Historic Draper Street Black Slate Roofs – Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Most of the black slate roofs on Draper Street have been recently renovated to preserve their historic status.  These natural roof slates, produced in Quebec, Canada are tested ASTM S1 and will last 75-100 years.

Draper Street is named after William Henry Draper who was a politician, judge and lawyer in Upper Canada. It is also the birth place of Canada’s first Black Member of Parliament, former Lieutenant-Governor Lincoln Alexander who was born in 29 Draper Street in 1922.

Located in downtown Toronto and part of the King and Spadina neighbourhood, Draper Street is a beautiful street lined with twenty-eight 19^th Century Second Empire styled row houses/cottages.  The homes built between 1881 to 1889 have black slate mansard roofs, rounded dormers, red brick exterior and bay windows.

Thanks to the efforts of the Draper Street residents, the homes were designated historic properties under the Ontario Heritage Act in 1999. This designation protects them from the growing city around them and the redevelopment which includes new condominiums.  This also means that additions and renovations to the houses can’t change the look of the street.

There is a real sense of community on Draper Street, the vacant lot on the street was converted into Draper Street’s parkette where neighbours gather for summer solstice parties, movie nights and grow herbs and vegetables.  One resident, a 90 year old woman has lived in the same house on the street since she was 9.

We have supplied our North Country Unfading Black natural slate roof shingles to 25 out of the 28 homes on Draper Street. These mansard slate roofs have 16” x 10” x ¼” installed.