175 acres given to the city after its owner's death

Sunnybrook Park

Joseph and Alice Kilgour turned scrubland into a showcase farm with fox hunts and prize cattle. After Joseph's death, Alice gave the entire estate to Toronto.

Sunnybrook Park was originally a 175-acre private farm and stables known as Sunnybrook Farm, purchased mostly as scrub land in 1909 by Joseph Kilgour, president of the Canada Paper Company, and his wife Alice. The couple transformed it into a showcase estate, raising prize-winning cattle and horses and hosting fox hunts and horse-jumping competitions.

A donation to the city

After Joseph's death, Alice Kilgour donated Sunnybrook Farm to the City of Toronto in 1928, preserving the land as parkland for future generations. The Kilgour barns were preserved and now serve as a public riding school, and a memorial plaque in nearby Wilket Creek Park still marks the family's gift.

Sources

North York Historical Society — Sunnybrook Farm

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