In its first 50 years, the City of Toronto changed from a rough settlement to a booming city with a voracious appetite for land. Over the course of two generations, its population increased tenfold — partly through immigration, but also through the annexation of older communities. Among these were the former suburbs of Leslieville and Riverdale, as well as the Playter Estates neighborhood, all of which were joined together in 1884 to become the new Toronto community of Riverdale.
Riverdaletells the history of the neighborhood, starting with the Simcoe, Playter, and Leslie families, who shaped the area throughout its early settlement, the American Revolution, and the War of 1812. It shows the waves of immigration from Britain, America, Italy, Greece, and China, that made Riverdale one of Toronto's most diverse areas. And it tells the stories written into the map of the neighborhood, revealing the history on display in its streets and historic buildings.
