Etobicoke Eatonville Neighbourhood

Eatonville History

Eatonville began as a farming community in the early 1800's. One of its first residents was Peter Shaver who donated a portion of his property at Bloor Street and Highway 27 for the local school. This school was affectionately known as the "Swamp School" because of all the frogs that lived in the bushes and marshes nearby.

Peter Shaver's homestead and adjoining farms were purchased in the 1890's and early 1900's by Timothy Eaton the patriarch of Eaton's Department Store. Eaton donated a portion of his land to the local school which was renamed "Eatonville" in his honour. Eventually this entire area also became known as Eatonville.

The Eaton Farm provided meat, poultry, vegetables and dairy products for Eatons stores right up until the early 1950's when it was subdivided for residential development. In 1955, the rapid growth of this community led to the building of the present day Eatonville School on Rossburn Drive, near the site of the original "Swamp School" where it all began.

Ed Note: Peter Shaver's "Applewood House", was relocated in 1980 to 450 The West Mall where it now stands as a historic museum.

Eatonville Overview

Eatonville is a family oriented neighbourhood that is home to people of a wide mix of incomes and cultural backgrounds. Residents of this neighbourhood still refer to their home as being in Etobicoke which is not surprising as the former Etobicoke City Hall and City Centre are located within Eatonville's boundaries on the West Mall, south of Burnhamthorpe Road.

The only two references to the pre-subdivision Eatonville are the Eatonville Public School on Rossburn Drive and the Eatonville Public Library located at 430 Burnhamthorpe Road.

For info on Eatonville's finest condominium buildings click on any "Eatonville" on this page.

The Toronto neighbourhood text profiles, sketches and maps displayed on this website were published in Your Guide to Toronto Neighbourhoods, are copyright Maple Tree Publishing and have been reproduced by the Toronto Real Estate Board under license.