TopNational Historic Site · 1854–1858St. Paul's Presbyterian Church / Former St. Andrew's Church56 James Street SouthPhoto: Graeme MacKay from Hamilton, Ontario, Canada · CC BY 2.0 · Commons file
Toronto, Hamilton & Buffalo Railway Station, Former, Hamilton, Ontario · Photo: Robbie.dmo · CC BY-SA 3.03historic places on the registers
History of Corktown · Canada’s heritage registers
3 historic places in Corktown, 2 of them top designations
On the list: a heritage railway station. Few towns have as much for their size as Corktown: 3.4 for every 10,000 residents, more than 91% of Canadian towns. Its oldest building on the record is St. Paul's Presbyterian Church / Former St. Andrew's Church, from 1854. Behind these stands one more local or provincial listing that only Wikidata records.
Historic places
3
3.4 per 10,000 residents
Highest designations
2
National Historic Sites and Classified Federal Heritage Buildings
Other federal designations
1
Recognized buildings, railway stations, lighthouses
Oldest building
1854
the first construction date on its record
Homes built before 1961
29%
typical town: 18%
In pictures
See Corktown’s history: 3 photos
Begin with Victoria Hall, then St. Paul's Presbyterian Church / Former St. Andrew's Church. Each of Corktown’s designated places has a photo. 3 different photographers shared them on Wikimedia Commons.
Photos from Wikimedia Commons, each credited to its photographer with its licence; names open the place’s page. Tap a photo to step through them full screen.
The map
Where Corktown’s history is
Every place on the registers inside the town, by its designation.
Highest designationsOther federal designations
Each dot is a place: point at it for the name, tap it for its page.
The 3, by tier
2 Highest designations1 Other federal designations
Parks Canada’s Directory of Federal Heritage Designations lists the places the Government of Canada has recognized; outside Québec, provincial and municipal listings come only through Wikidata, and only those with an encyclopedia article get a page.
Points from Wikidata (Parks Canada’s files carry none) and from Québec’s register, as mapped there.
Highest designations
2 places in Corktown with the highest designation
Designations came from 1990 to 1995. National Historic Sites and Classified Federal Heritage Buildings, Canada’s highest federal recognition. The oldest, St. Paul's Presbyterian Church / Former St. Andrew's Church, dates from 1854; the newest from 1887. Each one opens its own page.
TopNational Historic Site · 1887–1889Victoria Hall68 King Street EastPhoto: Jgrwatson · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Commons file
Other federal designations
One more federal designation in Corktown
Recognized Federal Heritage Buildings, heritage railway stations and lighthouses. Each one opens its own page.
FedHeritage Railway Station · 1931–1934Toronto, Hamilton & Buffalo Railway Station, Former, Hamilton, OntarioHunter & Hughson StreetsPhoto: Robbie.dmo · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Commons file
Homes by age
Old houses stand out in Corktown: 29% predate 1961, where most towns have 18%
Homes built from 2016 to 2021 are 3.7% of Corktown’s, about the typical 4.1%. Corktown built little from 2001 to 2015: 5.7% of its homes, where most towns have 15%. More of Corktown’s homes were built from 1961 to 1980 than in any other period: 44%.
29%
Before 1961
44%
1961–80
17%
1981–2000
5.7%
2001–15
3.7%
2016–21
CorktownTypical town
2021 Census, private dwellings by period of construction (Statistics Canada); the typical town is the middle Canadian town of 2,500 or more.
Towns its size
Corktown has the 4th most of 16 towns its size
Towns of 8,900 to 9,000 residents, by places on the registers.
Corktown3
Ahead of it: Chelsea, Saint-Jean-Baptiste and Coaticook. Their median is 0. 12 of them have nothing on the registers.
Neighbours
Corktown and its neighbours
In brief
Corktown in brief
Of the homes standing in Corktown, 29% went up before 1961, against 18% in the typical town. Together that makes 3 historic places, 2 with the highest designation. Of the 16 towns closest in size, just 3 have more historic places. The rest is about typical: the designations ran from 1990 to 1995.
How to read these numbers
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Protection. Federal recognition isn’t a planning control: buildings the federal government owns follow its heritage policy, while others are protected only by a provincial or municipal designation.
- The tiers. The highest designations are National Historic Sites, Classified Federal Heritage Buildings and Québec’s classements; then come the other federal designations; then provincial and local listings.
- Map points. Where a federal place sits on the map is Wikidata’s placing; the directory itself has no coordinates.
- The federal register. The federal list is complete and open: Parks Canada’s directory for the designations, the Canadian Register of Historic Places for what each one is and why it matters.
- People and events. National historic persons carry no place in the open file. They appear on a town’s page when born there (same name, same birth and death years) or when a historic place inside it carries their name and its record names them with their dates; national historic events don’t appear.
- The grade. This page gives no grade; history doesn’t count toward a Canadian town’s letter.
- Provincial and municipal lists. The local and provincial lists outside Québec aren’t published openly, so this page counts what Wikidata records and pages only the places an encyclopedia describes.
Questions about Corktown’s history
Which places in Corktown have the highest designation?
St. Paul's Presbyterian Church / Former St. Andrew's Church and Victoria Hall.
What is the oldest building in Corktown?
By its record, St. Paul's Presbyterian Church / Former St. Andrew's Church, from 1854 (National Historic Site).
How old are the homes in Corktown?
29% predate 1961, where the typical town has 18%.
Why might a heritage building in Corktown be missing here?
Only federal designations are fully open outside Québec. One more listing in Corktown is known through Wikidata alone, so it is counted, not paged.
Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Canada (Parks Canada).
Sources: Parks Canada, Directory of Federal Heritage Designations · Canadian Register of Historic Places (federal extract) · Wikidata (CC0) for map points, other names and articles · Statistics Canada, 2021 Census (homes by period of construction). Under the Statistics Canada Open Licence.
Adapted from Statistics Canada (Census of Population 2021, population estimates 2025, 2021 census boundaries) under the Statistics Canada Open Licence; this does not constitute an endorsement by Statistics Canada. Neighbourhood names in some cities © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).