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Muddy York

@muddyyork.bsky.social

290 followers 28 following 350 posts

Toronto's #1 History Podcast. Our latest episode is about the history of the Toronto Zoo, that staple of elementary school field trips.

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Muddy York @muddyyork.bsky.social · Nov 12

Muddy York is Toronto's #1 history podcast. Tune in to learn more about the schemers and dreamers who created the city that we know today.

Spotify - open.spotify.com/show/2OWExab...

iTunes - podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/m...

Muddy York: A Toronto History Podcast

open.spotify.com

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Muddy York @muddyyork.bsky.social · 13h

On this date in 1923, a bank run took place at the Dominion Bank at Bathurst and Bloor. The Star reported that "a customer in the ward on being asked for identification before having a check cashed denounced that bank, thereby causing mistrust among those who heard him."

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Jeremy Hopkin @jeremyhopkin.bsky.social · 1d

King Street & Yonge Street, looking east from west of Yonge, Toronto. Image from a circa 1910 postcard.

Gift of Norm Attikin
Baldwin Collection of Canadiana, Toronto Public Library

#postcards #1910s #streetcar #trolley #streetscape #history #torontohistory #toronto #canada #jeremyhopkin

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Muddy York @muddyyork.bsky.social · 1d

On this date in 1873, the newly-formed Argonauts football team played their first game, losing 10-0 to the University of Toronto.

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Muddy York @muddyyork.bsky.social · 2d

And then there was the Domain Ride. In 1976, the zoo opened what was essentially a monorail through the Canadian Domain. Picture it: rubber tires gliding along elevated tracks, carrying visitors deep into the valley to see moose, bears, and bison in wide open spaces.

Muddy York @muddyyork.bsky.social · 2d

When the Toronto Zoo opened in August 1974, it was one of the largest zoos in the world at 710 acres. It also had features that most other zoos hadn’t considered, like a full-time nutritionist to monitor animal diets and a proper education branch to teach about conservation.

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Glyn Bowerman @glynbowerman.bsky.social · 7d

Feels like a good time to reshare this oral history of the SkyDome. It’s probably the thing I’m proudest about. I’d love if you read and share: amp.tvo.org/article/it-w...

“It works, Toronto!”: An oral history of the SkyDome | TVO Today

A World Series win. The first Raptors home game. The city’s landmark stadium has played host to memorable events in the last 30 years — but getting it built was a story in itself.

amp.tvo.org

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Muddy York @muddyyork.bsky.social · 3d

Hugh Crothers appeared on the scene during the 1960s. He was a corporate leader and decided that Toronto needed a world-class zoo - not rows of cages, but animals living in habitats that resembled their homes in the wild. In 1967, Council approved a site in the Rouge Valley.

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Muddy York @muddyyork.bsky.social · 3d

The Riverdale Zoo also had its own architectural showpiece: the Donnybrook. It was a two-storey Moorish-style building with arches and domes that looked like it had been dropped in from a Spanish postcard. More than just a fancy facade, the Donnybrook was the hub of the grounds.

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Muddy York @muddyyork.bsky.social · 4d

By 1902, the zoo had an elephant named Princess Rita. She would carry people around on her head and was paraded down Winchester Street at least once.

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Muddy York @muddyyork.bsky.social · 4d

Episodes are hosted on Spotify, but you can find them on most platforms. Let us know if there's somewhere we're missing.

Muddy York @muddyyork.bsky.social · 4d

Riverdale Zoo opened in 1888 when Alderman Daniel Lamb donated some deer to the city and then talked his well-connected friends into donating more animals. Pretty soon, it was a full-on menagerie: pheasants, monkeys, a Siberian bear, a camel, lions, even a hippopotamus.

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Muddy York @muddyyork.bsky.social · 5d

What is a zoo in Toronto’s eyes? Is it an animal sanctuary? A field trip factory? On this episode of Muddy York, we'll look at the history of the high-minded, chaotically managed mega-zoo that we know today as well as the Riverdale Zoo that came before it.
open.spotify.com/episode/5dfH...

