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Description:
21 Sussex Avenue / 380 Huron Street is a 7-storey (including basement) Edwardian apartment building located at the southwest corner of Huron Street and Sussex Avenue in the Huron-Sussex neighbourhood of Toronto. 21 Sussex Avenue / 380 Huron Street was constructed in 1903/1904 and formally opened to residents in May 1904. The architect(s) of 21 Sussex Avenue / 380 Huron Street were James Augustus Ellis and/or Arthur Richard Denison working on commission for The Apartment Building Company. Over time, 21 Sussex Avenue / 380 Huron Street has been known as the Sussex Apartments, Sussex Court (Apartments), and/or the 21 Sussex Clubhouse.
21 Sussex Avenue / 380 Huron Street was one of Toronto's very first purpose-built apartment buildings. While no longer a residential building, 21 Sussex Avenue / 380 Huron Street is now Toronto's oldest surviving purpose-built apartment building. Several other of the very early purpose-built apartment buildings — namely the St. George Mansions (built in 1899-1904) at St. George Street and Harbord Street and The Alexandra / Alexandra Palace Apartments (completed in 1904/1905) on University Avenue near College Street — have been demolished; although the Spadina Garden Apartments (1906) at Spadina Road and Lowther Avenue are extant to date. Further information on the early history of apartment buildings in Toronto has been included below.
Of additional interest is that 21 Sussex Avenue / 380 Huron Street contains entrances both on Sussex Avenue and Huron Street. Further research is required to determine whether original blueprints exist which may be able to identify the original purposes of these two entrances and/or whether they both provided access to the main lobby.
The following description of 21 Sussex Avenue / 380 Huron Street was published in the Canadian Contract Record journal in January 1903:
"The Apartment Building Company, composed largely of British capital, are about to erect a fine apartment building on the corner of Huron and Sussex Avenue, from plans prepared by [James Augustus] Ellis. It will be 46 x 120 feet, seven stories of pressed brick and stone, and will contain a café, billiard room, private dining rooms for parties, banqueting hall (which may be used for private theatricals), palm garden on roof portion of building, crematory, etc. The building will be steam heated by means of two tubular boilers, decorated in first class style, and equipped with every modern appliance. The building proper is being erected by day labour, but contracts will be let at a later date for steam heating, galvanized iron work, and certain other trades. J. A. Berridge is the superintendent of buildings for the company. If found expedient, the company may build a number of similar apartment houses."
The owners of The Apartment Building Company were Alfred Hawes and James Hawes. The Hawes were the developers and landlords of several of Toronto's earliest apartment buildings, including Sussex Court and Spadina Gardens. A copy of an interview with Alfred Hawes — published by Toronto Saturday Night on 18 November 1905 — regarding his apartment developments has been included in the "sources" section of this entry.
Nancy Williams and Marie Scott-Baron in Recollections of a Neighbourhood: Huron-Sussex from UTS to Stop Spadina (2013) note that 21 Sussex Avenue / 380 Huron Street remained at the height elegance through the 1920s and that the building and its residents were a subject of fascination for the neighbourhood during this time (76). Williams (2013) provide an additional description of 21 Sussex Avenue / 380 Huron Street during the early 1960s, shortly before its expropriation by the University of Toronto:
"The Sussex Court at 21 Sussex, where I was going to see an apartment in the late summer of 1961, had a gloomy brooding appearance against the rows of houses; approaching it, you could see that it was very well constructed and that it stood in a massive, foursquare kind of way on heavy stone foundations. On opposite corners were the Chinese laundry and the Chelsea Shop, at 386 Huron, with a grey cat in the window.
Something about the entrance and lobby at Sussex Court made me think of those apartment houses in Paris where the conciergerie is on the ground floor and the second floor is 'la première étage.' Nonsense, I say to myself, everyone knows that the Sussex Court is home-grown Ontario. But the impression lingers. What is that elegant little wrought-iron birdcage of an elevator doing there, resting in its shaft at the bottom of the stairwell?
I found the McIvers' door and rang the bell. The McIvers, long in Toronto, came from the Scottish island of Lewks and were the wonderful superintendents, whom I came to know over the four-and-a-half years that I lived there, for two years in 21A, and then, as my mother resettled in Canada, in 25 — 'the palazzo." Both units were on the second floor, second up from the main floor. Everything worked — the little birdcage elevator, which gave a steady jerk at each landing; the steam heat, which clanged and clashed its way through the iron radiators. There were enormous, echoing halls, high ceilings, and windows that let in all the light.
