August 11, 2023

Frank Darling The architect that changed the face of Toronto.

Frank Darling: The Unsung Architect Who Shaped Toronto

On my walk through St. John’s Norway Cemetery in Toronto’s Beaches neighbourhood, I discovered the grave of a man I’ve long admired — Frank Darling, often called Canada’s own Frank Lloyd Wright. A towering figure in the city’s architectural history, Darling’s name might not be familiar to many today, but his buildings certainly are.

Born in 1850 in Scarborough Township, Darling was the son of an Anglican rector. His early life was rooted in modesty and tradition, but he would grow to become one of Toronto’s most visionary architects — helping to define the city’s skyline during a time of enormous growth and transition.

Among his most celebrated works:

The Toronto Club
MaRS Building (formerly the Toronto General Hospital)
Convocation Hall, University of Toronto
The Church of St. Mary Magdalene on Manning Avenue
One King West (original Dominion Bank headquarters)
The original Art Gallery of Ontario (pre-Frank Gehry)
The early Royal Ontario Museum
North Toronto Railway Station, now the LCBO at Summerhill
The majestic Canadian Bank of Commerce Building (now Commerce Court North)
And perhaps most beloved of all — the Bank of Montreal Building, now home to the Hockey Hall of Fame

These buildings are more than just architectural feats — they are touchstones of Toronto’s identity. Darling’s work combined Beaux-Arts grandeur, classical precision, and a sense of civic pride that still resonates today.

He stands alongside fellow greats E.J. Lennox and Edmund Burke as one of the foundational architects who helped shape a city that continues to evolve while honoring its past.

Frank Darling died on May 19, 1923, at the age of 73. He may rest quietly in the Beaches now, but his legacy lives on in stone, steel, and the daily rhythm of Toronto life.

1850-1923

Frank Darling’s architectural masterpiece, Convocation Hall (1907), University of Toronto.