Discover Toronto's history as told through its plaques

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Dentonia Park Farm

Photos by Alan L Brown - Posted September, 2006

On the west side of Dentonia Park, east of Dawes Road just north of Danforth Avenue, you may be able to see this plaque on a post underneath a tree. Erected by the East York Historical Society in 2006, it tells how the farm became integrated into our city over the years. Here's the plaque text:

Coordinates: 43.693663 -79.294488

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In 1897, Walter Massey, President of Massey-Harris Company, purchased about 100 ha of land to establish an experimental farm. Walter named the farm "Dentonia Park" after his wife, Susan Marie Denton. The farm produced eggs and poultry as well as trout. Dentonia was also the home of a prized dairy herd that sparked the formation of the City Dairy Company. The City Dairy produced the first pasteurized milk in Canada, which helped to combat tuberculosis and typhoid fever among Toronto children. In 1901, Walter Massey passed away after contracting typhoid fever, but Susan continued to operate Dentonia Park Farm well after his death. Walter's brother, Chester (and his children Vincent and Raymond) and Susan's children (Ruth, Madeline, Dorothy and Denton) also lived at Dentonia. The Goulding Estate was built in 1921 for Dorothy Massey Goulding.
In the benevolent tradition of the Massey family, Susan donated 25 ha of Dentonia, in memory of her husband, to the City of Toronto around 1926, for use as a public park to be named "Dentonia Park". Susan generously donated her home (built in 1914) along with 16 ha of Dentonia, to Crescent School (an independent school for boys) in 1933. Until Susan's death in 1938, she continued to live at Dentonia with her daughter Madeline.
Crescent School operated at Dentonia until 1969 when it moved and the property was developed into the Crescent Town neighbourhood. Prior to 1900, the neighbourhood south of the Massey Farm developed, a portion of which became part of East York Township in 1924. Many other residential and recreational areas were created out of the Dentonia Park Farm, including the City of Toronto's Dentonia Park Golf Course and part of Taylor Creek Park. The Dentonia Athletic Field continues to serve the community with a soccer field, baseball diamond, basketball court, cricket pitch, splash pad and playground.

Related Toronto plaque
Burwash Hall Victoria University
Massey Hall
Vincent Massey

More
Parks and Recreation

Here are the visitors' comments for this page.

> Posted November 24, 2018
I live at 45 Secord. When I bought this house 31 years ago a nearby elderly resident (85 at the time) told me that it used to be a horses' stable and she remembered the horses delivering the milk when she was a young girl. That would make sense considering the odd shape of this home and the proximity to this dairy farm. The structure of my home was gauged to have been built around 1907 when I had it inspected before buying it.
Laurelie Campeau [email protected]

> Posted August 5, 2018
I recall my mother telling me about the Massey family and home. Mom's parents, Dr. Charles Hastings and his his wife, Allie, were friends of the Massey's and she used to toboggan with Denton on their property when she was a little girl. She had a preteen crush on Denton but she grew to nearly 6 feet tall and ended up towering over Denton - so that was the end of that!
Suzanne Ecclestone [email protected]

> Posted June 8, 2013
In Dentonia Park, circa 1937, I remember seeing not only Magnolia and Blackburnian Warblers, but also the Hooded Warbler and the Louisiana Water Thrush.
A.J. (Jim) Flatman.

> Posted July 30, 2012
I lived on Rosevear Ave. and as a child skated on Massey Pond which has been filled in. Our family used Dentonia Park for socializing and winter sports, skating, tobogganing. As teenagers we often watched the baseball games at the park and hooked up with our friends. These memories will forever stay with me and even though the park has changed over the years, memories of events and friends will stay with me forever.

> Posted January 8, 2012
Frederick Heather was the Vice-President of the Dentonia Park Cricket Club in Toronto, which won the Godin Cup in 1937 and the Continental Life Trophy in 1938 as City Champions. Heather became the Public Relations Officer for Dentonia Park Cricket in 1941. He was inducted into the U.S. Hall of Fame and there is a campaign to make him the first cricketer to be recognized in Canada's Sports Hall of Fame.

> Posted December 11, 2011
The City Dairy had a sales competition in 1918 ... is there a list of individuals who competed? I have an item that belonged to one of them ... and would like to pass it along to that individual or his heirs.

> Posted July 18, 2011
Did you know that 39 Thyra Avenue was built in 1898 or 1899 for Walter Massey's secretary? I grew up in that house from 1962 to 1984.

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