Eatonville, Toronto

History

Eatonville began as a 400 acre farm owned by Peter Shaver at the end of the 19th century. The farm was one of two purchased by the Eaton's department store in the 1890s (the other was in Georgetown, Ontario) to provide a reliable supply of milk for the store's lunchroom and drug store lunch counter. Eaton's donated a parcel of the farm land to the local elementary school, which was named "Eatonville School" in honour of its benefactor. The name of the school led to the area becoming known by the Eatonville name.

The Eaton Farm supplied milk, poultry and vegetables to Eaton's until the 1950s, when it was sold and subdivided for residential development.

Today, Eatonville is the home of the Etobicoke Civic Centre, which used to be the city hall of the former City of Etobicoke. The community is also home to the Eatonville branch of the Toronto Public Library, which was reconstructed in 2003. The Shaver homestead has been preserved, and was relocated to the West Mall; it now serves as a local historic museum.

The area used to have a second mall, just a short walk from Cloverdale. Honeydale Mall is now being redeveloped.

Education

• Broadacres Junior School – A public elementary school located at 45 Crendon Drive, located north of Burnhamthorpe Road and west of the West Mall. It was opened in October 1959 in Broadacres Park, the site of the local Shaver family's historic 'Applewood' farm house and across the street from Etobicoke's former City Hall.
• Bloorlea Middle School – A public middle school located at 4050 Bloor Street West, at the corner of Bloor Street and the East Mall. It opened its doors in 1957.
• Burnhamthorpe Collegiate Institute – A public secondary school located at 500 the East Mall.
• Eatonville Junior School – A public elementary school located south of Burnhamthorpe Road and west of the West Mall. Eatonville has been situated on its present site since 1827 and was first known as the "Swamp School". The Eaton family donated the land for the original school site. The current school was built in 1955. In 1998, students of the school created a time capsule to be opened on the 200th anniversary of the school.
• West Glen Junior School
• Wedgewood Junior School- A public elementary school located at 5 Swan Avenue, south of Burnhamthorpe Road.
• St. Elizabeth Catholic School
• Olivet School – A private elementary school located at 279 Burnhamthorpe Road, north of Burnhamthorpe Road and east of the East Mall. It was opened in September 1959 and is still running today.

Institutions

• Etobicoke Civic Centre
• Applewood Shaver House
• Eatonville Library (founded 1964)
• Sherway Gardens
• Cloverdale Mall
• Burnhamthorpe Mall
• Bloordale Plaza
• Eatonville Care Centre, which suffered many deaths during the COVID-19 pandemic

Churches

• St James United Church
• Bloordale United Church
• Renforth Baptist Church & Cemetery

References

References

1. "Applewood Shaver House".
2. "Toronto Public Library > Hours & Locations > Branches A-Z > Eatonville Branch".
3. "Cloverdale | All you need | Great Shops in the Heart of Etobicoke".
4. (16 April 2020). "List of long-term care and retirement homes impacted by COVID-19 in GTA".
5. "St. James United Church, Etobicoke, Ontario – Our History".
6. "Bloordale United Church – Join our Circle of Friends".
7. https://torontocemeteries.blogspot.com/2009/06/history-of-renforth-baptist-church.html {{User-generated source. (August 2022)