Abandoned Hamilton

[IronWarrior]

Originally Posted by fastcarsfreedom

matt602--the upper floors--at least those I was familiar with were fairly typical of a hotel. The Connaught underwent a massive renovation in the 70s which reduced the room count considerably--old hotels had small rooms--so most of the Connaught's rooms were spacious and the majority had two windows as a result. Another reasonably major reno happened in the mid 1980s when the Sheraton was due to open--everything after that was mostly cosmetic--so decor-wise it looked pretty much like a 1980s business-oriented hotel. In December 1999 I attended a reception for my grandmother which was in one of the larger suites in the hotel--it was the full-width of the newer building overlooking John Street and the Sopinka Courthouse--it was huge--had two separate entrances to the hallway--the decor was a little dated but it was in reasonable condition (and the view was great)--had a bedroom with a king bed--a sitting area and a dining room. I recall the room had wainscotting--and I as I was browsing through some photos of the gutted hotel floors I actually spotted some of that some wainscotting still on an exterior wall. Attended my high school prom in the big ballroom on the second floor--had our photos taken with our backs to the glass railing overlooking the lobby--I'll have to dig a few of those photos out for y'all. Been to the ballroom many times through the 80s also for family events and for the old Tiger Cat QB club meetings and pep rallies when they were there--that room never changed as far as I recall--was always brown and always had those vertically stacked light fixtures on the walls.

The main restaurant space--Vinton's Bistro & Grill in the 80s and then a Fran's toward the end was a great space also--has an incredible floor as far as I recall.

As for the pool--it was actually really nice when it was built (and the slide was a novelty)--but the money spent to build and install it was the last money ever spent on it--by then the hotel was in it's period of changing ownership every few years--by then the die was cast as far as the hotel's ultimate fate.

I used to love 'Frans' restaurant! where else could you go to get a great meal at 2:00am after a night of clubbing!

[DC83]

Originally Posted by IronWarrior

I used to love 'Frans' restaurant! where else could you go to get a great meal at 2:00am after a night of clubbing!

Fran's was a super popular spot for the after-hours crowd! Always packed. I never ate at the one at the Connaught myself, but have sobered up at the College St one in TO several times. As for a 'great' meal... I dunno bout that!! haha