Arts & Culture

Toronto Public Library's Preservation & Digitization Department has been digitizing Ontario-related content from our Special Collections for many years. 

You can access this content via the Virtual Reference Library or TPL's Digital Archive.

What types of materials can I research and discover in the digitized collections? 

We have a treasure trove high quality digital files of historical maps of Ontario. 

Or, explore some fascinating historical Ontario fire insurance plans. These provide detailed information about buildings and neighbourhoods at the time the plans were created. They can be used to determine when a building was built or demolished, what materials were used in the construction of a particular building, where the building was located on a lot, address numbers, and lot dimensions and shapes.

You can also search for historical views of Ontario towns and cities, like:

Niagara Falls

Or Collingwood

Or Sault Ste. Marie

Or North Bay

These are just a few examples of the rich Ontario resources available online via the Virtual Reference Library and TPL's Digital Archive to whet your curious appetite, free to the public for research and discovery.