McCormick Park

{{Main|Grand National Rink}}

McCormick Park is located on the grounds of the Grand National Rink, an open-air rink at 153 Brock Avenue{{cite book |title=Toronto City Directory, 1898 |date=1898 |publisher=Might Directory Company, Limited |location=Toronto |pages=110, 1462 |url=https://static.torontopubliclibrary.ca/da/pdfs/tcd1898.pdf |access-date=1 January 2022}} that was owned by business merchant Andrew Wheeler Green{{cite news |title=Obituary |work=Milton Canadian Champion |date=25 September 1930 |page=1}}{{cite news |title=A.W. Green Buried |work=Toronto Daily Star |date=13 September 1930 |page=2}} from 1896{{cite news |title=The Rinks |work=Toronto Evening Star |date=22 December 1896 |page=2}} to 1902.{{cite news |title=Comment on Current Sporting Topics |work=Toronto Daily Star |date=13 December 1902 |page=15}} Six years after the rink had closed, the north end of the site reopened in January 1908 as the Royal Alexandra Rink,{{cite news |title=Hockey on Open-Air Rinks |work=Toronto Daily Star |date=8 January 1908 |page=10}} an open-air hockey rink at 189 Brock Avenue.{{cite book |title=Toronto City Directory, 1910 |date=1910 |publisher=Might Directories, Limited |location=Toronto |pages=99, 1066, 1425 |url=https://archive.org/details/torontocitydirectory1910/page/1424/mode/2up |access-date=1 January 2022}} By the following April, the rink and its adjoining property, which spanned a total of {{convert|1.2|hectare}}, became the grounds for a baseball field.{{cite news |title=A Twenty-One Game Schedule for C.A.L. |work=Toronto Daily Star |date=28 March 1908 |page=20}}

The Brock Avenue Rink opened on the site of the former Royal Alexandra Rink in December 1909{{cite news |title=Brock Avenue |work=Toronto Daily Star |date=16 December 1909 |page=14}} at 189 Brock Avenue.{{cite book |title=Toronto City Directory, 1911 |date=1911 |publisher=Might Directories, Limited |location=Toronto |pages=96, 431, 1434 |url=https://static.torontopubliclibrary.ca/da/pdfs/31385037145404d.pdf |access-date=1 January 2022}} Construction of a permanent indoor hockey arena for the Toronto Professional Hockey Club was scheduled for the following year on the grounds of the baseball field{{cite news |title=A Hockey Rink Under Canvas |work=Toronto Daily Star |date=24 November 1909 |page=12}}{{cite news |title=That Arena Again |work=Toronto Globe |date=24 November 1909 |page=9}} but when the Canadian Hockey Association was dissolved on January 15, 1910,{{cite news |title=New Pro. League Formed |work=Toronto Daily Star |date=17 January 1910 |page=11}}{{cite news |title=New Seven-Club League |work=Toronto Globe |date=17 January 1910 |page=8}} the plan to build the arena came to an end.{{cite book |title=A Great Game: The Forgotten Leafs and the Rise of Professional Hockey |last=Harper |first=Stephen J. |author-link=Stephen Harper |year=2013 |location=Toronto |publisher=Simon & Schuster Canada |isbn=978-1-4767-1653-4 |page=209}} The last known skating event at the Brock Avenue Rink was held in March 1910.{{cite news |title=Jacobson Is a Good One |work=Toronto Daily Star |date=5 March 1910 |page=25}}

On September 7, 1910, Mary Virginia McCormick donated {{CAD|10000|link=yes}}{{cite news |title=A Check For $10,000 For Big Playground |work=Toronto Daily Star |date=7 September 1910 |page=3}}{{cite news |title=Miss M'Cormick's Fine Gift |work=Toronto Globe |date=8 September 1910 |page=8}} (${{formatprice|{{Inflation|CA|10000|1910}}}} in {{Inflation-year|CA}} dollars){{inflation-fn|CA}} to the Toronto Playgrounds Association, an advocacy group formed in 1908{{cite news |title=The Objects of the Playground Society |work=Toronto Daily Star |date=19 May 1908 |page=1}}{{cite news |title=Playgrounds For Children |work=Toronto Daily Star |date=30 May 1908 |page=6}}{{cite news |title=Playgrounds Movement |work=Toronto Globe |date=29 May 1908 |page=12}}{{cite news |title=Officers Are Chosen By Playground Assn. |work=Toronto World |date=28 June 1908 |page=7}} whose members worked together with the Toronto Parks Department to build children's playgrounds across the city.{{cite book |last1=McFarland |first1=Elsie M. |editor1-last=Wall |editor1-first=Geoffrey |editor2-last=Marsh |editor2-first=John S. |article=The Development of Supervised Playgrounds |title=Recreational Land Use: Perspectives On Its Evolution in Canada |date=1982 |publisher=Carleton University Press |location=Ottawa |page=283 |isbn=0-88629-003-1}} Cottingham Square, a municipal park{{cite news |title=Public Bowling Greens |work=Toronto Globe |date=10 November 1904 |page=9}}{{cite news |title=Queen Alexandra Park |work=Toronto Daily Star |date=1 December 1904 |page=7}} with an area of {{convert|0.7|hectare}}{{cite news |title=Bowling in the Parks |work=Toronto Globe |date=16 September 1904 |page=9}} that was situated near McCormick's home,{{cite news |title=For Children's Playground |work=Toronto Globe |date=15 August 1910 |page=7}} was the original location for the playground{{cite news |title=The Playgrounds |work=Toronto Daily Star |date=30 April 1910 |page=27}} but it was abandoned by the association{{cite news |title=Dovercourt Playground |work=Toronto Daily Star |date=1 December 1910 |page=8}} because the site was too close in proximity to the Canadian Pacific Railway line.{{cite news |title=Brock Avenue Site For a Playground |work=Toronto Globe |date=11 April 1911 |page=9}}

