Designation Under Part IV of the Ontario Heritage Act -
1643 Yonge Street (Massey Mausoleum,
Mount Pleasant Cemetery) (Midtown)
The Toronto Community Council recommends the adoption of the following
report (December 16, 1999) from the Managing Director, Toronto Historical
Board:
Purpose:
This report recommends that the portion of the property at 1643 Yonge
Street containing the Massey Mausoleum be designated under Part IV
of the Ontario Heritage Act.
Financial Implications and Impact Statement:
None.
Recommendations:
It is recommended that:
(1) the portion of the property at 1643 Yonge Street containing the
Massey Mausoleum be designated under Part IV of the Ontario
Heritage Act.
(2) the appropriate City Officials be authorized and directed to take the
necessary action to give effect thereto.
Background:
At its meeting of December 8, 1999, the Board of Heritage Toronto had
before it the attached report and adopted the recommendations listed
above.
In a letter dated August 23, 1999, the Vice-Chair of the Massey
Foundation requested that the Massey Mausoleum in Mount Pleasant
Cemetery be designated under Part IV of the Ontario Heritage Act. The
designation of the property will assist the Foundation with their
fundraising efforts to help restore the mausoleum.
Councillor John Adams sent a letter supporting the designation. The
property was included on the City of Toronto Inventory of Heritage
Properties on August 18, 1976.
Comments:
Short Statement of Reasons for Designation
Massey Mausoleum
Mount Pleasant Cemetery
1643 Yonge Street
The property at 1643 Yonge Street containing the Massey Mausoleum is designated for
historical and architectural reasons. The Massey Mausoleum was constructed in 1890-1894
according to the designs of Toronto architect E. J. Lennox. Hart Almerin Massey, president
of the Massey Manufacturing Company, commissioned the structure as a memorial to, and the
final resting-place for, two of his sons. Other family members are interred in the mausoleum
and the surrounding plot.
The Massey Mausoleum is designed in the Romanesque Revival style. Set on a limestone base,
the building has a basilican plan with a two-storey nave, single-storey porch, side aisles and
apse, and mock stair tower. Combinations of rough textured and smooth blocks of granite are
used for cladding, roofs, window detailing, and intricate ornament. The paired bronze doors
with grilles, the stained and leaded glass windows, and the sculpted statue symbolizing Hope
are important features. Significant interior elements are the vaulted ceiling, marble finishes,
portal and east-end altar, mosaic tile floor with bronze grille, and circular stairs and crypt
(now altered).
The Massey Mausoleum is located in Plot #116 on a elevated triangular site in the west section
of Mount Pleasant Cemetery. For the purposes of designation, the boundaries of the property
are established by a limit of one metre around the structure. Commissioned by one of the
City's leading industrialists and philanthropists, the Massey Mausoleum is a visible reminder
of the role of the Massey family in the development of Toronto. It is an excellent example of
Romanesque Revival design interpreted by a significant Toronto architect. The Massey
Mausoleum is a landmark in Mount Pleasant Cemetery, a landscaped garden cemetery known
throughout North America for its collection of trees.
Conclusions:
Heritage Toronto recommends that City Council designate the property at 1643 Yonge Street
(Massey Mausoleum, Mount Pleasant Cemetery) under Part IV of the Ontario Heritage Act.
Contact:
Kathryn Anderson
Preservation Officer, History
Heritage Toronto
Telephone 392-6827 ext. 239; Fax 392-6834
E-mail: KathrynHAnderson@toronto.city.on.ca
_________
(Communication (December 2, 1999) from
the Managing Director, Toronto Historical Board)
Recommendation
1. That City Council state its intention to designate the property at 1643 Yonge Street
(Mausoleum, Mount Pleasant Cemetery) pursuant to Part IV of the Ontario Heritage Act
to be of architectural and historical value.
2. That the appropriate officials be authorized to take whatever action is necessary to give
effect hereto.
Comments
1. Background:
In a letter dated August 23, 1999, the Vice-Chair of the Massey Foundation requested that the
Massey Mausoleum in Mount Pleasant Cemetery be designated under Part IV of the Ontario
Heritage Act. The designation of the property will assist the Foundation with their fundraising
efforts to help restore the mausoleum.
Councillor John Adams sent a letter supporting the request for designation dated September
28, 1999. The property was included on the City of Toronto Inventory of Heritage Properties
on August 18, 1976.
A Short Statement of Reasons for Designation, intended for publication, follows. A Heritage
Property Report (Long Statement of Reasons for Designation), including visuals, is attached.
