Edmund Burke one of Canada’s greatest architects
On my walk at Mt. Pleasant Cemetery, Toronto, along with fellow walkers, we discovered the grave of one of Canada’s greatest architects, Edmund Burke.
Born in Toronto in 1851, Edmund likely absorbed much from his father, William, a prominent lumber merchant and builder. A gifted student, Edmund attended Jesse Ketchum School in the Yorkville area before graduating at the top of his class from Upper Canada College. In 1872, he joined his mother’s brother’s architectural firm, beginning a remarkable career.
Burke’s signature style was known as “Queen Anne” or “free Renaissance,” popular between 1890 and 1914. This style is characterized by steep roofs with cross gables or large dormers, asymmetrical façades, and expansive porches adorned with decorative wood trim. One beautiful example of this remains on Lowther Avenue in the Annex — a true architectural gem.
After achieving success designing homes and churches—including Jarvis Street Baptist, Trinity-St. Paul’s, and the Royal Conservatory of Music building beside the ROM—Burke was commissioned by Robert Simpson to design a six-storey department store at Queen and Yonge streets. Completed in 1893, the Robert Simpson Co. Ltd. store was Canada’s first commercial steel structure and remains a stunning piece of architectural history today.
Jarvis Street Baptist Church, Toronto. Also the location my parents married.
His crowning achievement came in 1913 when Toronto’s Commissioner R.C. Harris, known for the water treatment plant named in his honour, commissioned Burke to design the Prince Edward Viaduct, commonly known as the Bloor Street Viaduct, spanning the Don River Valley. Opened in 1918, this engineering marvel was built to accommodate mass transit, with an upper deck for streetcars and a lower deck for rail transport. At a cost of over CA$2,480,000—a figure that sparked controversy at the time—the viaduct’s price tag is roughly equivalent to the cost of a single-family home in Toronto today.
Recently passed Edmund Burke’s great accomplishment, the Bloor Viaduct, Toronto and the pub at the other end to honour this great architect and visionary.
Edmund Burke died in Toronto on January 2, 1919. He was 68. There is no relationship to the Irish born philosopher, Sir Edmund Burke.
1851-1919
Bloor Viaduct as it was under construction circa 1919.
