The London Normal School is an Ontario Heritage building located at 165 Elmwood Avenue in the Wortley Village neighbourhood of

London, Ontario London (pronounced ) is a city in southwestern Ontario, Canada, along the Quebec City–Windsor Corridor. The city had a population of 422,324 according to the 2021 Canadian census. London is at the confluence of the Thames River, approximate ...

, Canada. It is a prominent and recognizable landmark in the Old South/Wortley Village neighbourhood. It was built in 1898-1899 by the architect Francis Heakes. It was the third

normal school A normal school or normal college is an institution created to Teacher education, train teachers by educating them in the norms of pedagogy and curriculum. In the 19th century in the United States, instruction in normal schools was at the high s ...

in Ontario, after the

Toronto Normal School The Toronto Normal School was a teachers college in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Opened in 1847, the Normal School was located at Church and Gould streets in central Toronto (after 1852), and was a predecessor to the current Ontario Institute for St ...

and

Ottawa Normal School The Heritage Building is today part of Ottawa City Hall. It was originally built in 1874 as Ottawa Normal School and served as a teacher's college. The Gothic Revival building stands at Elgin Street and Lisgar and several extensions were added ...

. The building is a mixture of classical, Romanesque, and

Gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...

revival architecture, as was typical of

High Victorian Gothic High Victorian Gothic was an eclectic architectural style and movement during the mid-late 19th century. It is seen by architectural historians as either a sub-style of the broader Gothic Revival style, or a separate style in its own right. Prom ...

style.

Tower of Normal School, Wortley Village, London, Ontario

Classes for teachers in training began on February 1, 1900. By the 1960s, teacher training took place at Elborn College and Althouse College (now the

University of Western Ontario Faculty of Education The University of Western Ontario Faculty of Education, branded as Western Education since 2011, is the school of education of the University of Western Ontario in London, Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada. History Originally named the Ontario Col ...

). In 1963, the Normal School became the headquarters of the London Board of Education. In 1986, it became the Monsignor Feeney Centre for Catholic Education within the

London District Catholic School Board The London District Catholic School Board (LDCSB), known as English-language Separate District School Board No. 38 prior to 1999) is a separate school board offering Catholic education in Southwestern Ontario, Canada. It serves students from t ...

. The Catholic School Board moved to a new building in 2005 and the Normal School was vacant for a time afterwards. It is currently the headquarters for the YMCA of Southwestern Ontario. Cost of Normal School reno climbs by $2M
- London Free Press, October 14, 2015 Normal School, London Ontario4.jpg, London Normal School, front entrance Normal School, London Ontario3.jpg, London Normal School, rear

References

{{reflist Buildings and structures in London, Ontario Defunct universities and colleges in Canada School buildings completed in 1899 Gothic Revival architecture in Canada Teachers colleges in Canada Designated heritage properties in Ontario 1899 establishments in Ontario