Yonge–Eglinton is a neighbourhood in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...

, Ontario, Canada, at the intersection of

Yonge Street Yonge Street (; pronounced "young") is a major arterial route in the Canadian province of Ontario connecting the shores of Lake Ontario in Toronto to Lake Simcoe, a gateway to the Upper Great Lakes. Once the southernmost leg of provincial H ...

and Eglinton Avenue. It is central to the area of Midtown Toronto, one of four central business districts outside

Downtown Toronto Downtown Toronto is the main central business district of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Located entirely within the district of Old Toronto, it is approximately 16.6 square kilometres in area, bounded by Bloor Street to the northeast and Dupont Str ...

. The City of Toronto defines its boundaries as Briar Hill Avenue to the north,

to the east, Frobisher Avenue and a line in that direction west to Elmsthorpe Avenue, then north to Eglinton Avenue, east to

Avenue Road Avenue Road is a major north–south street in Toronto, Ontario. The road is a continuation of University Avenue, linked to it via Queen's Park and Queen's Park Crescent East and West to form a single through route.''Toronto Pocket Street Atla ...

and north to Briar Hill. According to a survey conducted in 2017 by ''

Toronto Life ''Toronto Life'' is a monthly magazine about entertainment, politics and life in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. ''Toronto Life'' also publishes a number of annual special interest guides about the city, including ''Real Estate'', ''Stylebook'', ''Eatin ...

'', it was the highest-ranked neighbourhood in

Greater Toronto The Greater Toronto Area, commonly referred to as the GTA, includes the City of Toronto and the regional municipalities of Durham, Halton, Peel, and York. In total, the region contains 25 urban, suburban, and rural municipalities. The Greater ...

in terms of housing, crime rate, transit, health, entertainment, people and employment. It is geographically central to the city of Toronto and surrounded by a number of the country's highly affluent neighbourhoods, including Forest Hill, Lytton Park and Lawrence Park.

History

The neighbourhood was first settled by Europeans in the early nineteenth century, who founded the farming village of Eglinton. The area was part of the largest cattle grazing region in

Upper Canada The Province of Upper Canada (french: link=no, province du Haut-Canada) was a part of British Canada established in 1791 by the Kingdom of Great Britain, to govern the central third of the lands in British North America, formerly part of th ...

. The region was the first in North America to extend the use of cowbells to all cattle. Prior to this, it had been standard practice for a cowbell to be attached to only the best and leading piece of livestock."A Brief History of Toronto", ''Maclean's Magazine'', Dec. 1991, p43 To honour this proud and storied heritage, the

City of Toronto government The municipal government of Toronto ( incorporated as the City of Toronto) is the local government responsible for administering the city of Toronto in the Canadian province of Ontario. Its structure and powers are set out in the '' City of Tor ...

named a local street "Cowbell Lane." In 1837, the

Battle of Montgomery's Tavern The Battle of Montgomery's Tavern was an incident during the Upper Canada Rebellion in December 1837. The abortive revolutionary insurrection, inspired by William Lyon Mackenzie, was crushed by British authorities and Canadian volunteer units ...

took place just north of the

and Eglinton Avenue intersection. In 1884 the

Metropolitan Street Railway The New York Railways Company operated street railways in Manhattan, New York City, United States between 1911 and 1925. The company went into receivership in 1919 and control was passed to the New York Railways Corporation in 1925 after which a ...

began operating a horse-drawn streetcar route on Yonge Street from

to the village. Rapid housing development soon followed. As the population grew the area was incorporated in 1890 into the town of

North Toronto North Toronto is a former town and informal district located in the northern part of the Old Toronto district in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Currently occupying a geographically central location within the city of Toronto, the Town of North Toronto ...

. North Toronto was then annexed to Toronto in 1912. In 1922, the Yonge streetcar line was extended north to replace the Metropolitan line passing Eglinton Avenue to terminate at Glen Echo Road. In 1954, the

Yonge subway Yonge is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Charles Duke Yonge (1812–1891), English historian and translator of Philo of Alexandria * Charles Maurice Yonge (1899–1986), British marine biologist * Charlotte Mary Yonge (1823� ...

line opened its first twelve stations with its north terminus at Eglinton and remained so until 1973 when the line was extended north to York Mills.

Economy

A number of businesses have their corporate headquarters at the intersection, including Canadian Tire, TVOntario and the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Ontario. Canada Square is an office tower complex at the intersection holding other corporate offices.

References

External links

*
Yonge–Eglinton Neighbourhood Profile — City of Toronto
{{DEFAULTSORT:Yonge-Eglinton Neighbourhoods in Toronto Transit-oriented developments