Both documents constitute the Reasons for Designation.
2. Short Statement of Reasons for Designation:
Massey Mausoleum
Mount Pleasant Cemetery
1643 Yonge Street
The property at 1643 Yonge Street containing the Massey Mausoleum is designated for
historical and architectural reasons. The Massey Mausoleum was constructed in 1890-1894
according to the designs of Toronto architect E. J. Lennox. Hart Almerin Massey, president
of the Massey Manufacturing Company, commissioned the structure as a memorial to, and the
final resting-place for, two of his sons. Other family members are interred in the mausoleum
and the surrounding plot.
The Massey Mausoleum is designed in the Romanesque Revival style. Set on a limestone base,
the building has a basilican plan with a two-storey nave, single-storey porch, side aisles and
apse, and mock stair tower. Combinations of rough textured and smooth blocks of granite are
used for cladding, roofs, window detailing, and intricate ornament. The paired bronze doors
with grilles, the stained and leaded glass windows, and the sculpted statue symbolizing Hope
are important features. Significant interior elements are the vaulted ceiling, marble finishes,
portal and east-end altar, mosaic tile floor with bronze grille, and circular stairs and crypt
(now altered).
The Massey Mausoleum is located in Plot #116 on a elevated triangular site in the west section
of Mount Pleasant Cemetery. For the purposes of designation, the boundaries of the property
are established by a limit of one metre around the structure. Commissioned by one of the
City's leading industrialists and philanthropists, the Massey Mausoleum is a visible reminder
of the role of the Massey family in the development of Toronto. It is an excellent example of
Romanesque Revival design interpreted by a significant Toronto architect. The Massey
Mausoleum is a landmark in Mount Pleasant Cemetery, a landscaped garden cemetery known
throughout North America for its collection of trees.
_________
(Heritage Property Report - 1643 Yonge Street: Massey Mausoleum)
This report comprises the "Long Statement of Reasons for Designation" under Part IV of the
Ontario Heritage Act for the property at 1643 Yonge Street (Massey Mausoleum). It contains
Basic Building Data, as well as sections on Historical Development, Architectural Description,
Context, Summary and Sources. Location Map and Photographs are included, and the "Short
Statement of Reasons for Designation" (intended for publication) is appended.
Basic Building Data:
Address: 1643 Yonge Street (Plot #116, Mount Pleasant Cemetery; cemetery located on
east side of Yonge Street, north of St. Clair Avenue West)
Ward: 23 (Midtown)
Current Name: Massey Mausoleum
Historical Name: Massey Mausoleum
Construction Date: 1890-1894
Architect: E. J. Lennox
Contractor/Builder: Holbrook and Mollington, stone carvers
Additions/Alterations: 1967: crypt filled in; 1987, apse windows repaired;
1999: exterior repaired
Original Owner: Hart Massey, manufacturer
Original Use: Funerary (mausoleum)
Current Use*: Funerary (mausoleum); * this does not refer to
permitted
use(s) as defined in the Zoning By-law
Heritage Category: Landmark Heritage Property (Category A)
Recording Date and Recorder: November 1999/KA
Historical Background:
Mount Pleasant Cemetery:
During the surveying of Yonge Street that began in 1794, 200-acre farm lots were laid out on
either side of the road north of Bloor Street. East of Yonge, the lots were laid out parallel to
the Third Concession Road (St. Clair Avenue) and extended east to present day Bayview
Avenue. A fledgling community developed at the crossroads formed by Yonge Street and St.
Clair Avenue. On mid-19th century maps, the area was marked "Deer Park" in recognition
of the Heath Farm at the northwest corner of the intersection where deer were purported to
wander. With the growth of the City of Toronto and improvements to Yonge Street, most of
the land on either side of the thoroughfare was subdivided into building lots. An exception was
Lot 19, north of the Yonge and St. Clair corners, which remained undivided under the
ownership of the Cawthra family. In 1873, trustees of the Toronto General Burying Ground
purchased Lot 19 as the location of Mount Pleasant Cemetery. It remains the only intact 200-acre lot to survive in the former City of Toronto.
The first non-sectarian cemetery in York (Toronto) opened in 1826 on a six-acre site near the
northwest corner of Yonge and Bloor Streets. Officially named the York Burying Ground, but
better known as Potter's Field Cemetery or the Strangers Burial Ground, the cemetery
contained 6000 burials by the mid 19th century. With the continuing growth of the city, and the
need for burial grounds removed from the urban core, the non-profit Toronto General Burial
Ground Trust (later the Toronto Trust Cemeteries and now Commemorative Services of
Ontario) was established to development new cemeteries. Most of the remains from Potter's
Field were reinterred at the Necropolis, a 15-acre cemetery opened by the Trust in 1850.