The grounds of the former rink and baseball field on Brock Avenue were sold in November 1910 and subdivided into housing lots.{{cite news |title=Playground For the Brock Ave. District |work=Toronto Daily Star |date=10 November 1910 |page=2}}{{cite news |title=Two Playgrounds in Western End of City |work=Toronto Daily Star |date=25 November 1910 |page=11}} Toronto City Council purchased {{convert|1.1|hectare}} of that land{{cite news |title=Who Shall Control the Playgrounds? |work=Toronto Daily Star |date=13 April 1911 |page=2}} in the following month for $34,000{{cite news |title=Want $34,000 For Ground |work=Toronto Daily Star |date=8 December 1910 |page=7}}{{cite news |title=May Buy Brock Ave. Site |work=Toronto Daily Star |date=16 December 1910 |page=7}} (${{formatprice|{{Inflation|CA|34000|1910}}}} in {{Inflation-year|CA}} dollars){{inflation-fn|CA}} for the purpose of establishing a playground in the western end of the city. On March 3, 1911, the association accepted the new location{{cite news |title=The M'Cormick Playground |work=Toronto Globe |date=4 March 1911 |page=9}} and McCormick offered to provide an additional $5,000 (${{formatprice|{{Inflation|CA|5000|1911}}}} in {{Inflation-year|CA}} dollars){{inflation-fn|CA}} to equip the playground. She provided further donations to the association that, by September 1912, the total amount of her contributions was $25,000{{cite news |title=Miss M'Cormick's Gift |work=Toronto Globe |date=27 September 1912 |page=9}}{{cite news |title=Notes and Comments |work=Toronto Globe |date=28 September 1912 |page=6}} (${{formatprice|{{Inflation|CA|25000|1912}}}} in {{Inflation-year|CA}} dollars).{{inflation-fn|CA}}

File:McCormick Playground in Toronto, circa 1916.jpg

McCormick Playground at 163 Brock Avenue{{cite book |title=Toronto City Directory, 1924 |date=1924 |publisher=Might Directories Limited |location=Toronto |page=29 |url=https://archive.org/details/torontocitydirectory1924/page/28/mode/2up |access-date=1 January 2022}} was opened with a public celebration on July 1, 1911. It featured climbing ladders, glider chairs, merry-go-rounds, sandboxes, seesaws, slides, swings and a large wading pool for children's amusement.{{cite news |title=Came From Chicago to Give Playgrounds |work=Toronto Globe |date=23 September 1912 |page=9}} There were ice rinks for hockey and skating for the winter season.{{cite news |title=15 Rinks Eliminated |work=Toronto Daily Star |date=14 November 1916 |page=12}}

It was the third supervised children's playground on municipal property that was managed by the Toronto Playgrounds Association,{{cite journal |last1=Murnaghan |first1=Ann Marie F. |title=Disciplining Children in Toronto Playgrounds in the Early Twentieth Century |journal=Jeunesse: Young People, Texts, Cultures |date=2016 |volume=8 |issue=1 |page=118 |doi=10.1353/jeu.2016.0005 |s2cid=151982396 |url=https://www.thefreelibrary.com/Disciplining+children+in+Toronto+playgrounds+in+the+early+twentieth+...-a0484461337}} after St. Andrew's Playground on Adelaide Street in 1909{{cite news |title=The New Playground |work=Toronto Daily Star |date=12 August 1909 |page=14}}{{cite news |title=Equipped Playground |work=Toronto Globe |date=12 August 1909 |page=12}} and Osler Playground on Argyle Street in 1910.{{sfn|Murnaghan|2016|pp=118, 120}}{{cite news |title=Are Looking Now For Many Playgrounds |work=Toronto Daily Star |date=25 August 1910 |page=9}}{{cite news |title=Scene at Opening of Olser Playground |work=Toronto Globe |date=25 August 1910 |page=8}} Emulating the playgrounds of the Chicago South Park Commission, it was the association's first playground to have an indoor recreation centre that operated all-year.{{sfn|McFarland|1982|p=284}} It was the largest permanent playground in Toronto{{cite news |last1=Armstrong |first1=Jean |title=Never An Idle Moment, Motto of Play Supervisor |work=Globe and Mail |date=29 July 1954 |page=10}} and its area grew in 1957 when Toronto City Council acquired an additional {{convert|0.41|hectare}} of adjacent land for $125,000{{cite news |title=City Council Ignores New Zoning By-Law |work=Toronto Daily Star |date=27 December 1957 |page=6}} (${{formatprice|{{Inflation|CA|125000|1957}}}} in {{Inflation-year|CA}} dollars).{{inflation-fn|CA}}

