Winchester Hotel

Building in Parliament Street, Toronto

Winchester Hotel

Building shown in 2007.

General information
Architectural style| Second Empire (exterior), Art Moderne (interior)
Address| 531 Parliament Street, Toronto
Year(s) built| 1880, 1888
Renovated| 1941
Technical details
Material| red brick
Floor count| 3½-storey Winchester Hotel with 2½-storey south wing
Design and construction
Architect(s)| Thomas Kennedy (1880 building), Benjamin Swartz (1941 alterations)
Architecture firm| Kennedy and Holland (initial building)

Ontario Heritage Act

Official name| 531 Parliament St
Designated| 1995

The  Winchester Hotel  is a preserved commercial building, located at 531 Parliament Street, in Cabbagetown, Toronto. The former hotel building was listed as a heritage building by the city in 1975 and was designated under Part IV of the Ontario Heritage Act in 1995.[1]

It was one of the five or six major hotels in Toronto when it was built, until the King Edward Hotel opened in 1903.[2]

The building was designed by architect Thomas Kennedy in the 1880s. It was known for having a dome on the roof, with a flagpole "that was visible throughout the city" [3]

Plans to bring a Tim Hortons to the site in 2005 caused consternation among local residents and heritage activists. [3]

## Heritage details

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The building currently known as the Winchester Hotel opened in the 1880s as the Lakeview Hotel. It once had a lantern mounted atop a cupola on the roof, that was removed, either in 1941 when it was given an Art Moderne facelift, or in 1954 (sources are unsure). A replica was added in 2021, using the same architectural firm that was renovating Massey Hall at the time.[4] Its listing on the Canadian Register of Historic Places notes: "The imposing 3½-storey red brick Winchester Hotel with a 2½-storey red brick south wing, and the adjoining two-storey red brick Winchester Hall are located on the southeast corner of Parliament Street and Winchester Street in the Toronto neighbourhood of Cabbagetown.” [5]

## References

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1. ^ City of Toronto. 531 PARLIAMENT ST (Technical report).
2. ^ Filey, Mike (2004). Toronto Sketches 8: The Way We Were. Dundurn. ISBN 1-55002-527-9.
3. ^ a b Shulgan, Christopher (May 16, 2005). "Winchester Hotel battle brews". Globe and Mail. Retrieved April 3, 2024.
4. ^ Leblanc, Dave (January 19, 2021). "A heritage building gets a proper capping off". Globe and Mail. Retrieved 2023-08-14.
5. ^ "Winchester Hotel and Winchester Hall". HistoricPlaces.ca. Retrieved 2023-08-14.