Located in present day Eglinton Park Park, “The Willows” Estate once belonged to James Lesslie.

Lesslie was a bookseller, a newspaper publisher and a reform politician against the “Family Compact”, a group of elites controlling the political system at the time.

Lesslie also helped establish the Mechanics Institute for adult education, which later became the Toronto Public Library. 

When Lesslie passed away, he gave half the estate to his widow, and the other half to John Gartshore, the farm and estate manager.

When Gartshore inherited the whole estate a few years later after Lesslie’s widow, Jacqueline also passed away, he built himself a bigger house on the estate and named the new house, Willowbank.

The original house on the estate, “The Willow’s” was demolished in 1910, but “Willlowbank” was sold to Toronto Hunt Club (a private fox hunting club).

As urbanization caught up with the area, the hunt club was re-located. Willowbank was converted back to a private residence. 

Willow means trees and shrubs growing near water with long and flexible branches. I love the gardening of the house, the use of shrubs in the front yard instead of lawn I think somehow compliments the name of the house, Willowbank.

592 Oriole Parkway, Eglinton Park