Looking for gift ideas? The Archives sells prints and digital files of our favourite photographs and more! Choose from our selection below.

These beautiful, archival-quality prints are available in the following sizes:

  • 8″ x 10″ – $30
  • 11″ x 14″ – $40
  • 16″ x 20″ – $50

You can also order a reproduction of any other image you find in the Archives. See our guide on Using the database to find and request photographs, or contact us. For a complete list of images by series, see our list of digitized photos.  If you can’t find what you are looking for on our website, come and pay us a visit.

Bloor Street Viaduct
Bloor Street Viaduct, looking east
July 18, 1917
City of Toronto Archives
Series 372, Sub-series 10, Item 841

 

This photograph of the Bloor Street Viaduct under construction was taken by city photographer Arthur Goss. It was used as the cover image for the City of Toronto Archives’ book Toronto’s Visual Legacy, celebrating the city’s 175th anniversary. The viaduct gained fame internationally through Michael Ondaatje’s novel In the Skin of a Lion.

 

Old Union Station
Old Union Station
City of Toronto Archives
1907
Fonds 1244, Item 99

 

This image of a previous Union Station was captured by freelance photographer William James. It shows the old Union Station in the heyday of steam locomotion. The station was located west of the present station and was demolished in 1927.

Diving horse
Diving horse
1908
City of Toronto Archives
Fonds 1244, Item 192

 

Another William James image catches Toronto’s famous diving horse plunging into Lake Ontario. J.W. Gorman’s horse show was a popular attraction at Hanlan’s Point on Toronto Island.

21 rear, Elizabeth Street
21 rear, Elizabeth Street
May 15, 1913
City of Toronto Archives
Series 372, Sub-series 32, Item 187

 

Commissioned by the Toronto Health Department, this Arthur Goss photograph was included in a report about the poor state of Toronto’s housing. The property was located in The Ward,” a notorious slum in the heart of the city. It stood where the Nathan Philips Square ice rink is today. You can see Old City Hall in the background.

Group on car on Bay
Group on car on Bay Street
May 7, 1945
City of Toronto Archives
Fonds 1266, Item 96241

 

This shot was captured by John Boyd, a photographer for the Globe and Mail. It was taken on Bay Street on the day Germany unconditionally surrendered to the allies at the end of World War II. The Archives has over 140,000 photographs in the Globe and Mail collection, taken from 1922 to 1953.

Three Firemen
Three Firemen
1910
City of Toronto Archives
Fonds 1244, Item 15

 

Three members of the Toronto Fire Brigade are shown in this William James image. They are walking down Lansdowne Avenue, north of Davenport Road. Apparently the firemen had to walk half a mile, leaving their fire wagons behind because the wheels could not make it through the mud!

Hunters and dogs
Hunters and dogs
ca.1907
City of Toronto Archives
Fonds 1244, Item 159

 

This William James photograph shows fox hunters and their hounds cantering over the ravine bridge on Bathurst Street, just north of St. Clair Avenue.

Fishermen in Grenadier
Fishermen in Grenadier pond
July 1939
City of Toronto Archives
Fonds 1231, Item 629

 

This rustic scene was taken on the banks of Grenadier Pond in High Park. The pond has been used by anglers since the early nineteenth century. You can still fish in the pond today, as long as you have a licence.

Queen Street subway
Queen Street subway, looking east
November 17, 1897
City of Toronto Archives
Series 376, File 2, Item 8

 

Commissioned by the City Engineer’s Department, this photograph shows construction of the “subway” (underpass) at Queen and Dufferin streets. In the background you can see the Gladstone Hotel.

Drinking fountain at College Street and Spadina Avenue
Drinking fountain at College Street and Spadina Avenue
April 26, 1899
City of Toronto Archives
Series 376, File 2, Item 49

 

Taken by F.W. Micklethwaite, this photograph shows a drinking fountain just south of Spadina Crescent. These drinking fountains were common in Toronto in the late nineteenth century, with a trough for horses, a common cup for people and even a basin for dogs! The Health Department later deemed them a public health hazard and replaced them. One remains on King Street East near St. James Cathedral.

King Street East, south side looking west
King Street East, south side looking west
1856
City of Toronto Archives
Fonds 1498, Item 1

 

One of the earliest photographs taken of Toronto, this 150-year-old image shows Toronto’s main commercial thoroughfare at that time, King Street East. In the foreground is The Golden Lion, a dry goods store and one of the city’s most famous retailers. Constructed in 1847, this building was substantially altered and expanded in 1866.

Yonge Street Slip, looking north
Yonge Street Slip, looking north
December 30, 1926
City of Toronto Archives
Fonds 1231, Item 927

 

William James’ photograph reminds us of how industrial Toronto’s lakeshore used to be in the early 20th century.

Intersection of Dundas Street and Roncesvalles Avenue, looking south-east
Intersection of Dundas Street and Roncesvalles Avenue, looking south-east
January 19, 1912
City of Toronto Archives
Fonds 1231, Item 1670

 

What used to be the Merchant’s Bank of Canada is now a Starbucks. Aside from that, not much has changed in this view.

Greengrocer's on Danforth Avenue
Greengrocer’s on Danforth Avenue
ca. 19306
City of Toronto Archives
Fonds 1244, Item 339

 

This greengrocer’s store would make the Danforth proud today, especially with apples at 15 cents a basket!

Policeman, corner of King and Yonge streets
Policeman, corner of King and Yonge streets
1912
City of Toronto Archives
Fonds 1244, Item 1008

 

This photograph by William James captures much of the commotion and excitement of one of Toronto’s busiest intersections.

Bathers and cars in Humber River
Bathers and cars in Humber River
1922
City of Toronto Archives
Fonds 1244, Item 1237

 

This photograph was taken in those halcyon days when you could not only swim in the Humber River, but also wash your car there too!

Trinity College gates, Queen Street West
Trinity College gates, Queen Street West
1916
City of Toronto Archives
Fonds 1244, Item 1516

 

These gates of Trinity College are at the entrance to Trinity Bellwoods Park. The college building itself was demolished. The gates are the only survivors of what was one of the finest examples of Gothic Revival architecture in Canada.

Yonge Street, North York - looking south from Jolly Miller Hotel
Yonge Street, North York – looking south from Jolly Miller Hotel
ca. 1936
City of Toronto Archives
Fonds 1568, Item 137

 

Here, Yonge Street in North York appears to be a mere country lane rather than the main arterial route north out of the city. The railway track parallel to the road is a streetcar line that took weekending Torontonians all the way to Lake Simcoe.

Office building in the Distillery District
Office building in the Distillery District
November 18, 1918
City of Toronto Archives
Fonds 1583, Item 143

 

The Gooderham and Worts Distillery was operated by the largest producers of whisky in the British Empire. The Distillery District now houses shops, cafes and restaurants. It is the largest collection of Victorian industrial buildings in North America, with over 40 heritage buildings. It is a National Historic Site.

Looking east from Kew Beach Fire Station
Looking east from Kew Beach Fire Station
1906
City of Toronto Archives
Series 376, File 5, Item33

 

The Beach area of Toronto was once “cottage country” for wealthier Torontonians. The structure in the right of the image is the old Kew Beach Public School.