Treccani Milano is celebrating its fourth year in the Yorkville area. While at present Yorkville is the best place to find the highest quality fashion, tailors and bespoke shoes, it wasn't always this way.

You may be surprised to learn about the dazzling past of the Yorkville area.

In the spirit of the area Yorkville was founded by an entrepreneur named Joseph Bloor (Yes, that Bloor). The village was named with inspiration from the Town of York, the precursor to the City of Toronto. After which Yorkville was officially incorporated as a village in 1853.

The area was first developed as a small village with only two main businesses.

The first of these industry's was the Yorkville Brick Yards in today's Ramsden Park. This company manufactured the bricks for the historic Yorkville Avenue Fire Hall. This same hall  can still be seen today with the renowned yellow bricks the business was famous for at the time.

The second most prominent business opportunity in early Yorkville was the many beer breweries; the two most popular being the Severn Brewery and the Joseph Bloor Brewery.

In 1883 the City of Toronto decided it was time to annex the small village of Yorkville making it an integral part of the soon bustling city. However despite this grouping Yorkville retained its own unique personality.

Surprisingly enough Yorkville was once known as "the Canadian capital of the hippie movement." Young people would come in droves to check out the hip village in the city. The places to be were the Purple Onion and The Myna Bird to hang out and be inspired by the talent, which resonated between the walls of these establishments.

Yorkville reached its peak for Hippie sounds and popularity of the youth in the 1960s. It became a mecca for bohemian culture. It was also home to many hugely popular Canadian artists. Just a few of them are Joni Mitchell, Neil Young, Buddy Guy and Gordon Lightfoot. Not to mention great literary genius' such as Margaret Atwood, Gwendolyn MacEwen and Dennis Lee.

Not only were there some soon-to-be famous people in Yorkville but also some very famous restaurants, pubs and music houses. There were over 40 clubs, coffee houses, and galleries in Yorkville featuring live music in the late 1960's. Chief among these is The Riverboat, as it was the starting point for many young and extremely talented artists. 

After this burst of culture the music scene died down and the hippie era subsided Yorkville began to flourish as the high end fashion district it is known for today. In the 1970's through to the 80's many stores began to pop up bringing along with it chic cafes, art galleries and salons. The first among these were Harry Rosen, Holt Renfrew and other international designer brands.

Another event took place in the 1980's that changed the skyline more than the streets.

20 new condominium towers were soon built and another 6 major towers are planned, increasing the area population by at least 10,000 people. And so a new form of expression rolls in on the coattails of high end fashion boutiques and beautiful galleries bursting with local talent.

Today from Bloor street at Avenue Road all the way to Yonge street is the third most expensive shopping street in North America and the seventh most expensive shopping street in the world.

Yorkville is now known for its extremely high quality products from all over the world.

In this atmosphere Treccani Milano fits right in, adding our own take on fine Italian leather and bespoke services. That and the constant celebrities being spotted at Sassa Fraz just across the street.

Treccani Milano is the very middle of it. Take a look at the map below for a birds eye view of the Yorkville area.

References:

http://www.bloor-yorkville.com/About-Us/History.aspx 

http://www.torontoneighbourhoods.net/neighbourhoods/midtown/yorkville/history

http://spacing.ca/toronto/2009/06/25/throwback-thursday-yorkville-and-the-death-of-torontos-first-scene/

Images:

http://indie88.com/what-put-an-end-to-the-free-love-in-yorkville/

http://www.fourseasons.com/toronto/my_four_seasons/haute_canada/

http://freshlyeducatedmen.com/2009/08/25/the-world-of-luxury/