The units were commodious but plain and had some decorative features, such as the little blue shepherdess in the stained-glass panel at 21A. By the 1960s, many of their furnishings came from a choice surplus that former residents had left behind and that the McIvers brought forward as the occasion demanded. The windows were at eye level with the slate roofs and treetops of Huron and Sussex, which became familiar extensions of the rooms themselves — a natural art form.
My main memories are of the pleasure of living there and of discovering round about, under the slate roofs and treetops, a much different district from the one that I had known north of Bloor Street. The rows of seemingly anonymous houses unfolded into an old neighbourhood wedged between its alleys, lanes, corner stores, churches, campus co-ops, and fraternities. I learned that 'the Court' itself was an addition to the old neighbourhood, where it had become an accepted part and an embellishment to the collective memory — the doorman, the lovely people living there, the excellent meals at 378 Huron ('The Annex'), the underground tunnel leading to the restaurant and bakeshop...
The Woolryches had always lived on Sussex Avenue and had maintained the continuity since moving into the Court about 1910. The neighbourhood and its residents were more distinguishable at university vacation times; particularly in midsummer, in quiet streets with little traffic, people lingered to converse and admire the beautiful gardens, and there was much coming and going between Sussex Avenue and the Court. Winter brought on a great preoccupation with snow shovelling, especially at corner properties. Snowfalls emphasized the character lines of the houses and streets as the community quietly began to prepare for the lull of the Christmas vacation.
As time went on, the neighbourhood drew closer into itself in anticipation of changes in the air. The Court became a university property in 1966 and most of its residents left. The McIvers stayed on to superintend the alterations and lived on the fifth floor for a few years as the Robarts Library was going up. The city designated the court as a building of architectural and historic importance, and its spacious rooms are now divided and house university offices. The birdcage elevator has gone, but the name on the entrance on the first step at the street still says SUSSEX COURT." (100-103).
As noted by Williams (2013), following its expropriation by the University of Toronto in 1966, 21 Sussex Avenue / 380 Huron Street was renovated into offices. Early office tenants of the building included the Department of Eastern European Studies, the Department of Slavic Studies, and the Department of Hispanic Studies. As of the early 21st century, the building houses the University of Toronto's Campus Safety Division (formerly the University of Toronto Campus Police), as well as numerous student-led organizations The building is now known as the 21 Sussex Clubhouse.
21 Sussex Avenue / 380 Huron Street was listed on the City of Toronto Heritage Register in June 1973 and was one of the first buildings in Toronto to receive heritage status. The exterior and interior of Sussex Court continue to possess numerous original architectural elements, albeit many of these elements are in a degraded condition and would benefit from repair and restoration. Warning stickers affixed to various internal surfaces also indicate that some sections of 21 Sussex Avenue / 380 Huron Street contain asbestos.
21 Sussex Avenue / 380 Huron Street is located within the boundaries of the Huron-Sussex Area of Special Identity.
Please note that prior to the construction of the apartment building at 21 Sussex Avenue / 380 Huron Street, the southwest corner of Huron Street and Sussex Avenue was the site of St. Thomas' Anglican Church. St. Thomas' Anglican Church moved to its current location at 383 Huron Street in the 1890s.
A Brief History of Early Apartment Buildings in Toronto:
Communal living (boarding houses, barracks, etc.) have existed in Toronto since the city's inception in the late 18th century. However, the first purpose-built apartment buildings - originally known as apartment houses - did not emerge until 1899.
The emergence of purpose-built apartment buildings within Toronto was due to both their development and proliferation in other North American cities, as well as due to a rapid increase in the population of Toronto within the first 20 years of the 20th century that outpaced the availability of single-family dwellings.
1899 saw the issuance of the building permit for the St. George Mansions at the southwest corner of Harbord Street and St. George Street. The St. George Mansions were completed by 1904 and were considered Toronto's first purpose-built apartment building. Richard Dennis notes in Toronto's First Apartment-House Boom: An Historical Geography, 1900-1920 (1989) that the earliest apartment buildings in Toronto were "large-scale luxury blocks" rather than middle-class efficiency apartments. This holds true for the early history of 21 Sussex Avenue / 380 Huron Street, as the building contained both luxurious suites and numerous amenities for its residents.
