Yorkville was named after the Town of York, the forerunner to the City of Toronto. Yorkville was incorporated as a Village in 1853. The initials and trades of Yorkville’s first council members are displayed on the Village coat of arms which is now on the tower of the historic Yorkville Fire Hall, located at 34 Yorkville Avenue. 

In 1883, Yorkville had the distinction of being the first village annexed by the City of Toronto. Despite being part of a big city, Yorkville has always maintained its own identity. It had gained notoriety first as a hippie haven in the 1960’s, and then became known as a shopping mecca in the 1980’s and 1990’s. 

Yorkville’s gentrified Victorian houses were built mainly between 1870 and 1895. These historical homes exhibit many decorative features including ornamental brick patterns, gingerbread gables, cast iron fences, and richly landscaped gardens. Many of Yorkville’s houses are listed on the Toronto Historical Board’s Inventory of Heritage Properties.

Yorkville is Toronto’s most cosmopolitan neighbourhood. It has wide appeal with domestic home buyers from within the Greater Toronto Area, as well as across Canada and internationally. Yorkville enjoys the cache of a being situated in prime midtown, and the convenience of also being within easy reach of the hustle and bustle of downtown Toronto. 

Yorkville is one of Toronto’s most dynamic neighbourhoods. It is an eclectic mix of luxury condominium apartment buildings, commercial office towers, five-star hotels, theatres, gourmet restaurants, a prestigious shopping district and picture postcard Victorian homes. The commercial heart of Yorkville is located on both Yorkville Avenue and on Cumberland Street. The transition to Yorkville’s quiet residential pocket is gradual, as Victorian houses shift from retail to residential uses in a seamless pattern that is uniquely Yorkville.