After the Toronto Housing Authority opened the nearby McCormick Park Apartments at 1525 Dundas Street West{{cite book |title=Greater Toronto City Directory, 1961 |date=1961 |publisher=Might Directories Limited |location=Toronto |page=5 |url=https://archive.org/details/torontocitydirectory1961/page/n17/mode/2up |access-date=1 January 2022}} in 1960,{{cite book |title=Annual Report of the Commissioner of Finance |date=1959 |publisher=City of Toronto |page=51 |url=https://archive.org/details/annualreportcomm1959toro/page/50/mode/2up? |access-date=1 January 2022}}{{cite news |title=106 Housing Units: Need 40,000 |work=Toronto Daily Star |date=5 January 1960 |page=6}}{{cite news |title=4,000 City Houses Have No Baths |work=Toronto Daily Star |date=13 August 1960 |page=6}} construction of a second recreation centre and an artificial ice rink on the enlarged playground began in 1963{{cite news |title=Pass $20 Million Police Budget |work=Globe and Mail |date=22 February 1963 |page=5}} and the McCormick Playground on Brock Avenue became McCormick Park at 66 Sheridan Avenue.{{cite news |title=Celebrate McCormick Park at Upcoming Event |work=Bloor West Villager |date=3 September 2015 |page=12}}

File:McCormick Recreation Centre and Playground on Brock Avenue in Toronto, 1913.jpg

The McCormick Recreation Centre at 163 Brock Avenue{{cite book |title=Toronto City Directory, 1914 |date=1914 |publisher=Might Directories, Limited |location=Toronto |pages=119, 1083, 1826 |url=https://static.torontopubliclibrary.ca/da/pdfs/torontodirec191400midiuoft.pdf |access-date=1 January 2022}} was opened with a public festival on September 21, 1912.{{cite news |title=Children Get New Playplace |work=Toronto World |date=23 September 1912 |page=9}} Mayor George Reginald Geary and McCormick's mother, Nancy Fowler McCormick, attended the inauguration. It featured a main hall that accommodated 300 people along with committee rooms and shower baths. The Georgian Revival building was the first year-round recreation centre in Canada{{sfn|McFarland|1982|p=284}} and the largest permanent one in Toronto.{{cite news |title=Local Record For Child Care |work=Toronto Globe |date=28 July 1922 |page=14}}{{cite news |title=Safe and Supervised Recreation Provided |work=Toronto Globe |date=20 August 1927 |page=14}}{{cite news |title=Play Centres Are Great Aid to City Folk |work=Toronto Globe |date=25 July 1934 |page=8}}

The Toronto Playgrounds Association managed the building and the adjoining playground until the responsibility was transferred over to the Toronto Parks Department in June 1913.{{sfn|McFarland|1982|p=284}} The Toronto Public Health Department opened an infant clinic at the recreation centre in July 1914, one of 10 health clinics across the city where mothers brought their babies to the care of the attending doctors and nurses.{{cite news |title=Waging Vigorous War to Save the Infants |work=Toronto Daily Star |date=8 July 1914 |page=8}}

Its main hall was the setting for two wintertime minstrel shows.{{cite journal |last1=Murnaghan |first1=Ann Marie F. |title= Exploring Race and Nation in Playground Propaganda in Early Twentieth-Century Toronto |journal=International Journal of Play |date=2013 |volume=2 |issue=2 |pages=140–142|doi=10.1080/21594937.2013.822460 |s2cid=143031318 }} On December 28, 1916, the McCormick Playground Minstrels performed at a Christmas pageant in which 23 entertainers appeared in blackface theatrical makeup.{{sfn|Murnaghan|2013|p=140}} The amateur minstrels{{cite news |title=Amateur Minstrel Show |work=Toronto Daily Star |date=31 January 1920 |page=9}} staged another performance in blackface makeup on January 29, 1920.{{cite book |last1=Shadd |first1=Adrienne |last2=Cooper |first2=Afua |last3=Frost |first3=Karolyn Smardz |title=The Underground Railroad: Next Stop, Toronto! |date=2005 |publisher=Natural Heritage Books |location=Toronto |isbn=978-1-55488-429-2 |page=52 |edition=2nd}}{{cite news |title=Large Crowds Gathered in Toronto Theatres For Cruel Performances |work=Toronto Star |date=3 June 2018 |page=A12}}{{cite book |last1=Frost |first1=Karolyn Smardz |editor1-last=Lorinc |editor1-first=John |editor2-last=Martelle |editor2-first=Holly |editor3-last=McClelland |editor3-first=Michael |editor4-last=Taylor |editor4-first=Tatum |article=Resisting Stereotypes: African Torontonians Protest Minstrelsy |title=The Ward Uncovered: The Archaeology of Everyday Life |date=2018 |page=154 |publisher=Coach House Books |location=Toronto |isbn=978-1-55245-369-8}}

During the First World War, Mary McCormick and her Canadian-born nursing companion, Grace Thorne Walker,{{cite journal |last1=Ellis |first1=Diane |last2=Drost |first2=Maureen |title=Mr. O'Shaughnessy's Dream House |journal=Historic Huntsville Quarterly |date=Summer–Fall 2002 |volume=28 |issue=2 & 3 |page=20 |url=http://historyconnections.info/hh/hhpics/pdf/hhq2/HHQ-Vol-XXVIII-23-SumFal02.pdf}} held Christmas pageants for 400 children and their parents at the main hall in 1917{{cite news |title=Parents Are Entertained |work=Toronto World |date=29 December 1917 |page=5}}{{cite news |title=Parents Entertained |work=Toronto Daily Star |date=31 December 1917 |page=11}} and 1918.{{cite news |title=Recreation Centre Feast |work=Toronto Globe |date=24 December 1918 |page=4}} In 1919, the recreation centre had an honour roll that listed the names of 162 of its men who were recruited in the war.{{cite news |title=The Veterans Won |work=Toronto Daily Star |date=3 April 1919 |page=25}}

In 1921, the McCormick Recreation Centre attracted a total of 118,229 children to its facility, the largest number among the 1,059,213 children who had visited all 33 municipal recreation centres throughout the year. There were a total of 183,444 adults and children who registered with the recreation centre in 1933, the greatest share of the 2,018,509 visitors who had attended all 59 municipal playgrounds in Toronto.

