Casa Loma

Henry Pellatt made a fortune bringing hydroelectric power from Niagara to Toronto and spent much of it on Casa Loma, built between 1911 and 1914 to a Gothic revival design by E.J. Lennox: ninety-eight rooms, an eight-hundred-foot tunnel to the stables, secret passages behind the panelling, and one of the first private lifts in the country. It cost around three and a half million dollars. Pellatt's business collapsed, the city raised his taxes sharply, and he left in 1923 having lived there under ten years, with the contents auctioned. The city took it over and it now operates as a museum and event venue, used constantly for filming.

History

In 1903 the financier Henry Pellatt bought 25 lots on the hill, and his architect E. J. Lennox began building in 1911 with the stables, potting shed and hunting lodge, where Pellatt lived while the house went up; it took 299 workers three years, cost about $3.5 million, and with 98 rooms was the largest private residence in Canada. When the city raised its property taxes from $600 a year to $1,000 a month, Pellatt, already in financial trouble, auctioned off his art and furnishings and left in 1923; the city seized the house for unpaid taxes, and from 1937 the Kiwanis Club of West Toronto ran it as a tourist attraction (Wikipedia, Casa Loma).

What to look for

• The Gothic revival rooms - conservatory, library, oak room and suites.
• The tunnel - an eight-hundred-foot passage to the stables and carriage house.
• The towers - Scottish and Norman towers with city views.
• The secret passages - hidden stairs behind panelling in the study.

When to go

Year-round; the castle runs seasonal programming including Halloween and Christmas installations. Weekday mornings are calmest. Gardens open roughly May to October.

Practical notes

Much of the original furniture was auctioned in 1924, so rooms are furnished with period pieces rather than Pellatt's own. It is heavily used for events and parts can be closed. Tickets are expensive.

Nearby

The Distillery District lies southeast; High Park is west.

Key facts