Toronto Club
The Toronto Club is a private members' club in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Founded on March 20, 1837, it is the oldest private club in Canada and the third oldest in North America.
Overview
The clubhouse, located at 107 Wellington Street West, was designed by Frank Darling and S. George Curry in 1888 and opened in 1889. The building had additions and alterations between 1911 and 1912 by Darling and Pearson. The building mixes different architectural styles and marks an important transition in Darling's career. The clubhouse was recognized as a heritage property by the City of Toronto in 1984 and by the Ontario Heritage Foundation in 2002.Membership at the Toronto Club is by invitation only and is completely gender-neutral. The Club is strictly for members and their invited guests.
The clubhouse is a 40,000 square foot, three-storey building. The facilities include four lounges, two à la carte dining rooms, a cocktail lounge, business centre and five private dining rooms.
The Club provides reciprocal privileges with a collection of clubs in the United States, Europe, and Asia.
The Club offers its members a programme of special events including: wine dinners featuring rare wines from its extensive cellar; regularly scheduled wine educational events; annual art dinners; an Annual Black-Tie Members’ Dinner at which a different distinguished member is honoured each year; high-profile guest speaker events; and a Christmas Buffet Luncheon.
Leadership
President
- 1864 – James McGill Strachan
- 1868 – Sir Casimir Gzowski
- 1871 – John Hillyard Cameron
- 1876 – William Cayley
- 1878 – Christopher Robinson
- 1914 – Sir Glenholme Falconbridge
- 1923 – Miller Lash
- 1942 – Goldwin Larratt Smith
- 1944 – Robert Cecil Hamilton Cassels
- 1946 – Alexander C. Snively
- 1948 – Robert A. Laidlaw
- 1950 – John A. McDougald
- 1953 – Malcolm D. Richardson
- 1957 – A. Bruce Matthews
- 1959 – Christie T. Clark
- 1962 – Gordon Peter Campbell
- 1964 – John A. McDougald
- 1968 – William Maxwell Vacy-Ash
- 1971 – A. Bruce Matthews
- 1975 – Francis Dwyer Lace
- 1978 – Alan Graeme Watson
- 1983 – Fraser Matthews Fell
- 1987 – Ian Douglas
- 1990 – John Peter George Gordon
- 1991 – Douglas G. Bassett
- 1995 – Anthony S. Fell
- 2002 – R. B. Matthews
- 2005 – Fredrik Stefan Eaton
- 2009 – Anthony Graham
- 2012 – R. James Anderson
Chairman of the Board
- 1837 – James Newbigging
- 1842 – Francis T. Billings
- 1845 – William Cayley
- 1846 – William Henry Boulton
- 1849 – Dr George Herrick
- 1860 – William Botsford Jarvis
- 1861 – A. Thornton Todd
- 1862 – James McGill Strachan
- 1863 – Sir Casimir Gzowski
- 1880 – Christopher Robinson
- 1881 – A. Thornton Todd
- 1893 – Sir Edmund Osler
- 1895 – Nichol Kingsmill
- 1901 – Adam R. Creelman
- 1902 – Arthur Radcliffe Boswell
- 1903 – Herbert C. Hammond
- 1905 – Walter Barwick
- 1907 – Daniel R. Wilkie
- 1908 – Walter S. Andrews
- 1908 – Sir William Falconbridge
- 1915 – E. C. Cattanach
- 1915 – George E. Evans
- 1919 – William R. Johnston
- 1919 – Miller Lash
- 1923 – Robert Cassels
- 1925 – Goldwin Larratt Smith
- 1942 – Alexander C. Snively
- 1945 – John A. McDougald
- 1950 – Malcolm D. Richardson
- 1953 – Albert Bruce Matthews
- 1957 – Christie Thomas Clark
- 1959 – Gordon Peter Campbell
- 1962 – William Maxwell Vacy-Ash
- 1968 – Albert Bruce Matthews
- 1971 – Francis Dwyer Lace
- 1975 – Alan Graeme Watson
- 1978 – Fraser Matthews Fell
- 1983 – Ian Douglas
- 1987 – John Peter George Gordon
- 1990 – Douglas G. Bassett
- 1991 – Anthony Smithson Fell
- 1995 – R. B. Matthews
- 2002 – Fredrik Stefan Eaton
- 2005 – Anthony Graham
- 2009 – R. James Anderson
- 2012 – Irving Gerstein
Club histories
- Snively, Alexander C. History of the Toronto Club, 1835–1947.
- Snively, Alexander C. Toronto Club, 1835-–1995: A History Compiled from Club Records and Contemporary Historical Notes.
- Stoffman, Daniel. Behind Carved Doors: The Toronto Club and Its Remarkable Members. Douglas & McIntyre, 2012.