Union Station - A Cathedral for Trains

Photo: Dillan Payne, CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)

A stop on Toronto Downtown Walk, a free self-guided tour.

You're standing in front of Canada's busiest transportation hub, and the best way to begin is to look up at the colonnade. Twenty-two limestone columns line Front Street, each about 12 metres tall and weighing some 75 tons. The Prince of Wales cut the ribbon here in August 1927, and the Beaux-Arts design by Ross and Macdonald still makes catching a commuter train feel like an occasion.

Step inside to the Great Hall: 76 metres long, with a vaulted tile ceiling lit by high clerestory windows. Trains, the subway and the express link to Pearson Airport all meet here.

Before you set off, remember whose land this is. Toronto sits on the traditional territory of many nations, including the Mississaugas of the Credit, the Anishinabeg, the Haudenosaunee and the Wendat. The 1787 Toronto Purchase, disputed for generations, was finally settled by Canada in 2010 for 145 million dollars.

Notice the PATH signs, too. Union is a main door into the underground city you will meet again soon.

Getting here: Start on Front Street West, outside the main entrance of Union Station between Bay and York streets.

Did you know?: The Great Hall's ceiling is made of Guastavino tile, the same vaulted tile system used in some of New York's grandest spaces, including the Oyster Bar under Grand Central Terminal.

Photo op: Cross Front Street to the steps of the Fairmont Royal York and frame the full row of columns, with the CN Tower peeking over the roofline to the right.

More on Wikipedia: Union Station · Toronto Purchase · Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation · Path

Union Station - A Cathedral for Trains

Stops on this tour