In 1941, the recreation centre staged its annual children's gymnastics exhibition in the auditorium of Parkdale Collegiate Institute.{{cite news |title=1,100 Parents Crowd Hall For Playground Gym Show |work=Toronto Daily Star |date=4 April 1941 |page=10}} Its exhibitions continued to be held at the public secondary school every year until 1962.{{cite news |title=Hoop Drill |work=Globe and Mail |date=30 March 1962 |page=8}} The McCormick Recreation Centre on Brock Avenue was closed permanently in 1964.{{cite news |title=2 Reporters Evicted From Union Meeting |work=Globe and Mail |date=30 October 1964 |page=5}}

The McCormick Park Recreation Centre{{cite news |title=A Hit and a Miss |work=Globe and Mail |date=6 April 1970 |page=1}}{{cite news |last1=Wilkes |first1=Jim |title=400 Students Evacuated After Chlorine Gas Leaks |work=Toronto Star |date=7 May 1991 |page=A6}} at 66 Sheridan Avenue{{cite news |title=Greater Toronto City Directory, 1965 |url=https://archive.org/details/torontocitydirectory1965/page/n91/mode/2up |publisher=Might Directories, Limited |date=1965 |location=Toronto |page=78 |access-date=1 January 2022}} was opened on October 29, 1964.{{cite news |title=Busy Children Take Over $750,000 Recreation Centre |work=Globe and Mail |date=30 October 1964 |page=39}} Located next to the original building, the second facility featured a gymnasium,{{cite news |title=Did You Know? |work=Globe and Mail |date=19 April 1985 |page=M2}} an indoor swimming pool with a seating gallery for 500 people, a children's nursery and handicraft studios. Mayor Philip Givens and 700 people attended the inauguration.

The modernist-style building was the sixth municipal recreation centre that was built in the city since 1962{{cite news |title=City Considers 10-Year Plan For Parkland |work=Globe and Mail |date=12 October 1962 |page=5}} for $750,000 (${{formatprice|{{Inflation|CA|750000|1964}}}} in {{Inflation-year|CA}} dollars).{{inflation-fn|CA}} Crafts and fashion exhibitions by the Toronto Parks and Recreation Department{{cite news |title=Young Artists Exhibit at Recreation Centre |work=Globe and Mail |date=7 April 1966 |page=12}} were held at the facility from 1965{{cite news |title=Studies in Absorption as Youngsters Watch Show of Fashion at McCormick Recreation Centre |work=Globe and Mail |date=14 April 1965 |page=5}} to 1966{{cite news |title=Fashion to Blow Up About |work=Toronto Daily Star |date=7 April 1966 |page=67}} and amateur boxing championships for boys were staged at its gym from 1965{{cite news |title=Marathon Boxers Win Seven Junior Titles |work=Globe and Mail |date=15 March 1965 |page=20}} to 1972.{{cite news |title=Trinity Centre Ties McCormick With 3 Titles |work=Globe and Mail |date=11 April 1972 |page=36}}

On May 6, 1991, chlorine gas escaped from a ruptured cylinder pipe at the McCormick Park Recreation Centre and forced the building to close for 90 minutes. Before firefighters had capped the leaking cylinder, the surrounding area was sealed off by the police and 400 students from the nearby St. Veronica Catholic School and residents of 12 houses on Frankish Avenue were evacuated temporarily. Five police officers, two employees of the recreation centre and one teacher were treated for sore throats at Toronto Western Hospital and released on the same day.

In 2001, the building underwent a major renovation estimated at $2,808,468{{cite web |title=Minutes of the Economic Development and Parks Committee |url=https://www.toronto.ca/legdocs/2001/minutes/committees/edp/edp010514.pdf |website=City of Toronto |page=16 |date=14 May 2001 |access-date=1 January 2022}} (${{formatprice|{{Inflation|CA|2808468|2001}}}} in {{Inflation-year|CA}} dollars){{inflation-fn|CA}} and Toronto City Council began referring to the facility as the Mary McCormick Recreation Centre. It was reopened officially as the Mary McCormick Recreation Centre on January 25, 2003.

The McCormick Playground Arena at 179 Brock Avenue was opened on the sites of the original recreation centre and the Grand National Rink on March 14, 1972. It has been called the McCormick Arena{{cite news |last1=Mays |first1=John Bentley |title=The Odour of Canada |work=Globe and Mail |date=10 May 1995 |page=C1}}{{cite news |last1=Bidini |first1=Dave |title=Hockey Night in Dubai |work=Globe and Mail |date=4 November 2000 |page=T1}}{{cite news |last1=Menzies |first1=Dave |title=No Masking Love For Hockey |work=Toronto Star |date=28 November 2004 |pages=E1, E4}} but its official name is the McCormick Playground Arena in recognition of the McCormick Playground.