Spotify – Web Player

open.spotify.com

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Shawn Micallef @shawnmicallef.bsky.social · 6d

TARMOLA. I think Tarmola would have been fun to visit. Suffered damage during hurricane hazel. Tarmola is where i climbed out of the valley just by the city limits at Humber Summit. 🚲

Tarmola, 1927 - 1968
Actual site: 1km N.E.)
This was the site of Tarmola, established in 1927 by the Finnish Society of Toronto as a summer retreat for Finnish workers and artisans. Volunteers built a large recreational complex here, including athletic facilities, an open-air dance pavilion and bandshell, a sauna, a restaurant, and rental cottages.
During the 1930's, at a time when there were few other comparable athletic fields, many Canadian Olympians trained at Tarmola. The site regularly hosted Finnish-Canadian cultural and athletic festivals. As many as 3000 people would attend performances featuring choirs and bands from across the country and track and field championships with athletes representing as many as 77 sports clubs from Salmon Arm, B.C. to Val D'Or, Quebec. The property was sold to the Metropolitan Toronto and Region Conservation Authority in 1968.

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Nate Hendley @natehendley.bsky.social · 6d

I am giving a presentation about 1950s-era Toronto bank robber Edwin Alonzo Boyd.

Where: Wychwood branch, Toronto Library

When: Oct 7 at 2 pm.

Free and open to the public.

Event info tinyurl.com/569r3ya2

My book at Amazon tinyurl.com/3pmav3j4 and Indigo tinyurl.com/y4bl4gv2

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Muddy York @muddyyork.bsky.social · 7d

On this date in 1985, the Blue Jays clinched their first AL East title with a 5-1 win over the Yankees.

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Muddy York @muddyyork.bsky.social · 8d

On this date in 1856, the cornerstone of University College was laid. The Governor-General would lay the final stone two years later.

Muddy York @muddyyork.bsky.social · 9d

On this date in 1875, the second Jubilee Riot took place when Catholic marchers were attacked with stones and pistol fire during a jubilee procession. The fighting lasted for six hours, but there were no fatalities. At that time, it was the largest riot in the history of Toronto.

Muddy York @muddyyork.bsky.social · 10d

On this date in 1901, graduating arts students and the engineering society presented U of T with a pair of French cannons recovered from Louisbourg harbour. The cannons can still be found on King's College Circle.

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Bob Georgiou @bobgeorgiouto.bsky.social · 11d

Came across this cool image of the Eaton's complex from 1919. Super neat. Those factories really stood out.

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Adam Bunch @adambunch.bsky.social · 12d

My most popular online course is back! And this time it's being offered through the LIFE Institute for students 50+.

We'll spend eight weekly lectures exploring the history of cross-border tensions.

Learn more: thelifeinstitute.ca

Toronto vs The United States: A History of Cross-Border Tensions. An online course about the times we haven't gotten along with our neighbours in eight weekly lectures from author Adam Bunch. Begins October 7, 2025. thelifeinstitute.ca

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Muddy York @muddyyork.bsky.social · 11d

On this date in 1853, the first daily edition of The Globe was published. Founded in 1844, it had previously been a weekly and then semi-weekly paper.

Reposted by Muddy York

Jeremy Hopkin @jeremyhopkin.bsky.social · 13d

The first test run of subway cars on the TTC took place 72 years ago today: September 29, 1953.

#OnThisDay #OTD #1950s #TTC #subway #transit #history #torontohistory #toronto #canada #jeremyhopkin

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Jamie Bradburn @jbcurio.bsky.social · 13d

NEW! For Toronto Today @torontotoday.ca I look at the rise of Nelvana, including its role in introducing an iconic Star Wars universe character. #TOHistory

www.torontotoday.ca/local/histor...

How a Toronto animation studio that once wowed George Lucas made it to the big leagues

After news broke this month that Corus is pausing production at Nelvana, historian Jamie Bradburn looks back at how the local company grew into an animation giant

www.torontotoday.ca

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Muddy York @muddyyork.bsky.social · 13d

Just a reminder that Muddy York has an account with Buy Me a Coffee. You can support our work here:
buymeacoffee.com/muddyyork

Every donation brings us closer to buying our own island in French Polynesia.

Muddy York

Muddy York is Toronto's #1 history podcast. Tune in to learn more about the schemers and dreamers who created the city that we know today.

buymeacoffee.com

Muddy York @muddyyork.bsky.social · 14d

On this date in 1907, Knapp's Roller Boat, a bizarre ship designed to rotate its outer hull like a paddle wheel, snapped its moorings and struck the lake steamer Turbina. The roller boat had to be sold for scrap to pay for the damage to the other ship.

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