Old Toronto

Old Toronto is the retronym of the original city of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, from 1834 to 1998. It was first incorporated as a city in 1834, after being known as the Town of York, and became part of York County. In 1954, it became the administrative headquarters for Metropolitan Toronto. It expanded in size by annexation of surrounding municipalities, reaching its final boundaries in 1967. Finally, in 1998, it was amalgamated with the other "Metro" cities (York, North York, Etobicoke, Scarborough); and the Borough of East York, into the present-day "megacity" of Toronto. This was not a traditional annexation of the surrounding municipalities (where a city absorbs the said municipalities but officially remains the same city), but rather a new municipal entity that is the successor of the original city.Historically, "Old Toronto" referred to Toronto's boundaries before the Great Toronto Fire of 1904, when much of city's development was to the east of Yonge Street. Post-amalgamation, the former city is variously referred to as the "former city of Toronto" or "Old Toronto". It is sometimes referred to as "downtown" since Downtown Toronto is located in the central part of the district, or as "The Core". Old Toronto has a high population density and would be the densest in Canada (third most in North America) among cities with a population over 250,000 if it were still a separate city.