History of Jarvis Collegiate: History of Jarvis Collegiate in Pictures: The Second Century 1907

History of Jarvis Collegiate in PicturesThe Second Century 1907 - 2007

Early 1900sMr. Lehmann's Physics Class

The science "master" at Jarvis at the beginning of the 1900s was Carl Lehmann, who must have been very good. In 1901 he gave the first known demonstration in Canada of 'wireless telegraphy' — "The audience ... was astonished at the wonderful invention, which conveyed messages from one end of the room to the other without any visible connection." On the same occasion, he exhibited colour photographs, rare in those days and produced by Lehmann's own method. He went on to become Principal of Malvern Collegiate in Toronto.

Minerva's Diary, pp. 73-4.

Jarvis Hockey Teams, 1908-1909

Girls' Hockey Club, 1908

Today Jarvis still has a girls' hockey team, but no longer a boys' team.

Boys' Hockey Club, 1909

1922

The New Building Under Construction on Jarvis Street

1924

The Grand Opening

The opening of the new building at 495 Jarvis Street in 1924 was an important event in the city, as you can see in this photo:

The cornerstone had been ceremoniously laid into place on an earlier date.

Here we see the cornerstone in place, just as it is today.

The March Up Jarvis Street

The new school opened with great fanfare. 800 students marched up Jarvis Street from the old building at Jarvis and College, led by the Principal and a former teacher who carried the old school bell. Bands were playing, and Union Jacks were flying in the April breeze.

As students file in behind them—boys and girls separately—the Principal, John Jeffries, and a former teacher, Janie Thomas (carrying the old school bell), pose proudly on the steps of the new school.

The present building as it looked when first opened in 1924

An artistic view from 1925

from under a shady tree

A pretty winter scene

... and a smart-looking auto

A chilly winter scene, 1926

1955

The South Wing Is Added

When the south wing was opened in 1955, the gymnasium drew most of the attention. A state-of-the-art facility, it was the largest in Canada. Today it is sometimes used by movie-makers.

Below the gym was a new rifle range.

The photos below show the gymnasium being constructed.

The new gym begins to take shape.

The entrance to the south wing when newly opened.

1970s

A familiar, slushy walk between the buildings, 1978.

The Beatles - yaaay! 1977.

With one of those historical murals by George Reid in the background.

"Cabot Discovers the North American Coast, 1497"

1976: Sitting in comfort on the running track

Major Construction

Below is a 1989 photo showing the completed buildings.

To the right, the south wing, added in 1955, is mostly hidden by the original 1924 structure. The roofs of the 1971 addition and the sports field can be seen behind the 1924 building.

The apartment buildings to the south were built during the 1980s.

By the late 1960s Jarvis was badly pinched for space, trying to provide for 1,250 students in a building designed for 1,050. The facilities—classrooms, band rooms, library, cafeteria, student lockers—were all inadequate. The old pool, the pride of the new building when it was opened in 1924, had become cramped, overcrowded and known as "cockroach heaven."

In 1967 approval was given for the spending of $2.5 million to renovate the old building and construct a major addition. A three-storey apartment building behind the school was expropriated, making room not only for a new addition but also a new sports field. No longer would the Jarvis football team have to take a bus up to Rosedale Park for games and practices. The Jarvis site expanded to four acres—puny, it is true, compared to the 25-acre schools being built in the suburbs but luxurious compared to the previous site and roomy for a downtown location.

The new facilities included two music rooms, a cafeteria, a girls' gymnasium, a swimming pool, a physics laboratory, three standard classrooms, two "team-teaching" rooms, the playing field, and an underground parking garage underneath the field.

The renovations included converting the old swimming pool into a theatre arts room and the old girls' gym into a library.

Construction was completed in 1971.

Two views of the construction phase

The new swimming pool under construction

1971: The completed pool

1980s and 1990s

Heliport for Wellesley Hospital

Wellesley Hospital was shut down and the land was sold for condominium towers after a "hospital restructuring" program announced by the Ontario Government in 1997.