St. Charles Tavern, Toronto
by Gordon Richardson
Located on Yonge Street below a clock tower built in 1870 as part of Toronto Fire Hall No. 3, the Tavern opened in 1951. By the early 1960s, the St. Charles was known to the general public primarily as a gay bar. For many years it was the starting point for the drag queen promenade. In the 1970s, with dozens of hot, hip new gay bars opening up, the St. Charles became outdated and finally closed in 1987. The tower was designated a heritage property in 1974 and was finally given a restoration treatment in the mid 1990s.
The ArQuives collection includes a metal lamp from the Tavern, a swizzle stick, and a printed menu of the bar offerings of the time.
Click here for a The ArQuives blog post and photos from outside the St Charles Tavern on Halloween 1978.
Click here for a report on the tavern’s Halloween drag shows from the CBC Digital Archives.
More photos and video below.
Drink menu from St. Charles Tavern (photo credit: Gordon Richardson).
St Charles Tavern swizzle stick (photo credit: Michael Holmes).
St. Charles Tavern under the clock tower on Yonge Street (date and photo credit unknown).
Violin-shaped metal lamp from St. Charles Tavern (photo credit: Michael Holmes).
A look back at Toronto’s St. Charles Tavern by Xtra: