Welcome to Toronto!

• About 11,000 years ago the first indigenous people started to populate the north shore of Lake Ontario. 
• By the 17th century, these "indigenous peoples of Canada" opened trade with the French, who subsequently established trading posts in Toronto in the 18th century.
• Toronto passed to British control in 1763, and the creation of an urban community began 30 years later when colonial officials built Fort York and laid out a town site. 
• York became the capital of the province of Upper Canada (now Ontario) and grew slowly to only 720 people by 1814 as it sought to overcome numerous blows in its early years, including American attacks and occupations during the War of 1812.
• In 1834 this important commercial center of 9250 residents and was incorporated as the 'City of Toronto'.
• The population grew to around 50,000 by the time Canada had become a country in 1867.
• This industrial, commercial, financial, and institutional center was home to 208,000 by 1901 and rose to 667,500 by 1941.
• During these years, Toronto began to compete with Montreal as the nation's premier center, not only economically, but also culturally, as exemplified by the founding of the Royal Ontario Museum in 1912 and the Toronto Symphony in 1922. 
• Toronto's population eventually surpassed Montreal's in 1976, by which time the city had become Canada's most important economic and cultural engine. 
• The official "Megacity" of Toronto was formed in 1998 bringing together the old City of Toronto and the former municipalities of East York, Etobicoke, North York, Scarborough and York.
• By 2001, Toronto had become one of the most multicultural cities on the planet, where 152 languages and dialects were spoken in an atmosphere of comparative harmony and seamless coexistence. 
• Data released as part of the 2006 census indicated that Toronto was more ethnically diverse than Miami, Los Angeles or NYC.
• Today, more than half of Toronto's 2.5 million residents were born outside Canada, and a million people belong to visible minorities.
• Urban planners from around the world have visited Toronto to experience the diverse and dynamic patchwork quilt of neighborhoods which have collectively shaped the city over the years.
• Commonly referred to as the "City of Neighborhoods", these various cultures, philosophies and lifestyles have made Toronto into the "world class" city it is today and as Canada's largest city, Toronto is the heart of the nation in terms of business, commerce and culture.