This recreational facility exemplifies a quiet Edwardian architecture that was common in both public and residential buildings in Toronto. Features of this style include classical elements such as a balanced symmetrical façade, band courses in a lighter material, an impressive front entrance with an entablature supported by Doric columns, a flat roof and a handsome cornice. The entranceway in particular gives this building a sense of dignity, and once inside, the visitor would see marble floors and walls, mosaic borders and wooden beamed ceilings. In the words of the architects, Burke, Horwood & White, there was "…no need for an extravagant or gaudy treatment, but all architectural work should bespeak the lofty ideals for which the association stands."

The West End YMCA still exists at the corner of Dovercourt Road. It was not built exactly as the perspective drawing shows, and it was altered in the early 1980s. A new entrance at the corner is particularly noteworthy, allowing for grade-level access to the Y for persons with disabilities.

Click here to see a larger image (192K)
Proposal for West End Y.M.C.A. : perspective, [1911 or 1912]
Burke, Horwood and White, Architects; “BEL”, delineator
Watercolour on board
J. C. B. & E. C. Horwood Collection
Reference Code: C 11-949
Archives of Ontario

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