The Old Stomping Ground Part 2

Eglinton, Oakwood, Times Road

A common destination before I took to a bicycle was the Colony Theatre at the "five corners" defined by the intersections of Eglinton Avenue, Dufferin Street and Vaughan Road. An alternative route back home on foot took me east along Eglinton and north up Times Road.

Across from the Colony at the northeast corner of Dufferin and Eglinton was St. Cuthbert's United Church. It had a robust membership back in the heyday of churchgoing society. When declining attendance began affecting both St. Cuthbert's and Fairbank United six blocks north on Dufferin, there was talk of amalgamating the two congregations.

I used to comment to my Mom, who was Fairbank's treasurer, that they would let both churches fold before one would ever join the other. St. Cuthbert's would be the first to go under in 2001. The building still stands and is now part of the British Methodist Episcopal Church.

St. Cuthbert's United Church in the mid 1950s

One block east on the Colony on the south side of Eglinton at Northcliffe Boulevard was the York Township main library. I would spend many an hour there working on school assignments. My teacher, having noticed that my reading consisted mostly of science related non-fiction, suggested that I strive for "a higher plane." The librarian would be able to help, she said.

The librarian asked if I had ever read Dickens or Kipling. I hadn't. "You MUST!" she declared in a voice that reminded me of Natasha from Rocky and Bullwinkle. When closing time was nigh, this lady would flick the light switches on and off in a rapid-fire fashion that turned the library's interior into a precursor of the strobe-lit discos of the 1970s. I surmised that it was Librarian for "get your asses out!"

York Township Main Library, 1954

I checked out a Kipling title from the ones suggested. I decided against The Jungle Book because it reminded me of my negative experience with Cub Scouts. Instead I chose Kim. The adventures of a boy about my age. It was a difficult read until I saw the Classics Illustrated version on the comic book stand. Throughout the rest of elementary and high school, I would read the Classics Illustrated version of just about every work both on and off the curriculum in addition to the actual book. For me, it made the task of trying to become literate much more fun.

Classics Illustrated titles commanded a premium 15 cents per issue when regular comics were 10 cents.

Across Eglinton from the library was Salerno Pizzeria. They had, by far, the best pizza in the area. In the late 1970s they opened an upscale dining room next to the pizza parlour. A review in Toronto Life  declared "this restaurant shines in just enough ways to make a trip across town worth while."

Sometimes I would overshoot Times Road and keep going east along Eglinton to Oakwood. There was an A&P grocery store on the south side and the Prime Restaurant was on the southeast corner at Oakwood. The only image I could find of the Prime from back in the day was on a matchbook cover. The characteristic door located square on the corner is still there, the space being now occupied by a Cash Money outlet.

Heading back west, the Times Barber Shop was near the corner of that road and Eglinton. I always had my hair cut there until the Beatles influenced my choice of hairstyle right up to the present day. That's when I was compelled to seek out a "stylist." I remember being freaked at around age 12 the first time the barber whipped up some shaving cream in a mug, stropped his razor, and scraped away the fuzz around my ears and back of my neck. Today, there is a barber shop in the exact same location.

Heading north up Times Road, you arrived at "The Tracks." By 1960, the Belt Line passenger railway built in 1898 was almost never used, and it was the preferred place for the local kids to hang out. The steep banks on each side were heavily treed and you could hide from prying eyes as you lit up a forbidden cigarette. Three lumber yards were situated along the tracks and all three had scrap piles that we kids could help ourselves to with the owners' blessing. With a hammer, a few nails and pieces of plywood and 2x4s the handier kids could fashion a half decent fort. There was an ideal location by the tracks just west of the Dufferin Street bridge. Absolutely no girls allowed.

1960 Aerial Photograph of the Tracks, Woolen Mill and Lumber Companies

In 1969 there was a devastating fire that wiped out the Oliver and Home lumber companies on the south side of the tracks. Fairbank Lumber on the north side was untouched. The burned out area is now Walter Saunders Memorial Park.

The Paton & Baldwin woolen mill was on the north side of the tracks. The 1930 art deco building was converted to lofts in the early 2000s.

Walter Saunders Memorial Park was Once the Location of the Oliver and Home Lumber Companies

Only three blocks more to get home, and once a week the library Bookmobile would park itself at Times Road and Ridelle Avenue, a mere block away. If the books I had borrowed were soon due, I could return them there instead of making the trek across the tracks to Eglinton. That was okay. I quit smoking almost immediately after taking my first drag.