Built at an estimated cost of $542,980{{cite news |title=$500,000 Budgeted to Buy Parkland |work=Toronto Daily Star |date=23 January 1970 |page=31}} (${{formatprice|{{Inflation|CA|542980|1970}}}} in {{Inflation-year|CA}} dollars),{{inflation-fn|CA}} the indoor municipal skating arena features two ice rinks{{cite news |last1=Blatchford |first1=Christie |title=Four Practices Before Season |work=Globe and Mail |date=15 March 1977 |page=35}} and a community meeting room with a concession stand that is named the Nixon Room as a tribute to George Adam Nixon, a former member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario who was elected to represent the Toronto riding of Dovercourt in 1971{{cite news |title=Rookie Conservative MPPs Grope For a Guiding Hand |work=Toronto Star |date=10 December 1971 |page=42}} and one of the first members who served on the arena's board of management. It is one of eight municipal skating arenas that is governed by an executive committee{{cite web |title=Report: Relationship Framework For City Board-Operated Arenas |url=https://www.toronto.ca/legdocs/mmis/2007/ex/bgrd/backgroundfile-6165.pdf |publisher=City of Toronto |access-date=1 January 2022 |page=1 |date=8 August 2007}}{{cite news |last1=Vincent |first1=Donovan |title=City Urged to Control Prime-Time Ice |work=Toronto Star |date=28 January 2010 |page=GT3}}{{cite news |last1=Grant |first1=Kelly |title=City Proposal to Allocate Ice Time Would Put Arenas in the Red, Say Critics |work=Globe and Mail |date=29 January 2010 |page=A12}} whose members are appointed by Toronto City Council.

In 1973, high concentrations of carbon monoxide were measured at the arena by the Ontario Ministry of Health after the gasoline-powered ice resurfacer had cleaned the ice rinks and the indoor air quality exceeded the minimum provincial health standard of 50 parts-per-million for an industrial building.{{cite news |title=Ice Machine Endangers Air in Arena, Man Says |work=Toronto Star |date=26 October 1973 |page=A6}} The discovery had spurred the Toronto Parks and Recreation Department to replace all ice-resurfacing vehicles with other models that were not gasoline-powered and allow provincial health inspectors to monitor the air quality at all municipal skating arenas.{{cite news |title=Monitoring of Air in All City Arenas Urged |work=Globe and Mail |date=23 November 1973 |page=49}}

In 2012, neighbourhood residents formed the Friends of McCormick Park, an advocacy group whose members have worked together with the Toronto Parks, Forestry and Recreation Division to improve the amenities of the park. On September 27, 2014, McCormick Park was reopened with an updated children's playground that featured climbing boulders, a large jungle gym, a new merry-go-round and swings.{{cite news |last1=Cadiz |first1=Mark A. |title=Park Celebrates Grand Reopening |work=Parkdale Villager |date=2 October 2014 |pages=1, 10}} The McCormick Park Café and Market, a café that offered food and beverages from a shipping container, was inaugurated on the same day, becoming the first cargo container eatery to open on the grounds of a municipal park in Toronto. One month later, a public bookcase registered with the Little Free Library was installed at the park.{{cite news |title=Brockton Village's McCormick Park Gets Its Own 'Little Free Library' |work=Parkdale Villager |date=30 October 2014 |page=5}}

• Louise Agoues, bronze medal fencer in the women's team foil at the 1967 Pan American Games{{cite book |last1=Olderr |first1=Steven |title=The Pan American Games / Los Juegos Panamericanos: A Statistical History, 1951-1999 |date=2009 |publisher=McFarland & Company, Inc. |location=Jefferson, North Carolina |isbn=978-0-7864-4336-9 |page=105 |edition=Bilingual}} who placed third in the women's foil at the Canadian Fencing Association Eastern Canada Championships at the McCormick Recreation Centre on April 30, 1972.{{cite news |title=Metro Fencers Dominate Eastern Championships |work=Globe and Mail |date=1 May 1972 |page=S9}}

• Muhammad Ali, world heavyweight boxing champion who was a guest referee for the Metro Toronto Junior Boxing Championships at the McCormick Recreation Centre on March 21, 1966,{{cite news |last1=Marks |first1=Jack |title=Pillow-Fisted Boys Fight to Clay Tune |work=Globe and Mail |date=22 March 1963 |page=29}}{{cite news |last1=McKee |first1=Ken |title=Kids Meet 'Real' Cassius Clay |work=Toronto Daily Star |date=22 March 1966 |page=11}} eight days before his own boxing title match at Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto.

• Akim Aliu, athlete of the Parkdale Flames Hockey Association{{cite web |last1=Rosso |first1=Alessandro Seren |title=Akim Aliu Finding New Life in Russia |url=https://thehockeywriters.com/akim-aliu-finding-new-life-in-russia/ |publisher=The Hockey Writers |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160108202515/https://thehockeywriters.com/akim-aliu-finding-new-life-in-russia/ |archive-date=8 January 2016 |date=8 January 2016}} at the McCormick Playground Arena{{cite web |last1=Koshan |first1=Terry |title=Starting Fresh |url=https://londonknights.com/starting-fresh |publisher=London Knights |date=18 June 2007 |access-date=1 January 2022}} who became a hockey player with the Calgary Flames in 2012.

