By Paul Bishop, Heritage Toronto, as seen in the Fall 2015 edition of COLLECTIONS by Harvey Kalles Real Estate Ltd., Brokerage
For more than 150 years, the Distillery District was home to one of the most iconic businesses in Toronto’s history—Gooderham and Worts. An enormously successful distillery, it was at one point the largest in the world. By the late 20th century, Gooderham and Worts’ fortunes had faded, and the area fell into disuse. In 2001, however, a new urban development firm, Cityscape Holdings, began a multi-phase revitalization project. Four of Cityscape’s developers will receive the Special Achievement Award at this year’s Heritage Toronto Awards on October 13 for their vision and perseverance in regenerating the area. Exquisitely restoring the Distillery District’s Victorian buildings, Cityscape transformed it into a pedestrian-only hub of arts, culture, and entertainment. Today, the Distillery District is a world-renowned National Historic Site that seamlessly blends Toronto’s cosmopolitan present with its industrial past.
The area had long been inhabited by the Mississauga First Nation; an early sketch of Toronto harbour by surveyor Joseph Bouchette depicts a collection of “Indian Huts” on the site of what is now the Distillery District. Archaeologists have suggested that they were likely drawn to the area because of its proximity to the mouth of the Don River, an ideal location for fishing.
However, the arrival of two immigrants in the 1830s would forever alter this environment. James Worts, an English miller, arrived in Canada in 1831. He was followed a year later by his brother-in-law and business partner, William Gooderham. Financed by Gooderham’s sizeable fortune, the two set about establishing a milling business, building a windmill on the site (near what is now the corner of Trinity and Mill Street), in 1832. The two were a well-matched pair: Worts brought 20 years’ milling experience, and Gooderham contributed his strong business acumen.
The milling business, however, was short lived. After James Worts’ untimely death in 1837, Gooderham transformed the company into a whiskey distillery. The move was not uncommon for millers: distilling sprits was a more profitable use of grain. Gooderham was also saw the opportunity provided by a city with a decidedly thirsty population: In 1837, Toronto boasted a tavern for every 214 inhabitants. Today, the figure is closer to one for every 650.
Gooderham made his first whiskey sale in November of that year, to storekeeper Joseph Lee. After purchasing 128 gallons, Lee returned the following day, increasing his order. It was a good sign for the novice distiller, but even Gooderham could never have predicted the success his company would enjoy in later years.
Gooderham, along with Worts’ son, James Jr., steadily grew the business through the following decades. The business added new facilities during this period, including a cooperage, storehouses, and an icehouse. In 1859, construction began on an enormous new distillery building. Built with fine Kingston limestone, it cost $200,000 and took two years to complete. Designed by architect David Roberts Sr., it is the oldest remaining building in today’s Distillery District.
The recently completed Grand Trunk Railroad presented the business with a wealth of new horizons. The rail lines, just south of the distillery, allowed Gooderham and Worts whiskey to reach new markets across the province, and into the United States. The proximity of the lines was no accident: Gooderham had used his connections with the Grand Trunk’s operators to ensure a favourably close location.
Boasting a state-of-the art distillery and easier access to consumers, Gooderham and Worts’ success surged. Even an 1869 fire, which destroyed much of the stone distillery, could not stop the company’s roaring progress. By the end of the decade, Gooderham and Worts was the single largest whiskey producer in the world. It boasted a major international clientele—boats docking in the nearby harbour shipped whiskey to such far-off locations as Halifax, New York, Buenos Aires, and Rio de Janeiro. Its peak production year, 1871, saw 2.1 million gallons of whiskey produced—half of all Ontario whiskey.
Tragedy soon forced the company to shift focus. William Gooderham died in 1881, followed a year later by James Worts, Jr. The business went into the hands of Gooderham’s son, George, who expanded the company by investing in railroads, banking and insurance. The younger Gooderham moved the company’s offices into a newly-built “flatiron” building, today an iconic Toronto landmark. The building was designed by David Roberts Jr., son of the stone distillery’s architect. Under George’s leadership, Gooderham and Worts continued to enjoy considerable success into the 20th century.
War changed everything. Canada, as a Dominion of the British Empire, was drawn into the First World War in August 1914. The temperance movement, which for decades had campaigned against alcohol, saw an opportunity in the conflict. Portraying alcohol as a threat to Canada’s wartime productivity, temperance advocates pressured their government to institute a ban. Prohibition was a frightening prospect for distillers—profits dove, and business was seriously threatened. Gooderham and Worts would need to find another use for their distillery, and quickly.
The answer was acetone: a key component in the manufacturing of smokeless gunpowder, a highly prized commodity in Canada’s wartime industry. Produced by fermenting corn, acetone was an ideal solution for a distillery. British Acetone took over the facilities in 1916 with Albert Gooderham, George’s son, at the helm of operations. With relatives at the front, Albert was keen for his company to do its bit for the war effort. It also proved to be a wise decision, as Ontario would institute the Temperance Act later that year. While the Act did not forbid brewing or distilling alcohol, it prohibited the sale of liquor within Ontario. Distilleries and breweries across the province folded while the repurposed Gooderham and Worts distillery carried on. By the war’s end, the facility was churning out 1000 tonnes of acetone a year, four times the intended target.
Ontario lifted its ban on booze in 1923, and business at the distillery returned to normal—but only for a short while. That same year, Gooderham and Worts was purchased by self-made millionaire Harry C. Hatch. Hatch later merged the company with Hiram Walker and Sons, famed producers of Canadian Club whiskey. Based in Windsor, directly across the border from the dry United States, the Hiram Walker distillery flourished due to illegal rum-running across the Detroit River. But while American speakeasies were awash in Canadian Club, Gooderham and Worts’ blend was less popular. The bulk of the merged company’s operations shifted to Windsor, and the Toronto distillery floundered. Trying desperately to stay afloat, the Toronto subsidiary experimented with new alcohol-based products, including Hot-Shot antifreeze during the 1930s. Gooderham and Worts stopped producing whiskey altogether in 1957, switching to rum.
By the 1980s, the business was in its final throes. Purchased by British conglomerate Allied Lyons in 1986, the Gooderham and Worts distillery produced its last drop of alcohol in 1990. Following the closure, the area went into a period of decline, decaying into a derelict wasteland that most avoided. Though it was used for film shoots during the 1990s, Torontonians maintained a negative perception of the area.
In 2001, the Distillery District was acquired by Cityscape Holdings. With the assistance and support of many, the firm set about breathing new life into the buildings, while maintaining their distinct 19th century character. Opened in 2003, the Distillery District houses boutiques, restaurants, theatres, coffee houses, and the award-winning Mill Street Brewery. A hub of Toronto’s art scene, Artscape Distillery District provides studios for artists at below market value.
From its humble beginnings as a grain mill, the area has passed through many phases. Today, the Distillery District is an exceptional example of city building and adaptive re-use. The elegantly maintained red-brick buildings and cobblestone echo back to Toronto’s Victorian past. Blending the modern and the historic, the quaint and the refined, the Distillery District is one of Toronto’s most prized landmarks.
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Paul Bishop is the Heritage Program Assistant at Heritage Toronto. Developers of the Distillery District, Jamie Goad, Chris Berman, David Jackson, and Mathew Rosenblatt, received the Special Achievement Award at the 42nd Annual Heritage Toronto Awards at the Royal Conservatory of Music in October, 2015.
Photo Credit: Distillery District at Night, Benson Kua