Unidentified remains were moved to Mount Pleasant Cemetery following its opening in 1876.
In 1874, Henry A. Engelhardt designed the new cemetery, originally encompassing the 53 acres
closest to Yonge Street. Trained as a civil engineer in his native Germany, Engelhardt became
a landscape architect who laid out parks and cemeteries throughout North America, including
the initial plans for High Park. The design of the cemetery as a park-like space with walks,
drives, fences and natural lakes was inspired by the garden cemetery movement and in
particular, Mount Auburn Cemetery in Boston. Trees, shrubs and gardens were meticulously
added and, today, Mount Pleasant has one of the most important collections of trees in North
America, combining indigenous and non-indigenous species.
The first burial at Mount Pleasant Cemetery occurred in March, 1876, prior to the official
opening in November, 1876. Scientist Sir Frederick Banting, Prime Minister William Lyon
Mackenzie King and pianist Glenn Gould are among the noteworthy people buried in the
cemetery where interments number 168,000. Following the annexation of the Deer Park
neighbourhood in 1908, the City of Toronto absorbed Mount Pleasant Cemetery on June 27,
1914.
Massey Mausoleum:
Industrialist and philanthropist Hart Alberin Massey (1823-1896) commissioned the Massey
Mausoleum. In 1851, Massey took over the management of his father's foundry and machine
shop in Newcastle, Canada West (now Ontario). Following its incorporation as the Massey
Manufacturing Company in 1870, the firm relocated to Toronto in 1879, producing
agricultural implements on a six-acre site on King Street West near Strachan Avenue. The
company grew through a series of mergers, including one with its chief rival, the A. Harris,
Son and Company in 1891. Hart Massey served as the president of the renamed Massey-Harris Company (it became Massey-Ferguson in 1958 and was absorbed by the Varity
Corporation in 1987). By the close of the 19th century, Massey-Harris employed hundreds and
was the largest producer and exporter of its type in the British Empire.
Hart Massey acquired his plot in Mount Pleasant Cemetery in the early 1880s. Plans for the
Massey Mausoleum followed the untimely deaths of his eldest and youngest sons, Charles
Albert Massey (1848-1884) and Fred Victor Massey (1866-1890). The mausoleum was
completed in 1894, along with two other memorials to his children: the Massey Music Hall and
the Fred Victor Mission. In addition to Hart Massey and the sons who predeceased him, eight
Massey family members and close associates are interred in the Mausoleum. Hart Massey's
only daughter, Lillian Massey Treble (1854-1915) is remembered for funding the University
of Toronto's Household Sciences Building. Chester Daniel Massey (1850-1926) was the last
surviving son and the administrator of Hart Massey's will. In 1918, Chester Massey oversaw
the creation of the Massey Foundation, whose philanthropic endeavours included the funding
of Hart House and Massey College at the University of Toronto (the latter sites are included
on the City of Toronto Inventory of Heritage Properties). Other members of the Massey family
are buried in the triangle of land surrounding the Mausoleum, including Hart Massey's third
son, Walter Edward Hart Massey (1864-1901), who served as the president of the Massey-Harris Company prior to his death. The Massey Foundation maintains the Massey
Mausoleum.
Hart Massey engaged Toronto architect Edward James Lennox (1854-1933) to design the
Massey Mausoleum. Following an apprenticeship with architect William Irving, E. J. Lennox
formed a short-lived partnership with Frederick McCaw. During this interval, Lennox and
McCaw won a competition for their plan for Queen's Park, a project that was never realized
but is an indication of the architect's familiarity with park design. Beginning in 1881, Lennox
embarked on a solo practice that was one of the largest in Canada by 1885. While he closed
his firm in 1917, Lennox's interest in the field remained intent and, in 1931, he received
accreditation as a certified architect.
Lennox's association with the Massey family began in 1883 when he was awarded the
commission for the Massey Manufacturing Company's head office building at 915 King Street
West. At the same time, he devised the plans for a residence for Charles Massey at 519 Jarvis
Street. Charles Massey died prior to the completion of the house. It was acquired by his
brother, Chester, who raised his two sons there: Raymond Massey, the famed Hollywood
actor, and Vincent Massey, Canada's first native-born Governor General. Beginning in 1886,
Lennox was occupied with the design and construction of Toronto's Third City Hall (now
known as Old City Hall) on Queen Street West. During this critical period in his career, the
buildings of American architect Henry Hobbs Richardson, whose interpretations of
Romanesque architecture became known across North America, influenced Lennox.
