Neighbourhood Profiles

Rathnelly

Rathnelly is a picturesque little enclave of homes, situated at the bottom of the Avenue Road Hill. It is home to a large number of artists, academics, writers, and media people.

Rathnelly residents organize a one-of-a-kind street festival, held either every year or “when the mood strikes”. The highlight of the festival is a much anticipated pancake breakfast that Rathnelly residents literally flip over.

HISTORY

Rathnelly's history revolves around the former Rathnelly house built in 1830 by Senator William McMaster. McMaster's home was named after his birth place in Rathnelly, Ireland. The McMaster estate remained intact until the 1880's, when it was sold to developers. The present day neighbourhood began shortly thereafter.

The Rathnelly neighbourhood made headlines in 1967, while celebrating Canada's 100th birthday. During the celebrations Rathnelly residents playfully declared themselves as an independent republic of Canada. To mark their independence, the "Republic of Rathnelly" elected a queen, organized a parade, formed an "air farce" of 1,000 helium balloons, and issued Republic of Rathnelly passports to everyone in the neighbourhood.

Over twenty years later the “Republic of Rathnelly” is still going strong.

**The Toronto neighbourhood text profiles, sketches and maps displayed on this web site were originally published in “Your Guide to Toronto Neighbourhoods”, are © Maple Tree Publishing Inc. and have been reproduced by Toronto Real Estate Board under license.