The Story Behind Toronto’s Little House
It may look like a playhouse for children, but it’s not. Believe it or not, fully grown people actually live there. My guess is that they aren’t too tall and they don’t weigh very much.
Built in 1912 by contractor Arthur Weeden, Toronto’s Little House, as it’s known, is only about 7′ wide, 47′ deep, with a total of less than 300 square feet of living space inside. (The Spite House we looked at recently has two stories and 325 square feet, so this is actually smaller.)
There’s an e-mail circulating calling it the “Smallest House in Brooklyn,” but after doing a little research, I found out that it is actually in Toronto. It has become a popular tourist attraction and even has its own webpage: Toronto’s Little House.
It has a living room, kitchen, bedroom, and bath. They even found room to tuck a washer and dryer in there. Talk about clever space planning! The home was sold for $135,000 at the beginning of 2007 to a couple who renovated it and put it back on the market for $179,900.
Here’s the house before it was renovated:
And after:
Even the front walkway was redone with tumbled stone, and a window was added for charming effect. Inside everything looks new. Here’s the entry:
The living room:
The kitchen, which comes with a folding table and chairs so that they don’t take up space when you’re not using them:
UPDATE: There had been some questions in the comments asking where they stashed the fridge and the bathroom. A Hooked on Houses reader found photos of them for me (thanks, Mike!). Here’s the fridge, tucked right in behind the washer and dryer:
And here’s the small, but efficient, bath:
The bedroom, with Murphy Bed open (door leads to backyard):
And the bedroom with the Murphy Bed put up:
The back of the house and patio:
The official webpage explains that Toronto contractor Arthur Weeden noticed the unused space between the two larger homes and declared, “In order to use the land, I will build on it” (Toronto Sun Telegram, 1939). After completing the house, he and his wife lived in it for 20 years. After that a family with three children lived there for many years, which is hard to imagine!
Real estate agent Cristina Lopes, whose listing it was last year, told the NY Daily News, “The house is just so unique and cute, its [fame has] spread to all corners of the globe.” She got inquiries from as far away as New Zealand and Hong Kong. No takers yet, though. Until then, it’s being rented out.
Ellen Degeneres talked about Toronto’s Little House on her talk show last year. To watch her very funny interview with Cristina Lopes, click here.
Big thanks to Hooked on Houses reader Marie at Watch the Wind Blow By for forwarding this to me. I love when readers send me fun stuff. Check out her site to see what decorating projects she’s working on today!
To see more unusually small–or freakishly big–houses, check these out:
- The Spite House: a truly tiny house in Alexandria, Virginia.
- Dolly Parton’s childhood home in the mountains of Tennessee.
- A House as Big as Utah: a house that is the total opposite of this one!
- Tumbleweed Tiny Houses: houses built for living small
April 11th, 2008 at 9:46 am
Crazy! It’s very cute but I can’t imagine being crammed into something that small. It makes my current house (1000 sq ft) look enormous
April 11th, 2008 at 9:57 am
Gosh, it’s so cute! I think the improvements (that round window in the front and the pavers walkway) add to its appeal. Maybe it’s just my fondness for dollhouses, but I’m WAY more attracted to this house than any of the others on the house tour this week.
April 11th, 2008 at 9:59 am
I did a post on this tiny house a while back, too. I had the photos, but not the background, so this was very interesting to me. I cannot believe that someone lived there for 20 yrs, and then a family with children, too!! Weird!!
Linda
April 11th, 2008 at 10:31 am
So sweet, I want to pop it in my mouth!
April 11th, 2008 at 11:24 am
It is so cute!!! But OMG Tiny!! I don’t think I could even find all the shoes I have in the whole house. I cannot belive that a family with 3 kids lived there. Did they sleep stacked on top of each other.
April 11th, 2008 at 11:44 am
It would be so cute to put up out of town guest if you lived nearby.
April 11th, 2008 at 1:28 pm
Oh my mom will be so bummed that house isn’t actually in Brooklyn! lol She grew up in Brooklyn…you think she’d have known that? (ha ha) GREAT post! You found out so much more info!!!
April 11th, 2008 at 1:42 pm
Very, very cute. But so, so tiny. Great use of space… built in storage and a washer/dryer combo. Wonder what the going rent is?
Can’t believe about the family with kids living there! Must have been one of those “family bed” families. I have 3 kids (and a hubby) in 1500 sf, and I feel like I’m drowing in kids. Should be closing on 3000 sf later this month - will twice the space mean more breathing room, or more cleaning room?
April 11th, 2008 at 3:01 pm
Stumbled upon this site yesterday.
Where’s the frig ?
5 people lived there ?????
April 11th, 2008 at 3:09 pm
Good question about the fridge, Jackie! I see no sign of it. Hmmm…
April 11th, 2008 at 11:37 pm
Oh my gosh, my brother lives in Toronto and so I know those driveways are not that big. I can’t even imagine living somewhere that small, wow.
Thanks for introducing yourself today on my blog!!
Laura
April 12th, 2008 at 7:38 am
Maya–you are too funny! Your comment cracked me up!
April 12th, 2008 at 8:30 am
No wonder that this is my favourite from the Toronto houses, it`s so charming. I think that for a young couple it`s a perfect place to live and also a good example for space using very thoughtfully. They are some people who are not contented with a huge villa and some who are entirely happy with an extremely small house. I hope that the future homeowners will keep it in a good condition.
April 13th, 2008 at 1:00 pm
Jeez! I wouldn’t be able to fit all of My stuff in there!
Which, considering the fact that I don’t have my own
house, is pretty sad.
April 15th, 2008 at 8:32 am
I found the fridge!
If you check out the image gallery on the official website, they have a photo of the rest of the kitchen space:
http://thelittlehouse.ca/ImageGallery/ImagePreview.aspx?id=20a646e5-1591-4373-921f-56be26bc5f2b&m=2&c=00000000-0000-0000-0000-000000000000&i=e771e3f1-93ba-48d3-8610-1bc9698563ab
April 15th, 2008 at 9:18 am
Thanks, Irishof! This is great. Somehow in all the times I was on that website looking around, I never found those other galleries of photos. As you can see, I just added photos of the fridge and bathroom today, as well as a close-up of the entry area when you first walk in. -Julia
September 10th, 2008 at 2:13 pm
its so so cute,……….i did a similar project once,…nine feet wide lounge seemed like a challenge,…i had never seen such a small lounge before,…so all i can say is its all lovely………..