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The skyline of Toronto
 Flag

Nickname(s):T.O., T-Dot, Hogtown, The Queen City, Toronto the Good, The
City Within a Park

Motto: Diversity Our Strength

TORONTO

Torontois thecapital cityof theprovinceofOntarioinCanada. It is

also the largestcityin both Ontario and Canada. Found on the
north-west side ofLake Ontario, the City of Toronto has apopulation
of over 3 million people and even more people live in theregions
around it. All together, theGreater Toronto Areais home to over 6
million people making it the biggestmetropolitan areain Canada.
HISTORY
Toronto was created in 1793 byas the capital of what was then called
Upper Canada. At the time it was called the "Town ofYork" after the
Duke of York, but was given its current name in 1834. With the
CanadianConfederationin 1867 it became the capital of the newly-
created province of Ontario. Toronto was one of two cities (along
withMontrealinQuebec) that wanted to be the capital of Canada,
butQueen Victoriadecided thatOttawashould be the national
capital as it was located between the two.
HISTORY PART II
As the 19th century moved on, the city began to grow. This was mainly
because ofimmigration, where people from all over the world left
their home andmoved to Canada. Many of the immigrants were
Irishand they brought theirCatholic faithwith them when they left
Irelandbecause of theIrish Potato Famine.
DuringWorld War IandWorld War II, Toronto had an important part in
military, being used to train members of theCanadian Army. After
the wars, even more immigrants came to the city. The population
was becoming so big that theGovernment of Ontariodecided to
createMetropolitan Torontoin 1954, joining together a number of
localmunicipalities. These wereOld Toronto,York,East York,
North York,Etobicoke, andScarborough.
HISTORY PART IIII
By 1981, Toronto had more people than Montreal even though it was
created after Montreal. So the Ontario government decided to make
Toronto a "megacity" in 1998, and the firstmayorof Toronto was
Mel Lastman. As Toronto moved into the 21st century, it became
host to a number of worldwide events, such asWorld Youth Dayin
2002,WorldPridein 2014, and the2015 Pan American Games.
THINGS TO SEE AND DO

Toronto has ahumid continental climate.This is because although the

city is next to Lake Ontario, thelakeis not big enough to keep its
temperaturemild.
As the biggest city in Canada and one of the biggest in all of
North America, Toronto is a popular destination fortourists. It is
where you can find theCN Tower, the tallest free-standing (not
supported)structurein theAmericasand one of the
Seven Wonders of the Modern World. There are some other
buildings, such asCity Halland theRogers Centre, that are well-
known for their design style. There are also manyskyscrapers,
because many largebanksof Canada and othercompanieshave
their main offices in Toronto, and theToronto Stock Exchangewhich
is the biggeststock marketin Canada.
Because Toronto is the capital of Ontario, it is where
the provincial governmentmeets, and visitors can see how the
province is run by visiting thelegislaturein Queen's Park. There are
also a number of museums, including theRoyal Ontario Museum,
theArt Gallery of Ontario, theOntario Science Centre, the
Hockey Hall of Fame, and the headquarters of the
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. In the suburbs of the city is the
Toronto ZooandCanada's Wonderland, and many visitors also like
to go toNiagara Falls, just an hour's drive away from Toronto.
Toronto is full of places to visit, eat, shop, and enjoy. In thedowntown
area are a number ofshopping centres, including theEaton Centre,
St. Lawrence Market, and theDistillery District. There are also
severaltheatres, many which are run by theMirvishfamily. The
Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts, opened in June 2006, is
home to theCanadian Opera Companyand the
National Ballet of Canada. Across theharborare theToronto Islands,
the best-known of which isCentre Island.
Toronto has manysportsteams, some of which belong to
the most commonly-followed leaguesin North America. They
include theToronto Maple Leafsinice hockeyand the
Toronto Raptorsinbasketball, both of which play in the
Air Canada Centre. The nearby Rogers Centre is where the
Toronto Blue Jaysbaseballteam plays, and meanwhile,BMO Fieldin
Exhibition Placeis home to theToronto Argonautsin
Canadian footballandToronto F.C., asoccerclub.
Toronto is a verymulticulturalcity, because different people from
around the world have moved to Toronto to live since the 20th
century. There is a Chinatown, Little Italy, Little Tokyo, Greektown,
Little Portugal, and many more places where differentculturesare
kept alive. These people holdfestivalswhere they share their
culture to others, and among the most popular is the
Canadian National Exhibition(CNE), which happens every year in
August.