Lieutenant Governor John Graves Simcoe founds the town of York (now Toronto) on the north shore of Lake Ontario, making it the location of Upper Canada’s new capital. Plans get under way to construct buildings at York, including the province’s first purpose-built Legislature.
The first meetings of the Legislative Assembly of Upper Canada at York (now Toronto) took place in June, 1797. The Palace of Government – the name of the colony’s new Parliament Buildings – is the town’s first brick building, located on Front Street East.
Captured by American soldiers during the Battle of York in 1813, the first Mace of Upper Canada was displayed at the US Naval Academy Museum until it was returned to Ontario in 1934. It is currently on display at the Legislative Assembly of Ontario.
