The park is named for John Beaty, nephew of the more famous James Beaty. In 1859, John married Janet Triller and in 1872, in one of the great Toronto real estate deals of all time, he purchased for $200 an acre the estate of Colonel Dunn of the 100th regiment that stretched from today’s Dowling Avenue west to Roncesvalles. He spent the rest of his life in comfort, selling off parcels of land as the town of Parkdale grew, eventually becoming part of Toronto in 1889. He died at his residence, 1499 Queen Street West on November 10, 1908.
This land also tells the story of modern day decline and recent gentrification of Parkdale. This park is on the site of a former rooming house owned by an over-ambitious landlord who was shutdown by the City of Toronto while undertaking illegal renovations (no doubt to cram in yet more rooms). The house was eventually expropriated, levelled and the lot turned into a park at the behest of local residents.