 2016, the organization re-branded as ''Heart & Stro ...

of Ontario.

Canada Square Canada Square is a square at Canary Wharf, on the Isle of Dogs in London's Docklands. It is in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets in the East End of Central London along the River Thames. Canada Square is surrounded by three of the tall ...

is an office tower complex at the intersection holding other corporate offices.

References

External links

*
Yonge–Eglinton Neighbourhood Profile — City of Toronto
{{DEFAULTSORT:Yonge-Eglinton Neighbourhoods in Toronto Transit-oriented developments