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A group of people stand around a sidewalk with traffic lights and signs around. In the background is the CN Tower and skyscrapers prominently featured.

Shifting Shoreline

Date

September 20 at 11:00 am – 12:30 pm

Location

Start Point

Dominion Public Building (1 Front Street West)

End Point

Parliament Square Park (44 Parliament Street)

Cost

$10.05 per person

Registration

Please register below.
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September 20 at 11:00 am – 12:30 pm

Peel back the pavement and discover Toronto’s buried waterfront.

What happened to Toronto’s original waterfront? Trace the shoreline that once ran near today’s Front Street and discover how the lake’s edge was reshaped by colonization, industrialism, and city-building. From the Dominion Public Building to St. Lawrence Market and Parliament Square Park, uncover the layers of history beneath the streets: Indigenous land, archaeological artifacts, buried waters, and the people who transformed Toronto’s relationship with Lake Ontario.

This emerging historian tour will be led by Beatrice Hunter, an emerging museum professional and lifelong learner with abiding passions for public history, education and storytelling. With dedicated professional experience in heritage interpretation, she is passionate about projects that research, explore and share the rich, vibrant history of Toronto. She believes that to build a more cohesive city, we need to learn and educate collaboratively to better understand our shared past as a foundation for a shared future.

People in summer clothing stand on a sidewalk. A person in the front with the back to the camera raises both hands in the air. To the right, an ornate stone and glass faced building appears.
St. Lawrence Hall, Firsts on Front Street tour, July 19, 2025. Image by Hammad Khalil.
Group of people stand on cobblestones . Behind them a long railing full of container plants is visible. In the background tent canopies can be seen.
Market Street, Firsts on Front Street tour, July 19, 2025. Image by Hammad Khalil.
A group of people stand on a paved sidewalk while they face a person talking to them. On the right of the image is a green orb structure beside a brick building.
Tour participants at the Shoreline Commemorative sculpture, Along the Shore tour, August 7, 2025. Image by Hammad Khalil.
A person holds up an image of a map and points at it while addressing people in front of them.
Emerging Historian Rose Maagdenberg leads the Along the Shore tour, September 6, 2025. Image by Hammad Khalil.

Registration

This tour is provided for $8.00/person. The total cost is $10.05 (includes a $2.05 transaction fee). Please note that space is limited on our tours. You may not be able to join a tour group if you have not registered ahead of time through our website.

Dominion Public Building

1 Front Street West
Toronto, M5J 2X5 Canada + Google Map

Accessibility

This tour is approximately 2.1 kilometres in distance and takes place predominantly on paved city sidewalks and streets. The only exception is that the land near the Shoreline Commemorative Sculpture on Front Street slopes downward.

FAQs

Our staff and volunteers will be at the tour’s starting location 30 minutes prior to each tour. Please arrive at least 10-15 minutes prior to the start of the tour to allow time for check-in. Feel free to call us at (647) 542-3450 if you are having trouble finding the start location.

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