Casa Loma, Toronto

We purchased a city pass in Toronto so we could see several attractions for a discounted price. One of the places was Casa Loma. Here is a little history.

Sir Henry Pellatt and Lady Mary Pellatt

Sir Henry Pellatt, the dreamer behind Toronto's famous landmark Casa Loma, was born to British parents in Kingston, Ontario on January 6, 1859.  Ambitious from his youth, Sir Henry Pellatt left his studies at Upper Canada College when he was seventeen to pursue a career in commerce in the family business. By the age of 23, he became a full partner in his father's stock brokerage firm Pellatt and Pellatt. That year also marked his marriage to Mary Dodgeson whom he met when he was twenty.

Even as a young man, Henry Pellatt embraced the spirit of the family motto "Devant Si Je Puis" or "Foremost If I Can". When he met his bride-to-be, Sir Pellatt had already achieved local reknown in 1879 for beating the U. S. amateur champion in the running of the mile. Travels in Europe gave him the love for fine art and architecture which would spur his vision of Casa Loma-"House on the Hill." This romantic side was mirrored by his other lifelong passion-his involvement with the military, specifically the Queen's Own Rifles.

A luxurious bathroom

Lady Mary Pellatt's quarters

A rug in Sir Henry Pellatt's room

Guest Room

View from the top

In one if the towers

A huge pool table in the cigar room

Amazing woodwork

A painting of Sir Henry Pallett

An organ in the great room

Dining room

Solarium

Gardens

That's the tower we were in!

For more information on Casa Loma check out the website. It is a really interesting story. 

http://www.casaloma.org/about.history.gk