Romanesque arches and decorative detailing marked Lennox's subsequent commissions
through the end of the 19th century. His remaining projects for the Massey family, the Fred
Victor Mission at Queen and Jarvis Streets (now demolished) and the Massey Mausoleum,
bear the hallmarks of the style. The extant buildings are listed on the Inventory of Heritage
Properties.
Correspondence between the architect and his client indicates that Hart Massey took an active
interest in the plans for the mausoleum (Litvak, 38). Lennox consulted Massey on his decision
to replace the simple Classical urn planned for the top of the structure with a sculpted figure
evoking Christian symbolism. This detailing, combined with the church-like appearance of
the structure, reflects Massey's position as one of the leading Methodists in Toronto society.
The Massey Mausoleum is one of 20 family mausoleums (seven of which are partially
entombed) located in the west half of Mount Pleasant Cemetery. Classical temples inspired
most of the designs. The Massey Mausoleum stands out among them as the largest and the
most impressive of the two displaying Romanesque Revival styling.
Architectural Description:
The Massey Mausoleum is designed in the Romanesque Revival style identified by the use of
round arches, heavy stone finishes and elaborate detailing drawn from the architecture of the
10th through the 12th centuries. Resting on a limestone foundation, there are ventilation grilles
at grade. Combinations of rock faced and smooth blocks of granite are used for the walls,
roofs, window detailing and carved decorations of the structure. The compressed basilican
form is based on Romanesque church architecture. The plan features a central two-storey
nave with a stepped roof. Flanking the nave are short single-storey side aisles (north and
south) beneath stepped gable roofs with conical tops. A shallow single-storey porch on the
principal (west) façade contains the entrance. On the rear (east) wall, the building has a semi-circular shaped apse protected by a conical stone roof with a dentilled cornice. A rounded
false stair tower is asymmetrically positioned on the right (south) side of the entrance.
On the principal façade, four steps lead from the base of the mausoleum to the entrance. A
pair of heavy bronze doors contains grilles with intricate patterns, panels with the letter "M",
and hardware. The entrance is protected by a stepped roof, flanked by banded columns, and
surmounted by a name band marked "MASSEY". The stair tower places a carved panel next
to a single opening containing a multi-coloured stained glass window with floral motifs.
Above, a round-arched arcade contains textured leaded glass windows in geometric patterns.
Each side aisle displays a large round-arched opening with voussoirs. The opening holds a
three-part window that is divided by columns beneath a transom with roundels. The upper
part of the apse has an arcade of small flat-headed openings, divided by single, pairs and trios
of columns and containing five multi-coloured stained glass windows with floral and leaf
patterns. A horizontal band course divides the two-storey nave into roughly textured and
smoothly finished parts. The corners of the upper wall display rounded buttresses that
complement the shape of the columns and stair tower. On all four walls, the clerestorey
contains a trio of round-arched openings. The windows hold leaded glass in a pattern of
intricate interwoven circles with highly faceted jewels and roundels. Two of the windows
include horizontal hinged ventilators for air circulation. A lantern surmounts the roof of the
nave. It creates a base for a nine-foot-high figure symbolizing Hope. The anchor placed in the
right hand of the figure can be interpreted as the symbol of the peaceful haven awaiting after
the journey of life, or as the "anchor" of the Christian faith that remains unchallenged by
death. The important Toronto sculptors, Holbrook and Mollington, carved the figure and the
other detailing on the mausoleum. Their practice included noted Toronto landmarks such as
the Bank of Montreal Building (now the Hockey Hall of Fame), the Ontario Legislative
Building, and the George Gooderham House (now the York Club), all of which are included
on the Inventory of Heritage Properties.
The interior rises two stories beneath a vaulted stone ceiling. A coloured mosaic tile floor
contains a cast bronze grille. Beneath the grille, circular stairs lead down to the crypt with
space for 15 interments. The area under the floor was filled in with concrete in 1967 (this is
considered a reversible alteration). On either side of the nave, loculi with marble facings
contain eight spaces for interments. The apse is entered through a round-arched portal
supported on columns. At the east end, an altar is raised three steps.
Context:
The Massey Mausoleum is located in Plot #116 at Mount Pleasant Cemetery. For the
purposes of designation, the boundaries of the property are the structure are established by
a limit of one metre around the exterior walls of the structure.
