Young Men's and Young Women's Hebrew Association, 1937-1953
Address
15 Brunswick Avenue
Source
Landmarks

At the turn of the twentieth-century, the Jewish population of Toronto grew with large numbers of Eastern European families fleeing hardship back home. Soon, a variety of clubs began forming, providing a place for Jewish boys and girls to participate in athletic and social programming. In 1919, several of the athletic and social groups decided to amalgamate and formed an umbrella organization known as the Hebrew Association of Young Men’s and Young Women’s Clubs. By 1930, they were known as the YM-YWHA (Young Men’s and Young Women’s Hebrew Association. Through the 1920s and 30s, they occupied a number of facilities in the Brunswick Avenue and College Street area.
Address
15 Brunswick Avenue
Time Period
1937
Scope Note
At the turn of the twentieth-century, the Jewish population of Toronto grew with large numbers of Eastern European families fleeing hardship back home. Soon, a variety of clubs began forming, providing a place for Jewish boys and girls to participate in athletic and social programming. In 1919, several of the athletic and social groups decided to amalgamate and formed an umbrella organization known as the Hebrew Association of Young Men’s and Young Women’s Clubs. By 1930, they were known as the YM-YWHA (Young Men’s and Young Women’s Hebrew Association. Through the 1920s and 30s, they occupied a number of facilities in the Brunswick Avenue and College Street area.
History
As a result of the overcrowding and de-centralized facilities, in 1937, the YM-YWHA constructed its own athletic building at 15 Brunswick Avenue, next door to the Talmud Torah, to ease the overcrowding. Similar to the JCCs of today, the early YM-YWHA provided a sense of Jewish identity and camaraderie through physical, educational, cultural and community based programming.
Category
Arts
Education
Private Clubs
Source
Landmarks
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