City of Toronto compiled from surveys made to the present date 1874

Fire protection by-laws regulated the construction materials and methods that could be used in the central area of the city. By 1874 three levels of regulation, as shown here, were in use. Property owners could petition to have their street included in a stricter regulation zone in order to prevent the building of poor-quality houses. (Note the extensions to limit B, shown in yellow). Such streets were usually already the preserves of the affluent, so this practice produced a type of zoning based on status. In contrast to the hundreds of building by-laws of today, the fire protection by-laws were the only restriction on building in Toronto during its first century.’  (Isobel Ganton & Joan Winearls, Mapping Toronto's First Century) 1787-1884)