• Kay Aoyama, Canadian women's fencing champion in 1971{{cite news |last1=Mercurio |first1=Antoinette |title=Salute to a Swordswoman |journal=Ryerson University Magazine |date=June 2015 |page=44 |url=https://www.nxtbook.com/dawson/ryerson/alumni_2015summer/index.php?startid=44#/p/44}} who won the women's foil title at the Canadian Fencing Association Central Ontario Championships at the McCormick Recreation Centre on March 19, 1972.{{cite news |title=Champion Kay Foils All Rivals in Fencing Meet |work=Globe and Mail |date=20 March 1972 |page=S6}}

• Vince Barton, athlete of the McCormick Recreation Centre{{cite news |last1=Rosenfeld |first1=Bobbie |title=Sports Reel |work=Globe and Mail |date=6 June 1947 |ref=Sports Reel, 1947 |page=21}}{{cite news |last1=Rosenfeld |first1=Bobbie |title=Reel Sports |work=Globe and Mail |date=29 May 1948 |ref=Sports Reel, 1948 |page=19}}{{cite news |title=Old Boys Rally For McCormick |work=Globe and Mail |date=31 May 1960 |page=17}}{{cite news |title=McCormick Old Boys Hold Reunion |work=Toronto Daily Star |date=8 June 1961 |page=16}}{{cite news |title=Recreation, Religion Considered Perfect Combination By Colhoun |work=Globe and Mail |date=26 June 1963 |page=25}} who became a baseball player with the Chicago Cubs in 1931.{{cite news |title=Cubs Subdue Reds Twice, 4-2 and 7-3 |work=New York Times |date=5 August 1931 |page=23}}

• Yank Boyd, athlete of the McCormick Recreation Centre who became a hockey player with the Detroit Red Wings in 1934.{{cite news |last1=Hendy |first1=James C. |title=Hockey Horoscope |work=Maclean's |date=15 November 1935 |page=55}}

• Gord Brydson, athlete of the McCormick Recreation Centre who became a golfer and won the Canadian Professional Golfers' Association Championship in 1944 and 1948.{{cite news |last1=McNeil |first1=Al |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=QBJtjoHflPwC&dat=19650813&printsec=frontpage&hl=en |title=Brydson Survives Brush With Lightning to Score 70 |newspaper=Ottawa Citizen |date=13 August 1965 |page=18}}

• Bill Buchanan, athlete of the McCormick Recreation Centre who became a catcher with the Toronto Osler Baseball Club{{cite news |title=Belleville Beat Oslers at Peterboro |work=Toronto Daily Star |date=2 October 1919 |page=24}} in 1918, a team that won the Toronto Playground League Championships for the following two years.

• Thomas Clarence Burt, athlete of the McCormick Recreation Centre and First World War veteran{{cite news |title=Deaths |work=Globe and Mail |date=10 August 1984 |page=M6}} who became captain of the Toronto Osler Baseball Club in 1926.{{cite news |title=New Faces at Osler Annual |work=Globe and Mail |date=15 February 1926 |page=7}}

• William Gladstone "Glad" Calhoun, coach of the Toronto Osler Baseball Club{{cite news |title=Oslers of Toronto to Meet St. Patricks |work=Ottawa Citizen |date=22 September 1921 |page=9}} who became the general manager of the McCormick Recreation Centre from 1921 to 1948.{{cite news |title=Appoint G. Colhoun Recreation Director |work=Globe and Mail |date=17 November 1954 |page=20}}

• Patrick Chan, athlete of the West Toronto Skating Club at the McCormick Playground Arena{{cite web |title=Sk8ter's Edge |url=https://www.wtsc.ca/sites/files/Sk8ter's%20Edge%20May%202017.pdf |publisher=West Toronto Skating Club |page=1 |date=May 2017}}{{cite news |last1=Kwong |first1=P.J. |title=Historic West Toronto Skating Club Pairs Young Mini Blades |url=https://www.cbc.ca/television/battleoftheblades/mini-blades/historic-west-toronto-skating-club-pairs-young-mini-blades-1.5294030 |access-date=1 January 2022 |work=Canadian Broadcasting Corporation |date=23 September 2019 |location=Toronto}} who became a gold medal figure skater at the 2018 Winter Olympics.{{cite news |last1=Spencer |first1=Donna |title=Plenty of Potential Wins in Week Ahead |work=Toronto Star |date=18 February 2018 |page=S6}}

• George Chuvalo, Canadian heavyweight boxing champion who was a guest referee for the Toronto Junior Boxing Championships at the McCormick Recreation Centre on March 8 and 10, 1969.{{cite news |title=Pint-Sized Punchers on Display |work=Toronto Daily Star |date=5 March 1969 |page=19}}{{cite news |title=Chuvalo Acts as Guest Ref For Boxing |work=Toronto Daily Star |date=7 March 1969 |page=19}}

• Hugh Crilly, athlete of the McCormick Recreation Centre who became an outfielder with the Toronto Osler Baseball Club from 1924 to 1926.{{cite news |title=Osler 'Old Boys' Roll Out the Barrels of Memory in 'Suds' |work=Toronto Daily Star |date=22 May 1942 |page=13}}

• Bert Donohue, athlete of the McCormick Recreation Centre who became captain of the Toronto Wellington Baseball Club{{cite news |title=Wellingtons Organize |work=Toronto Daily Star |date=5 April 1921 |page=19}}{{cite news |title=Liners |work=Toronto Globe |date=6 April 1921 |page=12}}{{cite news |title=Canadian Champs Coming Over to Meet Black Rocks |work=Buffalo Courier |date=11 May 1923 |page=13}} in 1921, a team that won the Maple Leaf Dominion Championship{{cite news |title=Hewitts Going to Toronto |work=Buffalo Courier |date=20 September 1921 |page=12}} for the next two years.