Dennis (1989) further notes that "by 1907, when the first list of apartment houses was published in the city directory, eight buildings were listed" (14). Post-1907 saw a steady increase in the number of apartment buildings within Toronto alongside a building boom of apartments in the 1910s, albeit the post-1907 buildings were often less luxurious, smaller, and more utilitarian in scheme. By 1918, City of Toronto Directories listed at least 290 apartment buildings within the City of Toronto.
ERA Architects note in their Toronto Building Typology Study: The Pre-War Apartment Building - Church-Wellesley Village (2018) that early apartment buildings in Toronto were often constructed on corner lots (including both streets and laneways). This trend holds true for 21 Sussex Avenue / 380 Huron Street, which abuts a laneway along its west elevation. ERA Architects additionally note in their Building Typology Study (2018) that many early apartment buildings had their first (ground) floor half a storey above street level, as to allow basement suites to receive increased light. This design trend is also evident at 21 Sussex Avenue / 380 Huron Street.
By 1912, purpose-built apartment buildings in Toronto were the subject of significant controversy due to their alleged facilitation of immorality (partly due to their appeal to single individuals who could live on their own in the units); privacy and sanitation related concerns; the emergence of landlord legislation; perceived risks to property values in the surrounding area; a loss of neighbourhood greenspace with the larger building footprints occupying most of the lot; and societal bias towards renters versus owners. Calls emerged to prohibit the construction of new apartment buildings within pre-established residential areas. Eventually, Toronto City Council passed Bylaw 6061 to prohibit the construction of apartment buildings on specific streets (namely established streets that mostly contained houseform dwellings), albeit developers could still appeal on a case-by-case basis for an exemption. Another bylaw was passed to limit the size of the buildings and mandate a set amount of outdoor space on the lot. The Chief Medical Officer of Toronto - Dr. Charles Hastings - also became involved in the debate with a public health focus on the tenement-like conditions in some Toronto apartment buildings. In 1911-1912, Dr. Hastings testified to Toronto City Council and had particular concerns over overpopulation, poor ventilation, the risk of fire, and some building's internal rooms having no windows.
Controversy later emerged over Bylaw 6061, namely that the prohibition of new buildings was causing rents in existing buildings to skyrocket with rents increasing by 10% to 35%. A collapse in the property market in 1913-1914 followed by the advent of World War I resulted in a shift of public focus away from the construction of new apartment buildings in Toronto. During World War I, a handful of apartment buildings were constructed in Toronto, followed by an increase after the war that peaked with a building boom in 1928. However, construction of new apartment buildings declined over the following years due to the Great Depression. Notably, the construction of new apartment buildings in many areas required individual bylaws to be passed allowing an exemption for each site. Bylaw 6061 was altered in 1941 on the advice of the City Solicitor who considered it "was illegal for the Council to authorize violations of residential bylaws by passing amending by-laws, if such action was taken for the benefit of private individuals, and not in the general public interest." Dennis (1989) further discerns that post-1941 the practice continued but "whole blocks or streets, rather than individual lots, were specified whenever an exemption was made."
Following World War II, the first apartment high-rise buildings were built in Toronto in the 1950s to 1970s. Condominiums first emerged in Toronto in the 1970s and 1980s.
Architects of Sussex Court — James Augustus Ellis and/or Arthur Richard Denison:
The Canadian Contract Record journal, the Biographical Dictionary of Architects in Canada: 1800-1950, and the City of Toronto Heritage Register identify the architect of 21 Sussex Avenue / 380 Huron Street as James Augustus Ellis. However, a historical newspaper article — published in The Globe at the time of the building's completion — identifies the architect of 21 Sussex Avenue / 380 Huron Street as Arthur Richard Denison. Further research is required to determine whether 21 Sussex Avenue / 380 Huron Street was a joint project between these two prominent Toronto architects. Biographies of these architects are available on the Biographical Dictionary of Architects in Canada: 1800-1950 website:
James Augustus Ellis: http://www.dictionaryofarchitectsincanada.org/node/1556
Arthur Richard Denison: http://dictionaryofarchitectsincanada.org/node/1637
21 Sussex Avenue / 380 Huron Street as a Residential Building:
21 Sussex Avenue / 380 Huron Street was a residential apartment building from its construction in 1903/1904 until the late 1960s.
