Wellington Place Condos and Real Estate Toronto

Named for the English General who defeated Napoleon, Wellington Place began life in the late 1700s as the infant Town of York’s “Military Reserve” — a broad area, kept clear of buildings to allow the guns of Fort York a clear field of fire. Other than a small military cemetery surrounded by a picket fence, the land remained empty until 1833.

Then, needing funds for a new military base west of the Fort, the Lieutenant-Governor authorized an auction of lots to private owners. At the (then) substantial price of £500 and £600, eight large Front Street lots were sold. Other auctions soon followed. By 1836, with the exception of six acres surrounding the cemetery, most of the present-day neighbourhood was privately owned.

The name Wellington Place first appears in a development plan prepared in the 1830s. At that time, it referred to a proposed boulevard along what is now Wellington Street West, between Portland and Spadina; however, today’s Wellington Place takes in the neighbourhood bordered north and south by King and Front streets, and east and west by Bathurst and Spadina.

A number of grand homes were built in the neighbourhood but, by the end of the 19th century, a process of industrialization had begun — soon to be accelerated by businesses forced to relocate from the downtown core after the Great Fire of l904.

The area remained primarily a manufacturing centre throughout the 1900s, but now the pendulum has swung back — with factories and their parking lots being replaced by new apartment and condominium buildings. The new wave of investment and change is happening at a rapid pace, and historic Wellington Place is quickly gaining popularity as an attractive place to live in the city.

As the new wave rolls in and the old industrial buildings disappear, a pocket of the original residential neighbourhood remains on Draper Street, with Empire-style cottages dating to 1881-82, and some larger homes built between 1886 and 1889.

For current information on available listings for Wellington Place homes and real estate, please see the column at the right of this page. Listings are updated daily, so we recommend that you bookmark this page and check back frequently