• Lori Dupuis, hockey player with the Brampton Thunder who won a gold medal in women's hockey at the 2002 Winter Olympics{{cite web |title=About Us |url=http://www.femalehockeyschool.com/about-us.html |publisher=Lori Dupuis & Jayna Hefford Female Hockey School |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120730002044/http://www.femalehockeyschool.com/about-us.html |archive-date=30 July 2012 |date=2008}} and played in a charity match for the Daily Bread Food Bank at the McCormick Playground Arena on April 8, 2006.{{cite news |last1=Christie |first1=James |title=They Played For Gold, But Now It's For Food |work=Globe and Mail |date=8 April 2006 |page=S4}}

• William Alexander "Irish" Eagleson, athlete of the McCormick Recreation Centre and First World War veteran{{cite web |last1=Taylor |first1=Andrew A. |title=Canadian Baseball During World War I: When Toronto Ruled Europe |url=https://www.bluebirdbanter.com/2020/6/30/21307706/canadian-wartime-baseball-when-toronto-ruled-europe-during-world-war-i |publisher=Bluebird Banter |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200701213826/https://www.bluebirdbanter.com/2020/6/30/21307706/canadian-wartime-baseball-when-toronto-ruled-europe-during-world-war-i |archive-date=1 July 2020 |date=30 June 2020}} who became a short stop with Toronto Wellington Baseball Club in 1923 and an infielder with the Toronto Osler Baseball Club in 1927.{{cite web |last1=Plummer |first1=Kevin |title=Going Pro |url=https://torontoist.com/2014/04/historicist-going-pro/ |publisher=Torontoist |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140406133539/https://torontoist.com/ |archive-date=6 April 2014 |date=5 April 2014}}

• Gillian Ferrari, hockey player with the Brampton Thunder who won a gold medal in women's hockey at the 2006 Winter Olympics{{cite news |last1=Kalchman |first1=Lois |title=Canadian Ice Queens Vie For National Crown |work=Toronto Star |date=8 March 2006 |page=C9}} and played in a charity match at the McCormick Playground Arena on April 8, 2006.

• Ron Finn, hockey linesman who encountered a playground trainer at the McCormick Recreation Centre and then married her before starting his career with the National Hockey League{{cite news |last1=Mitchell |first1=Bob |title=Sheilagh Finn Was Brampton YMCA Leader |work=Toronto Star |date=14 April 1998 |page=F5}} in 1969.{{cite news |last1=Orr |first1=Frank |title=It's a Record 1,745 Games For NHL Linesman Ron Finn |work=Toronto Star |date=16 February 1992 |page=E7}}

• Horace Gwynne, boxer who won a gold medal at the 1932 Summer Olympics{{cite news |last1=Gamester |first1=George |title=Lefty Won Olympic Gold For Canada in 1932 |work=Toronto Star |date=2 August 1992 |page=D8}}{{cite news |last1=Glover |first1=Julia |title=Canada's Golden Oldie Had to Pay His Own Way |work=Toronto Star |date=31 July 1996 |page=D3}} and became the general manager of the McCormick Recreation Centre in 1964.

• Jayna Hefford, hockey player with the Brampton Thunder who won three Olympic gold medals in women's hockey and played in a charity match at the McCormick Playground Arena on April 8, 2006.

• Murray Henderson, athlete of the McCormick Recreation Centre who became a defenceman with the Boston Bruins in 1945.{{cite news |last1=Hunter |first1=Paul |title=Ex-RCAF Pilot Played For Bruins |work=Toronto Star |date=6 January 2013 |page=A4}}

• Donna Hennyey, bronze medal fencer in the women's team foil at the 1967 Pan American Games who won the women's foil title at the Canadian Fencing Association Eastern Canada Championships at the McCormick Recreation Centre on April 30, 1972.

• Alexander "Alec" Hill, athlete of the McCormick Recreation Centre who became an outfielder with the Toronto Wellington Baseball Club{{cite news |title=Hewitts, Buffalo, Soundly Trounced |work=Toronto Globe |date=5 September 1922 |page=10}} in 1922 and one of Toronto's top home run hitters in semi-professional baseball until 1930.{{cite news |title=Alexander Hill, 77, Ball Player |work=Toronto Star |date=8 March 1975 |page=A11}}

• Bertram John "Buck" Hughes, athlete of the McCormick Recreation Centre who became captain of the Toronto Olser Baseball Club from 1919 to 1921.{{cite news |title=Interesting Race at Perth Square |work=Globe and Mail |date=8 April 1922 |ref=Interesting Race at Perth Square |page=10}}

• Jordan Kyrou, athlete of the McCormick Playground Arena who became a hockey player with the St. Louis Blues in 2018.{{cite news |last1=Hochman |first1=Benjamin |title=His Sick Mitts Make Kyrou a Must-See in Breakout Year |work=St. Louis Post-Dispatch |date=11 January 2022 |page=B2}}

• Don "Shanty" McKenzie, athlete of the McCormick Recreation Centre who became a football player with the Toronto Argonauts in 1940.{{cite news |last1=MacCarl |first1=Neil |title=McKenzie Is Happy in Player Role |work=Toronto Daily Star |date=18 August 1950 |page=19}}

• Dylan Moscovitch, athlete with the Parkdale Flames Hockey Association{{cite news |last1=Nelson |first1=Norm |title=Parkdale Skater Gunning For Olympic Podium |work=Parkdale Villager |date=28 March 2013 |page=3}}{{cite news |title=Parkdale Skater Sochi-Bound |work=Parkdale Villager |date=16 January 2014 |page=6}} and the West Toronto Skating Club at the McCormick Playground Arena who won a silver medal in figure skating at the 2014 Winter Olympics.{{cite news |last1=Brown |first1=Josh |title=Parkdale Native Moscovitch Helps Canada to Olympic Silver Medal |work=Parkdale Villager |date=13 February 2014 |page=3}}

