Tim Hortons opened its first store in 1964. The first doughnut shop opened on May 17 of that year on Ottawa Street North in Hamilton, Ontario, under the name Tim Horton Donuts.
The business was founded by Canadian hockey player Tim Horton and Jim Charade. Its earliest menu was notably simple, centered on coffee and doughnuts. The Hamilton shop became the starting point for a chain that would eventually become one of Canada’s most recognizable restaurant brands.
The name changed over time: it was later shortened to Tim Hortons, dropping the possessive apostrophe. In 1965, former police constable Ron Joyce took over the fledgling shop, and by 1967 he and Horton had become full partners.
Some accounts mention an earlier hamburger restaurant associated with Horton, which can cause confusion about the chain’s beginning. For the first Tim Hortons doughnut store—the milestone this question asks about—the accepted year is 1964.