Kensington Market

Kensington Market is a distinctive multicultural neighbourhood in Downtown Toronto. The Market is an older neighbourhood and one of the city's most well-known. In November 2006, it was designated a National Historic Site of Canada. Robert Fulford wrote in 1999 that "Kensington today is as much a legend as a district. The (partly) outdoor market has probably been photographed more often than any other site in Toronto."

Its approximate borders are College St. on the north, Spadina Ave. on the east, Dundas St. W. to the south, and Bellevue Ave. to the west. Most of the neighbourhood's eclectic shops, cafes, and other attractions are located along Augusta Ave. and neighbouring Nassau St., Baldwin St., and Kensington Ave.

The Kensington neighbourhood began to change in the early 1900's when Jewish immigrants from Eastern Europe, started to settle here. Excluded from the Toronto business community, Kensington's Jewish families opened stalls in front of their houses, and sold goods to each other. This Jewish market was the start of an old world marketplace in the heart of the Kensington neighbourhood.

Kensington's Victorian row- houses are small to moderate in size and feature many decorative accents. These houses were built between the 1870's and 1890's.

The houses in the heart of the Kensington Market, have market stalls on their front lawns. Many of these houses are oriented to the rear of the property where tiny little laneways offer privacy from the hustle and bustle of the marketplace.

The Kensington neighbourhood is presently being revitalized by a handful of new housing projects. These new developments include Victorian inspired townhomes that are situated on Oxford Street and the Kensington Market Lofts, a unique condominium project situated in three former George Brown College buildings on Baldwin and Nassau Streets.

Information from Wikipedia.org