• Hank Nowak, winger for the Boston Bruins and the Detroit Red Wings{{cite news |last1=Robertson |first1=Grant |title=The Wallet, the Hockey Player and the Mystery |work=Globe and Mail |date=9 December 2023 |page=A13}} who played a game of hockey with his son at the McCormick Playground Arena on December 1, 2023.{{cite news |last1=Robertson |first1=Grant |title=The Wallet, the Hockey Player and the Mystery |work=Globe and Mail |date=9 December 2023 |page=A14}}

• Herbert Obst, Canadian men's foil champion in 1966{{cite news |last1=Bates |first1=Noel |title=Canada's Fencing Team Stabs at Golden Future |work=Toronto Daily Star |date=22 July 1966 |page=B9}} who placed second in the men's foil at the Canadian Fencing Association Eastern Canada Championships at the McCormick Recreation Centre on April 30, 1972.

• Doyle Orange, Canadian Football League Eastern All-Star running back for the Toronto Argonauts in 1975{{cite news |title=Four Argonauts Selected |work=Globe and Mail |date=4 December 1975 |page=58}}{{cite news |title=Four Argonauts Named to East All-Stars |work=Toronto Star |date=4 December 1975 |page=C2}} who became a playground instructor at the McCormick Recreation Centre from 1978 to 1980.{{cite news |last1=MacLeod |first1=Rex |title=Former Argo a Winner – With Kids |work=Toronto Star |date=3 June 1982 |pages=F1–F2}}

• Peter Samek, bronze medal fencer in the men's team sabre at the 1967 Pan American Games{{sfn|Olderr|2009|p=103}} who won the men's sabre title at the Canadian Fencing Association Eastern Canada Championships at the McCormick Recreation Centre on April 30, 1972.

• William Archibald "Hank" Sinclair, athlete of the McCormick Recreation Centre who became a football player with the Toronto Argonauts from 1924 to 1929.{{cite news |title=Grid, Baseball Star, Oldtimers' Official |work=Globe and Mail |date=20 November 1974 |ref=Grid, Baseball Star, Oldtimers' Official |page=39}}

• Joe Spring, athlete of the McCormick Recreation Centre and First World War veteran{{cite news |title=Baseball Pitcher Joe Spring Dies |work=Toronto Daily Star |date=6 July 1959 |ref=Baseball Pitcher Joe Spring Dies |page=9}} who became a pitcher with the Toronto Osler Baseball Club from 1919 to 1927.{{cite news |title=Was an Oslers Pitching Star |work=Globe and Mail |date=6 July 1959 |ref=Was an Oslers Pitching Star |page=20}}

• Eli Sukunda, fencer who won the men's sabre title at the Canadian Fencing Association Central Ontario Championships at the McCormick Recreation Centre on March 19, 1972 and became the men's sabre champion at the 1975 Canada Winter Games.{{cite news |title=Quebec Reaping Gold at the Winter Games |work=Toronto Star |date=17 February 1975 |page=B8}}

• Vicky Sunohara, hockey player with the Brampton Thunder who won a gold medal in women's hockey at the 2006 Winter Olympics and played in a charity match at the McCormick Playground Arena on April 8, 2006.

• Tessa Virtue, figure skating champion at the 2018 Winter Olympics who launched her new Barbie doll at the McCormick Playground Arena on March 9, 2020.{{cite news |last1=Liu |first1=Stephanie |title=Tessa Virtue Partners With Barbie to Empower Young Girls |url=https://www.tsn.ca/tessa-virtue-partners-with-barbie-to-empower-young-girls-1.1455522 |access-date=1 January 2022 |work=TSN |date=10 March 2020}}{{cite news |last1=Pope |first1=Amanda |title=Girls Are Twice as Likely Than Boys to Stop Playing Sports. Tessa Virtue Wants To Change That |url=https://globalnews.ca/news/6665709/tessa-virtue-barbie-doll/ |access-date=1 January 2022 |work=Global News |date=12 March 2020}}

• Konrad Widmaier, Canadian men's épée champion in 1966 who won the men's foil title at the Canadian Fencing Association Eastern Canada Championships at the McCormick Recreation Centre on April 30, 1972.

• Gerry Wiedel, Canadian national fencing champion in 1965{{cite news |title=Gerry Wiedel Fencing King |work=Toronto Daily Star |date=25 May 1965 |page=18}} who won the men's foil title at the Canadian Fencing Association Central Ontario Championships at the McCormick Recreation Centre on March 19, 1972.

• Ross Wilson, athlete of the McCormick Recreation Centre who became a goaltender with the Detroit Red Wings in 1951.{{cite news |title=Farm Machine Part of Kelly's Contract |work=Toronto Daily Star |date=29 October 1951 |page=20}}

• Lester Wong, silver medal épée fencer at the 1970 British Commonwealth Games{{cite news |title=This Honeymoon Not Foiled |work=Toronto Star |date=31 July 1972 |page=11}} who won the men's épée title at the Canadian Fencing Association Eastern Canada Championships at the McCormick Recreation Centre on April 30, 1972.

{{reflist}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:McCormick Park}}

{{Toronto Neighbourhoods}}

{{Parks and squares in Toronto}}

Category:Parks in Toronto

Category:1911 establishments in Canada