Osgoode Hall

For the law school, seeOsgoode Hall Law School.

Osgoode Hall
Osgoode Hall was designed in a late-Palladian style.
General information
Status	Completed
Type	Office buildingandcourthouse
Architectural style	Palladian,Neoclassical
Address	130Queen StreetWest
Town or city	Toronto,Ontario
Country	Canada
Coordinates	43°39′08″N79°23′08″W
Current tenants	Law Society of Ontario; Ontario Court of Appeal; Ontario Superior Court of Justice
Named for	William Osgoode
Construction started	1829
Completed	1832
Owner	Law Society of Ontario& Government of Ontario
Technical details
Floor count	3
Grounds	6 acres (2.4 ha)
Design and construction
Architect(s)	John EwartandWilliam Warren Baldwin
National Historic Site of Canada
Designated	1979
Ontario Heritage Act
Designated	1990

Osgoode Hallis a landmark building indowntown Toronto,Ontario, Canada. The original2+1⁄2-storey building was started in 1829 and finished in 1832 from a design byJohn EwartandWilliam Warren Baldwin.The structure is named forWilliam Osgoode,the firstChief Justice of Upper Canada(now theprovinceof Ontario).

It originally served to house the regulatory body for lawyers in Ontario along with its law school, formally established asOsgoode Hall Law Schoolin 1889, which was the only recognized professional law school for the province at the time.The original building was constructed between 1829 and 1832 in the late GeorgianPalladianandNeoclassicalstyles. It currently houses theOntario Court of Appeal,the Divisional Court of theSuperior Court of Justice,the offices of theLaw Society of Ontarioand the Great Library ofthe Law Society.

History

Osgoode Hall in 1856; the building was expanded from 1855 to 1857.

The 6-acre (2.4 ha) site at the corner of Lot Street (Queen Street Westtoday) and College Avenue (University Avenuetoday) was acquired by the Law Society in 1828.At the time, the location was on the northwest edge of the city, which has since grown around the building. It was originally bounded on its north side by Osgoode Street, and on its east side by a street that would eventually be known as Chestnut Street. The former no longer exists, and the latter now stops at Armoury Street, asNathan Phillips Squarenow lies to the east. Theporticoof Osgoode Hall's east wing was built at the head of Toronto's York Street to serve as aterminating vista,though it is now obscured by trees planted on the building's lawn. Osgoode Hall, together from which the Osgoode Hall Law School (affiliated as a professional school atYork University), received its name in honour of William Osgoode, which was lent in turn to the adjacentOsgoode subway station.

Betweenthe rebellions taking place in 1837-8until 1843, the hall was used as troopbarracks.When the Law Society regained possession in 1844, an expansion was designed byHenry Bowyer Lane;the West Wing and Library were built, with two domes (later removed) over the library to connect the two wings.In 1846 the Law Society entered into an agreement with the government to house the province'sSuperior Courtat the hall.Today, the building is jointly owned by the Law Society and theGovernment of Ontario.

From 1855 to 1857, the building was refurbished and enlarged again, according to a design by the firm Cumberland and Storm, to accommodate courts with the original 1829 building becoming the east wing. From 1880 to 1891, the building was again expanded twice in order to accommodate its law school.

The building was designated aNational Historic Site of Canadain 1979,and by the City of Toronto under theOntario Heritage Actin 1990.

Design

Great Library was designed by Cumberland and Storm

The Iron Gates of Osgoode Hall

Stairs for the members

Despite the expansions, the hall presents a unified design in the latePalladianstyle. The iron fence surrounding the lawns of Osgoode Hall has become a landmark in itself. Its distinctive iron gates are narrow and restrictive; it is a long-standing myth that they were designed to keeplivestockout of the grounds of the hall. Despite this, an incident in the 1950s occurred in which students unsuccessfully attempted to pass a cow through one of the gates.The gates were likely due to Victorian architectural fashion, rather than wandering cattle.

Twolibrariesare housed within Osgoode Hall: the Great Library of theLaw Society of Ontarioand a smaller library for judges. The Great Library was designed by Cumberland and Storm (1857–1860) and features an ornateplasterceiling,corkfloors, aniron spiral staircaseandetched glasswindows. A War Memorial byFrances Loring(1887–1968), sculpted in 1928, was added to the Great Library in honour of Ontario lawyers and law students who were killed during theFirst World War.Behind the Great Library (and accessible through it) is the American Room, designed by Burke and Horwood in 1895, a more intimate room with aspiral staircase.TheToronto Courthouseat 361 University Avenue, directly to the north, is accessible through a connectingtunnel.

• 
  Sculpture inside the hall
• 
  Osgoode Hall Dining Room
• 
  Hall Rooms
• 
  Hall lobby
• 
  Level 2 Courtroom
• 
  American Room

See also

• List of oldest buildings and structures in Toronto

External links

• Osgoode Hall Turns 175 - Documenting a LandmarkWeb exhibit at the Archives of Ontario
• Susan Law's personal Osgoode Hallmain site
• Audio Tours of Osgoode Hallfrom the Law Society of Upper Canada website.
• Visual Tour of Osgoode Hallfrom the Law Society of Upper Canada website.
• Osgoode Hall National Historic Site of Canada.Canadian Register of Historic Places.
• Information on Osgoode Hall tours and other heritage programson the Discover Ontario Museums website.