The Chinese in Early 20th Century Toronto: 158 Bay Street – Kwong Yoot Loy Co.
158 Bay Street in 1907 – Small building on the lefthand side
According to the 1899 City of Toronto Directory, 158 Bay Street was owned by a man named Jones W H and the building functioned as a restaurant. However, in the following year, 1900, the directory marked the same building as vacant. In 1901, 158 Bay Street came under the ownership of a man named Yee Nam who also ran a restaurant in the same building. The restaurant according to the 1901 City of Toronto Directory was named Kwong Yoot Loy Co. This information corresponds to Valerie Mah’s independent research paper titled, The Bachelor Society. A letter from Rev. Mackay of the United Church recorded that 3 adults of Chinese “religion” lived at this address. From what is known about the history of Chinese immigrants and considering that no children were recorded living in the building, the most likely conclusion is that these residents were Chinese bachelors who came to Canada to make a living.
Chinese residency at 158 Bay Street did not seem to be a long one according to the 1902 City of Toronto Directory. In the year after the Kwong Yoot Loy Co.’s inclusion in the directory, it states that a few barristers and artists took up residence where Kwong Yoot Loy Co. once stood. Of all the names included, none are of Chinese origin. This leads one to believe that the restaurant failed to succeed and therefore closed in favor of business and residential space.
360 Bay Street taken from the southeast corner of Bay and Temperance – April 9 2014
Currently, what once was 158 Bay Street is now a part of 360 Bay Street. On the Corner of Bay and Temperance Street where a restaurant once stood at the turn of the century is now a fast food restaurant called New York Fries/South St. Burger. The address change can most likely be attributed to the expansion of the Toronto harbourfront, causing the addresses to be shifted.
360 Bay Street taken from the southeast corner facing north on Bay and Temperance – April 9, 2014
Works Cited
“Bay Street Looking North from Temperance Street.” 1907. City of Toronto Archives, Fonds 1244, Item 43. Web. 7 April 2014.
Mah, Valerie. The bachelor society: a look at Toronto’s early Chinese community from 1878-1924. MA Thesis. 1978. Print.
The City of Toronto Directory. 1899. Microform. City of Toronto Archives. Location no. 264730-45, Reel 45.
The City of Toronto Directory. 1900. Microform. City of Toronto Archives. Location no. 264730-46, Reel 46.
The City of Toronto Directory. 1901. Microform. City of Toronto Archives. Location no. 264730-47, Reel 47.
The City of Toronto Directory. 1902. Microform. City of Toronto Archives. Location no. 264730-48, Reel 48.
“Ward 2 Division 2 (p 196) to Ward 3 Division 2 (p110).” The City of Toronto Assessment Rolls. 1901. Microform. City of Toronto Archives. Location no. 264736-39, Reel 147.
