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Bata Shoe Museum

Museums ·Toronto ·Closed
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#5Museums in Toronto
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About

Bata Shoe Museum is a footwear history museum at 327 Bloor Street West, southwest corner of St. George Street, in Toronto.

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Bata Shoe Museum — Museum facade from across the street with its angular roof

Bata Shoe Museum — Museum facade from across the street with its angular roofBata Shoe Museum — Bata Shoe Museum on a city corner beneath a tall towerBata Shoe Museum — Museum's broad front facade with colorful banners and entranceBata Shoe Museum — Museum galleries with illuminated shoe displays and a central staircaseBata Shoe Museum — Display case with a historic statue of Saint CrispinBata Shoe Museum — Vintage Louis Vuitton shoe trunk in a warmly lit exhibit caseBata Shoe Museum — Suspended ballet shoe sculpture above the museum floorBata Shoe Museum — Museum windows glowing red at street level after darkBata Shoe Museum — Angular museum building with banners on a cloudy dayBata Shoe Museum — Close view of the museum's tiled walls and colorful windowBata Shoe Museum — Museum's angled glass windows reflecting the sky and nearby buildings

What's on here

Indigenous Beading Workshop: Poppy Indigenous Beading Workshop: Poppy Saturday, 11:00 Founders Lecture 2026 Founders Lecture 2026 Tuesday, 19:0050 USD The Sororum Presents: A Step Through Time The Sororum Presents: A Step Through Time Saturday, 10:3075 CAD PD Day at the BSM PD Day at the BSM Friday, 10:00 Linocut Workshop: André Perugia Themed Tote Bag Linocut Workshop: André Perugia Themed Tote Bag Monday, 18:3050 USD Curator’s Talk: Time, Labour, and the Value of Beads Curator’s Talk: Time, Labour, and the Value of Beads Monday, 19:0025 USD Late Night at the BSM: Collage Holiday Cards Late Night at the BSM: Collage Holiday Cards Friday, 17:00 Curator’s Talk: André Perugia Curator’s Talk: André Perugia Tuesday, 18:0025 USD Show more

Why go

  • All About Shoes explores footwear history and its social significance across cultures.
  • A three-storey building shaped like a shoe box, with a tilted roof like an askew lid.
  • Opening October 22, 2026, Brilliant explores beaded footwear traditions spanning 400 years through more than 85 objects.

Opening hours

Today10:00 – 17:00Show all
Monday10:00 – 17:00
Tuesday10:00 – 17:00
Wednesday10:00 – 17:00
Thursday10:00 – 17:00
Friday10:00 – 17:00
Saturday10:00 – 17:00
Sunday12:00 – 17:00

Don't miss

  • 7.6-centimetre Chinese shoesMade for women with bound feet.All About Shoes
  • Human-like footprint castA plaster cast reproducing the oldest known human-like footprint, based on tracks found in Tanzania.
  • Stained-glass panelA 12.8-metre panel beside the staircase linking all five floors, including two underground.
  • Roman bathhouse footwearDating to about 140–180 CE, this example has toe markings and patterned leather straps; it is on view in Unearthing Vindolanda.Unearthing Vindolandaca. 140–180 CE

Know before you go

  • Monday–Saturday: 10:00–17:00; Sunday: 12:00–17:00.
  • Admission is free every Sunday and for Indigenous visitors at all times.

What's inside

  • Four galleries house one permanent exhibition and three temporary shows.
  • Workshop dioramas, text and video explore shoemaking technologies; Fashion Afoot traces 20th-century fashion shoes.
  • The interior includes a museum shop, lecture theatre and reception hall.
  • Exhibits include Napoleon Bonaparte’s socks and footwear from cultures around the world.
  • Brilliant, an exhibition of beaded footwear, opens October 22, 2026.

With kids

  • The museum offers a family program on PD Days. During Winter Break, children can join drop-in activities, games, presentations and tours, with prizes.
  • Step Ahead gives at-risk children free access to interactive, curriculum-based programs.

Tips for your visit

  • Buy tickets through the museum’s website.
  • Expect to see a selection from the collection; most holdings remain in storage.

Interesting facts5

1/5
  1. 2018

    As of April 2018, the permanent collection held over 13,000 shoes and related objects spanning 4,500 years.

    Bata Shoe Museum - Wikipedia

  2. Footwear from First Nations and northern Canada makes up a major part of the collection.

    Bata Shoe Museum - Wikipedia

  3. The museum preserves shoes in their current condition, keeping wear and missing parts rather than restoring them.

    Bata Shoe Museum - Wikipedia

  4. About four per cent of the collection is displayed; most is kept in two underground vaults.

    Bata Shoe Museum - Wikipedia

  5. The oldest pair of shoes from the Americas is believed to have been made by the Anasazi from yucca fibres.

    Bata Shoe Museum - Wikipedia (part 2)

Shorts

History

Three temporary exhibitions opened in May 1995, covering women’s footwear, shoes in literature and Inuit mukluk making.

  1. 1946Sonja Bata began collecting shoes after marrying Thomas J. Bata and moving to Toronto.
  2. 1979She endowed a foundation to support footwear research and manage the collection.
  3. 1979–1985The collection was displayed in Bata company offices in Don Mills.
  4. 1991The museum building, designed by Raymond Moriyama, was completed.
  5. June 1992–November 1994The collection was housed in Toronto’s Colonnade office and retail complex; it was first shown publicly there in 1992.
Show all
  1. May 6, 1995The museum opened to the public.

How to get there

  • TrainSt. George is the closest subway station, served by the Bloor-Danforth and Yonge-University lines. Walk south on St. George Street for about 30 seconds, then cross twice.

Accessibility

  • Lift The museum elevator is temporarily out of service.

Sources: Bata Shoe Museum - Wikipedia · Bata Shoe Museum - Wikipedia (part 2) · Toronto/Yorkville and the Annex - Wikivoyage (s… · Bata Shoe Museum – A unique Toronto attraction · Exhibitions – Bata Shoe Museum · Events from September 29 – December 21 – Bata S… · Bata Shoe Museum - Wikipedia · Musée Bata de la chaussure - Wikipedia · checked 29 Sep 2026

Where
327 Bloor St W University of Toronto, Toronto

Plan from here: A day out →

Questions and answers

Can I explore Bata Shoe Museum exhibitions remotely?

Yes. The museum offers online exhibitions that visitors can view remotely.

Does Bata Shoe Museum display footwear linked to historical figures?

Yes. Its exhibits include Napoleon Bonaparte’s socks.

What is Bata Shoe Museum’s oldest European footwear?

A pair of sandals worn by a shepherd in the Tyrolian Alps, dating to about 5,200 BP (before present).

What is Bata Shoe Museum’s motto?

“One step at a time,” suggested to Sonja Bata by Robertson Davies.

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