#OTD 1927 Union Station opened (the third iteration of the station). This view of Front Street however, only existed for a short period of time! As one building rose on the south side of the street, another was soon to be demolished on the north side. Before construction began on the Royal York Hotel in 1927, the Queen’s Hotel formerly stood immediately across the road from the new station. Originally the Sword’s Hotel in the mid-19th century, the building was renamed the Queen’s Hotel by the 1860s and experienced extensive renovations and expansions over the next few decades. With luxurious furnishings and a prominent central location by a transit hub, the hotel was known to be popular among government officials, visiting dignitaries, and those in town on business. As the new Union Station building was underway, the Queen’s Hotel was purchased by Canadian Pacific Railway in 1927, who took over the site with ambitions to replace it with the largest hotel in the Commonwealth. The ...