The ravine setting at the west end of Mount Pleasant Cemetery incorporates several rises of
land. The Massey Mausoleum is elevated on a triangular-shaped parcel surrounded by
roadways. With the height of the structure and its raised setting, the mausoleum is visible
from many vantage-points within the cemetery and dominates the monuments in its vicinity.
The Massey Mausoleum is one of the three family mausoleums included on the Inventory of
Heritage Properties in 1976. Dating to 1894, the Northrup-Gooderham Tomb and the French
Tomb are built into the hillside in Section T near Yonge Street. The Mausoleum, a building
containing chapels, a crematorium, and niches and crypts for interments, is located along the
south side of the property off Inglewood Avenue. Designed by architects Darling and Pearson
and completed in 1920, it is also identified on the Inventory of Heritage Properties.
Summary:
The Massey Mausoleum was constructed for the Masseys, one of the most influential families
in the industrial development and philanthropic history of Toronto. It was built in1890-1894
according to the designs of E. J. Lennox, the most prolific Toronto architect at the end of the
19th century. The Massey Mausoleum is the largest and most visible mausoleum located in
Mount Pleasant Cemetery, a landscaped garden cemetery noted for its size, design, and
collection of trees.
Sources:
Dendy, William, and William Kilbourn. Toronto Observed. Toronto: Oxford University,
1986.
E.R.A. Architect Inc. "Report on the condition of the Massey Mausoleum, Mount Pleasant
Cemetery, Toronto." September 1998.
Filey, Mike. Mount Pleasant Cemetery. Toronto: Firefly Books, 1990.
Kinsella, Joan C. Historical Walking Tour of Deer Park. Toronto: Toronto Public Library
Board, 1996.
Lindsey, Joseph. "Hart Almerin Massey". Entry in The Canadian Encyclopedia. 2nd ed. Vol.
II. Edmonton: Hurtig Publishers, 1988.
Litvak, Marilyn. E. J. Lennox. Toronto: Boston Mills Press, 1995.
Lundell, Liz. The Estates of Old Toronto. Erin, Ont.: Boston Mills Press, 1997.
McKelvey, Merilyn, and Margaret McKelvey. Toronto Carved in Stone. Toronto: Fitzhenry
and Whiteside, 1984.
Newman, Peter C. Debrett's Illustrated Guide to the Canadian Establishment. Agincourt,
Ont.: Methuen Publications, 1983.
Ramsay, Heather. "Mount Pleasant Cemetery Walk." Toronto: North Toronto Historical
Society, 1986.
"The Massey Mystique". Weekend Magazine (16 June 1979) 11-16.
_________
(Attachment I: "Short Statement of Reasons for Designation")
The property at 1643 Yonge Street containing the Massey Mausoleum is designated for
historical and architectural reasons. The Massey Mausoleum was constructed in 1890-1894
according to the designs of Toronto architect E. J. Lennox. Hart Almerin Massey, president
of the Massey Manufacturing Company, commissioned the structure as a memorial to, and the
final resting-place for, two of his sons. Other family members are interred in the mausoleum
and the surrounding plot.
The Massey Mausoleum is designed in the Romanesque Revival style. Set on a limestone base,
the building has a basilican plan with a two-storey nave, single-storey porch, side aisles and
apse, and mock stair tower. Combinations of rough textured and smooth blocks of granite are
used for cladding, roofs, window detailing, and intricate ornament. The paired bronze doors
with grilles, the stained and leaded glass windows, and the sculpted statue symbolizing Hope
are important features. Significant interior elements are the vaulted ceiling, marble finishes,
portal and east-end altar, mosaic tile floor with bronze grille, and circular stairs and crypt
(now altered).
The Massey Mausoleum is located in Plot #116 on an elevated triangular site in the west
section of Mount Pleasant Cemetery. For the purposes of designation, the boundaries of the
property are established by a limit of one metre around the structure. Commissioned by one
of the City's leading industrialists and philanthropists, the Massey Mausoleum is a visible
reminder of the role of the Massey family in the development of Toronto. It is an excellent
example of Romanesque Revival design interpreted by a significant Toronto architect. The
Massey Mausoleum is a landmark in Mount Pleasant Cemetery, a landscaped garden cemetery
known throughout North America for its collection of trees.
_________
Mr. Vincent Massey Tovell, Massey Foundation, appeared before the Toronto Community
Council in connection with the foregoing matter.
Map 1
Map 2
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