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  • Rackhouse

    A relic of Toronto's distillery district, the rackhouse — one of its last undeveloped buildings — offers a glimpse into the city's prohibition-era past.

    “That Toronto’s waterfront is used by rum runners at nighttime to transfer their whisky cargoes is a well-known fact. But to catch the lawbreakers is another thing. The whisky men know when to come and go — when Toronto has gone to bed and the waterfront is under a blanket of darkness.”  – Toronto Daily Star, October 6, 1923

    The rackhouse once stored thousands of barrels of sprits among its rows and columns, allowing time to age, flavor, and strengthen the proof. Soon, the building will be redeveloped; but for now, we can still catch a glimpse of a foregone era.