Don Brewery
A pioneering lager brewery in 19th-century Toronto.
The Don Brewery, which began as the Don Bridge Brewery and was later known as the Davies Brewery, operated in Toronto’s Corktown neighborhood along the Don River. During the 1800s, it ranked among the city’s largest breweries. Founded in 1844 by William and Robert Parks, it was purchased in 1848 by Thomas Davies, who had previously run the Yonge Street Brewery. In 1868, Davies handed management to his son Thomas Jr., and the business became Thomas Davies and Son. After Thomas Sr. died, Thomas Jr. took full control, bringing in his brother Joseph and later his brother Robert in 1872, at which point the company was renamed Davies and Brothers. The brewery expanded significantly, including a new lager plant built in 1877, making it an early lager producer in Toronto—years before O’Keefe and Cosgrave. In 1879, Robert left to start his own Dominion Brewery on Queen Street. Thomas Jr. served as a Toronto alderman from 1873 and advocated for the city’s acceptance of John Howard’s High Park, the creation of Riverdale Park, the takeover of the Furness Water Works, and the straightening of the Don River beside the brewery to accommodate a rail line. The brewery was sold in 1889 to the London & Colonial Financial Company for , a massive amount at that time. In 1903, English investors sold it to John Dick, and that same year it became the first unionized brewery in Toronto. A fire in 1907, blamed on spontaneous combustion, destroyed most of the site, though the southern lager building survived. The brewery shut down for good in 1910. Thomas Jr. ran unsuccessfully for mayor in 1913 and died in 1916, a few months after his brother Robert. Today, the surviving lager building, now called the Malthouse Building, has been converted into condominium apartments and was designated a heritage structure in 1996. The rest of the site is occupied by residential buildings.
Lore & Background
The brewery was founded in 1844 by William and Robert Parks as the Don Bridge Brewery. Thomas Davies, who had been running his own Yonge Street Brewery, bought the brewery from the Parks in 1848. In 1868, Davies enlisted his son Thomas Jr. to manage the brewery, and its name changed to Thomas Davies and Son. After Thomas Sr. died, Thomas Jr. took charge and later enlisted his brother Joseph and then his brother Robert in 1872, renaming the company Davies and Brothers. They expanded the brewery extensively, building a new plant to make lager in 1877, making it an early adopter of lager brewing in Toronto. In 1879, Robert opened his own brewery, the Dominion Brewery, a few blocks west on Queen Street. The brewery was sold to the London & Colonial Financial Company in 1889 for , a massive amount at that time. In 1903, it was sold to John Dick. The brewery was unionized in 1903, the first to unionize in Toronto. It was destroyed by fire, attributed to spontaneous combustion, in 1907, and shut down completely in 1910. Only the southern lager brewery building survived the fire.
Reader's Guide
The Don Brewery's significance lies in its role as one of the largest breweries in 19th-century Toronto and its early adoption of lager brewing in 1877, which preceded other major Toronto breweries such as O'Keefe and Cosgrave by several years. Its sale in 1889 for CA$1.2 million was considered a massive amount at that time. The brewery also holds the distinction of being the first brewery to unionize in Toronto, in 1903. Thomas Davies Jr., who managed the brewery, was also a civic figure: he served as a City of Toronto alderman from 1873, was a proponent of the City accepting John Howard's High Park, led the movement to create Riverdale Park, advocated for the City to take over the Furness Water Works, and pushed to straighten the Don River next to the brewery, which made room for a rail line. After the brewery's closure, the surviving lager brewery building was converted into condominium apartments known as the Malthouse Building and was designated a heritage structure in 1996. The site is now occupied by residential buildings.
Did You Know?
- The brewery was originally founded as the Don Bridge Brewery in 1844 by William and Robert Parks.
- It was an early adopter of lager brewing in Toronto, building a new lager plant in 1877.
- The brewery was sold in 1889 for CA$1.2 million, a massive amount at that time.
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