On August 24, 1793, Simcoe ordered a royal salute (top) to be fired at Toronto to commemorate the victory of the Duke of York, King George III’s second son, in the siege of Famars, Flanders. Simcoe “took the same oppirtunity [sic] of naming this Station York.” He disliked Aboriginal names and introduced several English names in Upper Canada.

Although the original Town of York became the City of Toronto in 1834, the name York has survived in various forms including Fort York, and the communities of York, North York, and East York.