21 Sussex Avenue / 380 Huron Street originally contained 30 residential suites, alongside numerous amenities for its residents (see above). Early rental ads for the building published during the 1900s and 1910s note the building was exceptionally popular and that there was a long list of applicants for available suites. As of 1904, rents were between $32.50 and $60 per month depending on the size of the suite.
As of 1904/1905, early residents of the building included: Dr. Charles F. Knight — a dentist; Charles E. Morrison — the Secretary-Treasurer of the James Morrison Brass Manufacturing Company; and the Lefroy family, which consisted of Augustus G. Lefroy (a clerk at the Imperial Bank), Ernest B. Lefroy (a cashier at the Toronto Mortgage Company), and Harold B. Lefroy (a clerk at the Canada Landed & National Investment Company Ltd.) Please note that this list of residents is not complete, as unfortunately a full list of residents was not published in the City of Toronto Directory for this year.
The 1909/1910 City of Toronto Directory subsequently provides resident-related information for 26 of the suites:
Suite 1: Charles Canon — the manager of A. T. Reid & Company. A. T. Reid & Company manufactured neckwear and belts and was based at 266-274 King Street West.
Suite 2: Joseph McRae.
Suite 3: Henry Brophy — the manager and president of the Toronto News Company.
Suite 4: John E. Robertson.
Suite 11: Rex E. Nicholson — co-owner of Nicholson & Ritchie. Nicholson & Ritchie manufactured iron, steel, and coke.
Suite 12: Luelle MacBeth — the widow of John MacBeth.
Suite 14: Walter G. Haynes — an associate of Mackenzie & Company. Mackenzie & Company were importers and dealers of high-class artwork and were based at 95 Yonge Street. Mackenzie & Company also operated the Matthews Art Gallery.
Suite 15: Absent.
Suite 16: Marie White.
Suite 21: Robert L. Gibson — a proprietary medicine manufacturer with his office at 88 Wellington Street West.
Suite 22: Robert W. Harrington.
Suite 23: Absent.
Suite 24: Charles W. Clinch — the manager of the Molson's Bank branch at 114 Bay Street.
Suite 25: Killaly (Kelly) Gamble, OLS, DLS — an associate of Speight & Van Nostrand. Speight & Van Nostrand is a land surveying and development firm, still active as of 2022.
Suite 31: Marmaduke A. Rawlinson — the secretary-treasurer of M. Rawlinson. Founded in 1855, M. Rawlinson was Toronto's first moving and storage company.
Suite 32: Andrew Darling — the owner of Andrew Darling & Company. Andrew Darling & Company manufactured clothing and was based at 96-104 Spadina Avenue.
Suite 34: Myra Kent.
Suite 35: The Lefroy family, which consisted of: Augustus G. Lefroy (a clerk at the Imperial Bank), Ernest B. Lefroy (a cashier at the Toronto Mortgage Company), and Harold B. Lefroy (a clerk at the Canada Landed & National Investment Company Ltd.)
Suite 41: Mary Eakins.
Suite 42: James Short McMaster — the treasurer of McMaster University. James Short McMaster was a nephew of Senator William McMaster and Susan Moulton, who founded the university in 1887. Prior to serving as McMaster University's treasurer, James Short McMaster was a wholesale merchant.
Suite 43: Adelia Elmensdorf — the widow of Charles A. Elmensdorf.
Suite 44: Frederick C. Henderson — the director of the Toronto operations of the Oxley-Enos Company. The Oxley-Enos Company manufactured lighting and other household fixtures.
Suite 45: Charles Fellows.
Suite 46: Colin W. Postlethwaite — the harbourmaster of Toronto Harbour.
Suite 48: Mrs. Fenton Arnton — a teacher at Moulton College.
Suite 49: George W. Cook — the manager of D. B. Martin Ltd. D. B. Martin Ltd. was an abattoir and cold storage facility located at the corner of St. Clair Avenue West and Keele Street.
Suite 51: Harry Dallas — a co-owner of McLaren & Dallas. McLaren & Dallas were wholesale merchants of boots, shoes, and rubbers and were based at 30 Front Street West.
Please note that many of the residents listed above likely lived at 21 Sussex Avenue / 380 Huron Street with their families.
Later Residents of Note:
Dr. Elsie Gregory MacGill resided at Sussex Court with her aunt in 1933. Dr. MacGill was the first woman in Canada to receive a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering (1927) and was the world's first woman to earn an aeronautical engineering degree (1929). Dr. MacGill was also an active and prominent feminist and women's rights activist.
