In 1860, Edward, Prince of Wales (who would become King Edward VII), opened a large park in the center of Toronto. Named in honor of his mother, Queen Victoria, Queen’s Park would become the heart of the city’s cultural, educational, and governmental functions, an intersection that it still occupies today.

The entirety of Queen’s Park was once owned by King’s College, now the University of Toronto. The area became so popular with locals that in 1858, the city and university agreed to a 999 year lease, and when Queen’s Park opened, it was Canada’s first municipal park.

In 1879, the province of Ontario exercised its option (included with the land agreement) to build a provincial legislature building in Queen’s Park. Completed in 1892, the Ontario Legislative Building is stunning, reminiscent of the chateaux constructed by the Trans-Canada Railway all across the country. The building is open for tours, but even just accessing the outside is beautiful. The best views are from the south, on the opposite side of the building from the main green area of the park.

A walk through parts of the university campus is a pleasant way to explore the area. While it only dates back to 1827, the University of Toronto has some pretty cool looking old buildings. The campus is open to the public, so a meander is sure to include some architectural gems. The Philosopher’s Walk, just inside the campus from Queen’s Park, is a lovely green space, with spring bringing beautiful flowering trees.

However, the tourist highlight of a visit to Queen’s Park is the Royal Ontario Museum. Also known as ROM (pronounced as a single word), this combination art, antiquities, and science museum has been in existence since 1912, serving as a sort of one-size-fits-all experience for visitors regardless of their specific interests. And visit, they do, with about 1.5 million annually, and this despite current renovations that have a portion of the collections closed.

The building itself is a gem, with a large central atrium, a mosaic domed entry hall, and beautiful carvings in front. The sheer size of the central hall is evidenced by the way it dwarfs Gordo, a ninety foot long Barosaurus skeleton. And don’t miss the totem poles inside of the front staircases.

Exhibits take up several floors. Some can be crowded with school children on field trips; others seem completely empty during my Wednesday morning visit. The kids seem to stick to the more science and nature oriented halls, so I skip over those to give them their space, but the remainder of ROM still occupies a few hours of reasonably quick perusing of just about each and every room. While the collection holds an astonishing 13 million pieces, there are, of course, some that stand out.

The collection of furniture and decorative art is reminiscent of a miniature Victoria and Albert in London. Some pieces are set up individually, while others are in carefully curated room set-ups. While the focus is on British and Canadian collections, stunning French parlors and more are also visible.

Earth’s Treasures is a lovely room that houses around 3,000 examples of rocks and minerals. I love exhibits like this, but the highlight is one of the largest golds coin ever minted. While the face value is one million Canadian dollars, the gold in this 100 kilo (220 pound) coin is worth much more. Five were minted, and fascinatingly one was stolen from a museum in 2017. But this one is here, it is big and shiny, and it is worth stopping in to see.

However, if there is a single room that stands out over all others within the Royal Ontario Museum, it is the one dedicated to the First Nations, Canada’s pre-European indigenous population. Totem poles, costumes, and historical artifacts sit next to stories of the various tribes, their lifestyles, and their interactions with European colonial settlers. The bead work, especially, is incredible.

While most first-time visitors to Toronto head immediately downtown (click here to read about that) to see the more famous sights there, a day spent walking Queen’s Park and exploring the Royal Ontario Museum is a great way to live some of the history of the city, and to appreciate some wonderful architecture and open greenery. Don’t miss it!

Thank you to the Royal Ontario Museum for hosting my visit!

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