Parkdale

1303 Queen Street West,
Toronto, ON M6K 1L6

Hours

Monday	9:00 am	to	8:30 pm
Tuesday	9:00 am	to	8:30 pm
Wednesday	9:00 am	to	8:30 pm
Thursday	9:00 am	to	8:30 pm
Friday	9:00 am	to	8:30 pm
Saturday	9:00 am	to	5:00 pm
Sunday	1:30 pm	to	5:00 pm

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Wheelchair Accessible
Free Wifi

General Inquiries

To speak directly with staff at Parkdale Branch during branch hours, please call the number listed above.

For general questions about Toronto Public Library, your account, and quick reference help, email Answerline using the link below.

Email Answerline

Directions, TTC & Parking

View on map

Closest major intersection Queen Street West and Dufferin Street. Located on the south side of Queen Street West at Cowan Ave.

Public Transit

TTC Dufferin bus #29 southbound from Dufferin subway station to Queen Street, walk 5 minutes west to the library.
TTC streetcar #501 along Queen Street West to Brock Street.

Parking

Free

Featured Services

Borrow a Musical Instrument
Rita Cox Black & Caribbean Heritage Collection
Youth Hub

Mon-Fri, 3:30 - 7 pm

Upcoming Programs

Featured Programs

Thu, Oct 05

3:30 pm - 7:00 pm

Zine Making

Join in the fun of art of Zine making! Create your own unique self designed publication exploring all kinds of subjects us...

Fri, Oct 06

2:00 pm - 3:00 pm

Play with Snap Circuits

Play with electricity and circuitry during this hands on program. Turn on a light, spin a motor, activate a speaker and ch...

Fri, Oct 13

6:30 pm - 8:00 pm

Rude Cross Stitch for Adults

Ever thought about taking up cross stitch but don't want to agonize over motivational phrases and messages of hope and hom...

Regular Programs

Wed, Oct 04

11:00 am - 11:30 am

Baby Time

Bouncing and tickling rhymes, songs and stories for babies from birth to 18 months with their parents or caregivers. Regis...

Wed, Oct 04

3:30 pm - 7:00 pm

Learn to Cross Stitch

Come stitch back and relax as we learn how to do counted cross stitch on fabric with a beginner-friendly designs! All mate...

Fri, Oct 06

4:00 pm - 5:00 pm

Builders Club

Back by popular demand, join us again for Builders Club at a new time - Fridays! Build, create, and use your imagination u...

All Branch Programs and Events

Branch Features

General Features

Equipment for persons with disabilities

Book stand
Computers with screen magnification software (Zoomtext) (2)
Large print keyboard
Large trackball mouse
Magnifier
Natural spectrum lamp
Page turner
Wheelchair accessible furniture

Technology

Collections

Adult Literacy Materials
Audiobooks on CD
Large Print Collection
Local History Collection
Rita Cox Black & Caribbean Heritage

Language

Medium collection in French-Children
Small collection in Chinese (DVDs only) , Hindi (DVDs only) , Polish-Adult , Tibetan - Adult , Vietnamese (DVDs only)

Meeting Rooms

For booking information call 416-397-5969.

Auditorium

3,610 sq. ft
Seats 160 lecture style. 52 classroom style. Fire Code Occupancy: 260.
Equipment:
- chairs
- screen (ceiling mounted)
- tables
- kitchen

Meeting Room A

650 sq. ft.
Seats 30 classroom style. Fire Code Occupancy: 70.
Equipment:
- chairs
- tables

Meeting Room B

239 sq. ft.
Seats 15 lecture style. Seats 15 classroom style. Fire Code Occupancy: 23.
Equipment:
- chairs
- tables

Meeting Room and auditorium are on the basement level. Elevator. Accessible washroom available.

History

Year	Details
1880	Parkdale Library Association and Mechanics' Institute established, November.
1881	Library opened, 1 November. Located in school-house of St. Mark's Church, Cowan Avenue, east side, south of Queen Street West.
1888	Relocated to Town of Parkdale's former council chamber and municipal offices, Queen Street West, south side, east of Cowan Avenue.
1889	Town of Parkdale annexed to Toronto, 23 March. Books and furniture of Parkdale Library Association and Mechanics' Institute transferred to TPL, 10 May.
1890	Relocated to Dundas Street Branch, opened 25 January. Rented premises, Dundas Street (now Ossington Avenue), west side, just north of Queen Street West.
1903	Carnegie Corporation of New York granted $350,000 to TPL for new central library and 3 branch library buildings. Toronto's Carnegie Libraries - Queen and Lisgar
1907	Site acquired Queen Street West, southeast corner Lisgar Street.
1909	Dundas Street Branch closed March 15. Queen and Lisgar Branch opened 30 April. Architect Robert McCallum, City Architect.
1962	Site acquired for Parkdale Branch, Queen Street West, southeast corner of Cowan Avenue.
1964	Queen and Lisgar Branch closed. Relocated to Parkdale Branch, opened 28 February. Resource branch for region, also housed Languages and Literature Centre. Gordon S. Adamson & Associates, Architects.
1970	Community Information Post opened.
1990	Learning Centre opened.
1993	Closed 21 June for carpet replacement. Reopened 5 July.
1998	Closed 7 December for retrofit. Bookmobile stop provided during closure.
1999	Reopened 26 June.
2007	New hours, 8 January. Hours open per week increased from 60.5 to 65.5.
2016	The Sun Life Financial Musical Instrument Lending Library opened in April. It is the first of its kind in the city, and also the first in public libraries across Canada.

Parkdale is on Indigenous land. This is the traditional territory of the Haudenosaunee (ho-den-oh-sho-nee) Confederacy (aka. the Six Nations Confederacy), the Wendat, and the Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation. Toronto Public Library gratefully acknowledges these Indigenous nations for their guardianship of this land. We'd also like to remind and reaffirm, as Torontonians and Canadians, our accountability to these Indigenous nations, and to all Indigenous peoples and communities living in Toronto.

This land is also part of the Dish with One Spoon territory, a treaty between the Haudenosaunee Confederacy (aka. The Six Nations Confederacy), the Anishinaabek (Ah-nish-nah-bek) and allied nations, to peaceably share and care for this land, its waters, and all of the biodiversity in the Great Lakes region. All those who come to live and work here are responsible for honouring this treaty in the spirit of peace, friendship, and respect. About Land Acknowledgement Statements