Mackenzie House
Mackenzie House
4.5
About
temporarily closed due to flooding Mackenzie House is the restored home of William Lyon Mackenzie, Toronto's first Mayor, a radical journalist and publisher, and leader of the Rebellion of 1837 in Upper Canada. This house was given to Mackenzie by friends and supporters, when he retired from public life, and in recognition of his many years of serving the community. Mackenzie House is one of 10 historic museums operated by the City of Toronto. Toronto's Historic Sites engage visitors, inspire passion, challenge ideas and connect the past to the present.
Duration: < 1 hour
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Address
Neighbourhood: Old Toronto
How to get there
- Dundas • 3 min walk
- Queen • 5 min walk
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4.5
84 reviews
Excellent
55
Very good
21
Average
4
Poor
1
Terrible
3
Tracy K
New Jersey73 contributions
June 2023 • Family
House is not currently open for visits, and apparently has very little inside anyway (according to our tour guide). We walked by during a Tour Guys tour of the Old Town. I wouldn't head there independent of a walking tour unless you are interested in one of their occasional printmaking workshops. Not architecturally significant.
Written 12 June 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Dalyght
Toronto, Canada12 contributions
Nov 2017 • Friends
My brother and I had a great visit yesterday. It's a perfect town house in the heart of downtown Toronto, accurately restored to around 1860. It includes a recreation of Mackenzie's print shop (including some of his own equipment) plus the living quarters of Mackenzie and his family. Our tour guide, Bruce, was clearly totally caught up in the life and rebellious times of Mackenzie, and made it come alive for us. There is particular emphasis on the printing process, and I volunteered to assist in operating the press.
Highly recommended.
**Be sure to check to hours at the Mackenzie House website (which I'm afraid you'll have to search for, because I can't post it here) At the time of writing this review, the hours are incorrect on Trip Advisor.
Highly recommended.
**Be sure to check to hours at the Mackenzie House website (which I'm afraid you'll have to search for, because I can't post it here) At the time of writing this review, the hours are incorrect on Trip Advisor.
Written 30 November 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Marjanne
London, UK12 contributions
July 2019 • Solo
I decided to do some solo touristing for the first time while my husband was in meetings and very much enjoyed the tour here. Having arrived when a small group was finishing their tour and getting their souvenir prints, I was kindly added to the printing portion of the tour normally done at the end and then taken around the house by myself before another couple of people joined us half way through. The tour guide was very good at accommodating awkward walk-in times and ensuring everyone gets to see and do everything by simply doing the bits of the tour in a different order based on when you joined and I appreciate that he took me round by myself. I thoroughly enjoyed the tour which was interesting, informative, and humorous. I would say it is definitely worth the $8 and would recommend it to anyone who has an interest in historical house museums or, like me, simply likes beautiful buildings and a view into a different time.
Written 24 July 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
travellingsinclairs
Toronto, Canada562 contributions
Nov 2017 • Solo
Toronto which likes to bury its History under cement has a small downtown gem in this authentic historical structure. This is the building where WL Mackenzie lived with his family and died. Applause to the curators and staff that bring not only MacKenzie to life but also the time period. Can one voice in life make a difference in the political landscape. Well vist this site and learn why and how. A first rate site in Toronto...and why did it take 60 years to appreciate it? Worth the visit and excellent tours and demonstrations.
Written 13 November 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Ivona K
Toronto, Canada359 contributions
Nov 2017 • Family
Learn about William Lyon Mackenzie, a man who shaped Canada's democracy and as a result all other other British Commonwealth countries. Tour his furnished house, learn about life in mid 19th century Toronto from a guide in period clothing. Best part of the tour was the talk in the printshop. A gentleman named Bruce - who is a fantastic story teller - gave us a great recap of Mackenzie's efforts to bring responsible government to what was then Upper Canada.
Reasonably priced admission, (free admission until Nov 30, 2017 as part of Canada 150), washrooms, paid parking on lots and streets nearby, minutes from Dundas subway station.
Reasonably priced admission, (free admission until Nov 30, 2017 as part of Canada 150), washrooms, paid parking on lots and streets nearby, minutes from Dundas subway station.
Written 13 November 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
2ndhnymoon
Ontario58 contributions
Apr 2013 • Couples
We stopped by to kill a little time before lunch and ended up spending more than an hour. The tour guide was very informative and answered any questions we had. I learned so much and thoroughly enjoyed the museum. For $7 admission, we got our moneys worth for sure.
Written 30 April 2013
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
sdempsey
Belfast, UK161 contributions
June 2012 • Couples
We visited this on our last day in Toronto because we were running out of things to do and thought this might kill half an hour, however when we got there, we got a much more detailed guided tour of both the house of William Lyon Mackenzie and of a printing workshop than we expected.
The guides (Kate and Mark - both dressed in period costume) were both very knowledgeable and interesting. A real surprise was the print workshop. This sounds quite dull, but Mark (who actually undertook a printing apprenticeship to further his knowledge) made the topic fascinating and we got a chance to actually use the 19th century printing press to take home a memento of our visit.
If you are into ghosts, the Mackenzie House is reputedly the most haunted location in Toronto. But even if you are not, this is a fine place to visit.
The guides (Kate and Mark - both dressed in period costume) were both very knowledgeable and interesting. A real surprise was the print workshop. This sounds quite dull, but Mark (who actually undertook a printing apprenticeship to further his knowledge) made the topic fascinating and we got a chance to actually use the 19th century printing press to take home a memento of our visit.
If you are into ghosts, the Mackenzie House is reputedly the most haunted location in Toronto. But even if you are not, this is a fine place to visit.
Written 12 June 2012
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
runningwild32
united kingdom349 contributions
Oct 2019
Not knowing anything about the history of Toronto, having been on a walking tour, we decided to go back to Mackenzie House and not past it this time. At $8 we thought it was excellent value for money. We were the only ones on the tour to start and got our own personal guide, who gave us information on the family life of Mackenzie along with the history of the house. We then had a fascinating chat from Bruce explaining about Mackenzie, the printing press and Mackenzie and the newspaper, going into exile along with being the first Lord Mayor of Toronto.
Excellent value for money, definitely a case of small is best, highly interesting couple of hours delivered by staff enthusiastic about Mackenzie.
Excellent value for money, definitely a case of small is best, highly interesting couple of hours delivered by staff enthusiastic about Mackenzie.
Written 13 November 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Diana C
Toronto, Canada14 contributions
Jan 2018 • Friends
I highly recommend experiencing this window into early York/Toronto history. Our excellent tour guides brought MacKenzie’s story to life with their enthusiasm and vast knowledge. As a Torontonian born and raised, I really enjoyed learning more about my city. Who said Canadian history was boring?!
Written 7 January 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
citypins
Wiarton, Canada542 contributions
Aug 2016 • Friends
The price is right, and the tour is not long. However, it is extremely informative about William MacKenzie, his home, his history, and the history of Toronto. Without going into much detail, you will learn of his newspapers, his one year as Mayor of Toronto, and his rebellious acts to reform the Government of that time. The house itself will let you understand what the times must have been like in the mid 1800's. Enjoy the tour, we did!
Written 1 September 2016
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
The main floor and original print shop is, but not to tour the house, it's stairs only that go up to the living quarters and down to the kitchen.
Written 5 October 2017
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