Toronto Jewish History and Culture Walking Tour

More than just a recitation of facts gleaned from books or the internet, this tour goes behind the facades to talk about what went on in the buildings that we'll see, how the people who lived and worked in them dealt with one another and the larger, non-Jewish world. The tour guide lived in the area as a young man. He’s davened (prayed) in its synagogues, patronized its shops and restaurants, explored its past, lived some of its history, and even performed on some of its stages. He's a world class authority on Yiddish language and culture who has appeared on NBC’s Today show and NPR’s Fresh Air with Terry Gross.

Meeting Point

Art Gallery of Ontario

317 Dundas St W, Toronto, ON M5T 1G4, Canada

Outside the main entrance

What's included:

• Occasional Yiddish language instruction

What to expect:

Duration: 2 hours

Art Gallery of Ontario

317 Dundas St W, , Toronto, M5T 1G4

The early history of Toronto's Jewish community through mass immigration of the late 19th-early 20th century.

10 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included

136 Beverley St

136 Beverley St, Toronto, ON M5T 1Y5, Canada

Original character of the neighbourhood. Establishment of Jewish institutions, absorption of immigrants.

7 minutes

147 Beverley St

147 Beverley St, Toronto, ON M5T 1Y4, Canada

Government immigration policies, Jewish reaction to them.

3 minutes

70 D'Arcy St

70 D'Arcy St, Toronto, ON M5T 1K1, Canada

Formerly Eitz Chaim school. Colourful characters in the school's history.

4 minutes

186 Beverley St

186 Beverley St, Toronto, ON M5T 1L4, Canada

George Brown House. Some non-Jewish Canadian context. The Jewish history of the public school next door.

3 minutes

Baldwin Street

Baldwin St, Toronto, ON M5T, Canada

We'll learn some interesting details about the commercial history of the street as we walk through it to Henry St.

Pass by without stopping

23 Henry St

23 Henry St, Toronto, ON M5T 1W9, Canada

Holy Trinity Russian Orthodox Church, formerly the Henry Street synagogue. Synagogue architecture. Early synagogues and Toronto's first Jewish architects.

10 minutes

Cecil Street

Cecil St, Toronto, ON M5T, Canada

Rabbi of the Henry Street Synagogue.
206 and 207 Beverley: Introduction to Cecil Street as institutional hub of the older Jewish community.
24 Cecil Street: Labour Zionist HQ and school. Its later political history.
33-58 Cecil Street: An overview of the Jewish organizations and institutions once housed here.
Cecil Street Community Centre: The building's past as a synagogue and centre of traditional entertainment.

24 minutes

Spadina Avenue

Spadina Ave., Toronto, ON, Canada

Northbound from Cecil St to the El Mocambo: The less traditional side of the neighbourhood. Spadina Avenue cowboys of the 1930s and '40s.
Southbound, back to Cecil Street: Grossman's Tavern, commercial development on the street and the Spadina music scene.
Spadina Avenue, west side at Baldwin Street: How Kensington became a market.
Spadina, between Dundas and St. Andrew St: Yiddish theatre, delicatessens, dairy restaurants, and the history of the hat trick.

26 minutes

10 St Andrew St

10 St Andrew St, Toronto, ON M5T 1K6, Canada

The Minsker Synagogue. St. Andrew St. as the neighbourhood in miniature. Labour Lyceum across the street. History of the synagogue, the first in the kensington area

5 minutes