For other uses, see Bay Street (disambiguation). The intersection of Bay Street and King Street is considered the heart of Canada's economy Bay Street, originally known as Bear Street, is a major throughfare in Downtown Toronto. It is the centre of Toronto's Financial District and is often used by metonymy to refer to Canada's financial industry, similar to Wall Street in the United States. Within the legal profession, the term Bay Street is also used colloquially to refer to the large, full-service business law firms of Toronto, particularly the top-tier law firms known as the "Seven Sisters". The name of the street originated in 1797 from the fact that it connected Lot Street (present-day Queen Street West) to a bay at the Toronto Harbour. Prior to that it was known as Bear Street because of frequent bear sightings in the early history of Toronto.1 Until 1922, the section of Bay running north from Queen Street and ending at College Street was known as Terauley Street (named after the Terauley estate of John Simcoe Macaulay near Bay and Queen Streets). Several discontinuous streets existed north of College Street to Davenport Road. By-Law 9316 joined these streets together as far north as Scollard Street in 1922.2 Finally, By-Law 9884, enacted on January 28, 1924, changed the name of Ketchum Avenue to Bay Street, extending it to Davenport Road.3

Bay Street stretches from Queens Quay (Toronto Harbour) in the south to Davenport Road in the north. The original section of Bay Street ran only as far north as Queen Street West. Sections north of Queen Street were renamed Bay Street as several other streets were consolidated and several gaps filled in to create a new thoroughfare in the 1920s. The largest of these streets, Terauley Street, ran from Queen Street West to Grenville Street. At these two points, there is a curve in Bay Street. Contents 1 History 2 Points of interest 3 References 4 External links History The intersection of Bay and King Street is often seen as the centre of Canadian banking and finance. Four of Canada's five major banks have office towers at the intersection: the Bank of Montreal at First Canadian Place, Scotiabank at Scotia Plaza, CIBC at Commerce Court, and Toronto-Dominion Bank at the Toronto Dominion Centre. Historically, this was known as the "MINT Corner" (Montreal, Imperial, Nova Scotia, Toronto-Dominion) but since 1962 the Imperial Bank has been part of CIBC and the Bank of Nova Scotia has rebranded itself so this nickname is no longer widely used. The core cluster of towers has creeped north with the addition of the 50-storey Bay Adelaide Centre and the Trump Tower Toronto, which is currently under construction.

In the 19th century this intersection was home to Toronto's major newspapers. The Mail Building, the Old Toronto Star Building, and the Old Globe and Mail Building were all located near the intersection. Points of interest Bistro 990 Significant condominium development on Bay, north of the financial district, boomed during the 1990s and construction continues on large, 40-plus storey condominiums and multi-use buildings today. The area is defined by Dundas Street to the south and Bloor/Yorkville to the north and crosses through Toronto's Discovery District. A small portion of this stretch of Bay Street is serviced by the TTC streetcar between Dundas and College Street. The area attracts many who work in the financial district as well as those who work in the Discovery District, nearby hospitals and schools (Ryerson University and the University of Toronto). More than 67% (or 10,380) of residents in this area are in the working ages of 25-64, significantly higher than the City of Toronto's average of 58%.4

Notable buildings along this stretch include: Toronto Coach Terminal Residences of College Park 777 Bay Murano Sutton Place Hotel Bistro 990 Manulife Centre Another prominent intersection is the one nearest Yorkville at Bay and Bloor, the centre of an expensive shopping district. The intersection of Bay and Bloor is the location of the Toronto Transit Commission's Bay subway station. Bay Street is served by the route 6 Bay bus, which is one of the few downtown bus routes. The street was originally served by streetcars, but the opening of the north-south Yonge Subway in 1954 caused a number of parallel streetcar routes to be replaced by buses, including Bay. References ^ City of Toronto Archives, Bay Street index card ^ City of Toronto. By-Law No. 9316. "Appendix 'B'" to the Minutes of Proceedings to the Council of the Corporation for the City of Toronto for the year 1922: Volume Two. Toronto: The Carswell Co. 1922. p. 589. ^ City of Toronto. By-Law No. 9884. "Appendix 'B'" to the Minutes of Proceedings to the Council of the Corporation for the City of Toronto for the year 1924: Volume Two. Toronto: The Carswell Co. 1924. ^ Gender and Age External links Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Bay Street, Toronto Bay Street at Google Maps Bay Street Corridor neighbourhood profile v · d · eMajor roads in Toronto North-south Concession roads Bathurst · Bayview · Birchmount · Brimley · Browns Line · Dufferin · Islington · Jane · Keele · Kennedy · Kipling · Leslie · Markham · Martin Grove · McCowan · Morningside · Royal York · Victoria Park · Warden · Weston · Woodbine · Yonge Other streets Albion · Avenue/University · Bay · Black Creek · De Grassi · Don Mills · Jameson · Jarvis · John · Lansdowne · Mount Pleasant · Ossington · Palmerston · Parliament · Roncesvalles · Spadina · Vaughan East-west Concession roads Bloor/Danforth · Eglinton · Finch · Lawrence · Sheppard · St. Clair · Steeles · The Queensway/Queen West/Queen East · Wilson/York Mills/Parkwoods Village/Ellesmere Other streets Burnhamthorpe · College/Carlton · Dundas · Eastern · Front · Gerrard · King · Kingston · Lake Shore · Queen's Quay · Raymore Expressways and highways 2A · 27 · 400 · 401 · 404 · 409 · 427 · Allen Road · Don Valley Parkway · Gardiner Expressway Cancelled expressways Crosstown · East Metro · Richview · Scarborough · Spadina Roads in Toronto on Wikimedia Commons · Roads in Ontario

Coordinates: 43°39′26″N 79°23′03″W / 43.657291°N 79.384302°W / 43.657291; -79.384302

Coordinates: 43°39′26″N 79°23′03″W / 43.657291°N 79.384302°W / 43.657291; -79.384302

Coordinates: 43°39′26″N 79°23′03″W / 43.657291°N 79.384302°W / 43.657291; -79.384302

Coordinates: 43°39′26″N 79°23′03″W / 43.657291°N 79.384302°W / 43.657291; -79.384302

Coordinates: 43°39′26″N 79°23′03″W / 43.657291°N 79.384302°W / 43.657291; -79.384302

Coordinates: 43°39′26″N 79°23′03″W / 43.657291°N 79.384302°W / 43.657291; -79.384302