West End

The heritage value of the Weller-Boucher house resides in its association with several 19th century Peterborough judges. Architecturally, the house is a good example of the Classical revival adaptation of Loyalist architecture as it developed in Peterborough in the 1850s.

The heritage value of Marchbanks lies in its association with several noteworthy Peterborough families. It is a well-preserved example of the substantial homes built by Peterborough’s economic and political leaders in the mid 19th century. Marchbanks was built in 1850 for the Honourable George Boulton, a financier, land speculator, and minister in the Provincial government. In 1857 the property was sold to the Rev. John Gilmour, a Baptist missionary and minister of Peterborough’s first Baptist congregation. After the death of Gilmour’s widow in 1900, the house passed through several owners until its purchase in 1951 by the novelist, Robertson Davies, during his tenure as the editor and publisher of The Peterborough Examiner. In 1963, Marchbanks was sold to Professor Thomas H. B. Symons, the founding president of Trent University. It is also an early example of brick construction, which was still relatively uncommon in Peterborough in 1850.

The McFadden House, constructed in 1859, is an excellent example of the Ontario Gothic style as it developed in the Peterborough area. The structure was owned and built by James McFadden, a prominent Irish immigrant and businessman in the City. The house is significant for its retention of original materials and millwork- shiplap siding, windows, and porch elements- as well as its unusual easterly orientation perpendicular to the street.

Classical Revival style. Located between the two main factory buildings, was designed by William Blackwell, one of the most prominent architects in Peterborough history, and founder of Ontario’s longest continually running architectural firm. Built between 1919 and 1920 to serve as office and administration space for the Bonner Worth Company, the Bonner Worth Mill Administrative Building is, architecturally, the most intact building of those remaining in the mill complex. As part of the extant Bonner Worth Mill, it has important connections to labour, political and industrial history of Peterborough, Ontario and Canada, as well as excellent architectural value.

Arts and Crafts style. Built 1915-1920. The foundation appears much older than the rest of the house (1885), and may have a connection to the Grand Trunk Railway, as the Peterborough-Lindsay railway line was laid just to the west of the house in the Jackson Park ravine.

The house is a well-preserved example of the Arts and Crafts style, both inside and out. The house retains exterior features such as the steep bell cast roof, and Craftsman columns on the front porch. 527 Parkhill Road is especially significant for the interior of the house, including Art Nouveau light fixtures, staircase, and sunroom paneled with cedar.

Once a farmhouse on the edge of town, Merino is now located in a suburban setting. Merino remains distinctive from neighbouring properties in its large lot and generous set back from the street. James Wallis, a Scottish immigrant, is credited as the founder of Fenelon Falls. In partnership with Robert Jameson, he built a sawmill, laid out the town-site and began bringing in settlers to the new village.

Over the years, Wallis purchased up to ten thousand acres of land in Fenelon Township. In 1840, James Wallis married Janet Fisher. Wallis began construction of his farmhouse, 'Merino' (named after his prized sheep), in Peterborough in 1849, the same year Janet died. By the time the new house was complete in 1851, Wallis had married Louisa Forbes, and together they became known for their hospitality and entertaining at the Merino farmhouse.

The Bonner-Worth Mill Factory Building has important connections to labour, political and industrial history, as well as excellent architectural and landmark value. This was the site of one of Peterborough’s most violent labour disputes, which had provincial and national repercussions. Labour organization began in Peterborough at the Bonner Worth and Auburn Woolen Mills, and the strike of 1937 was the first of its kind in Peterborough, leading to violent confrontations and division within the community. 

The Bonner-Worth Mill Factory Building is a largely intact example of early 20th century industrial architecture. Constructed in three phases, the two later additions (1913 & 1916) to the Mill complex were designed by William Blackwell, a prominent Peterborough architect. The low horizontal lines of the building contrast with the vertical 2 storey recessed panels that frame large windows designed to maximize daylight during working hours. With its imposing scale and massing, the building remains a landmark on the streetscape. While a number of additions and outbuildings to the rear of the main building have been removed in recent renovations, the Bonner-Worth Mill Factory Building retains much of its original appearance from the street, complementing the other extant mill buildings that were severed from the property years ago.

Sheehy House was constructed by Richard Sheehy, who was just starting his contracting firm in Peterborough. Sheehy House retains many interesting exterior features of the Victorian period, including stained glass windows and transoms, and decorative trelliage trim. The decorative brickwork of the Gilmour Street façade is a trademark of Sheehy construction (due to Richard’s training as a bricklayer).

Built in circa 1890, the remaining pieces of the Morrow Estate are good examples of an upper class property in Victorian Peterborough. When built, the house and its outbuildings were buffered from neighboring properties with grounds and a longer laneway. The cottage, located at the rear of the house, is largely intact, and now used for apartments as well. It is architecturally unique in Peterborough, with its steep bellcast hip roof and large gabled dormers.

The Richardson-Pilling House has cultural heritage value as a good example of an intact late 19th century middle class family home. It also has strong associations to Peterborough’s industrial and labour history as its early owners and tenants were connected to Peterborough’s largest and most notable companies - the William Hamilton Manufacturing Company and the Bonner Worth Mills.

Built circa 1876, 485 Bonaccord Street, known as the Spence Cottage, has excellent cultural heritage value in its association with well-known Peterborough citizens in the 19th century, and its well-preserved design and construction.

Mount St. Joseph has historical value as the first convent motherhouse in Peterborough, and also the fourth motherhouse of the Sisters of St. Joseph to be established in Canada. The first congregation of the Sisters of St. Joseph in the Peterborough area arrived in the 1890s with the task of administering St. Joseph’s Hospital. Proper residential facilities were needed in Peterborough and the Sisters subsequently bought a farmhouse, Inglewood, and its ten-acre property in 1894 for the sum of $6,350.00. Originally the home of David G Hatton, local police magistrate in the late 1860s, Inglewood was put up for sale by Hatton, and was the home of the Sherwood family of Peterborough until 1893.

The property at 651 Gilmour Street holds good heritage and cultural value in its association with the Campbell and Hatton families and intact early twentieth century interior features. 651 Gilmour Street is an interpretation of the Edwardian style with large window openings a plain architrave above the columns that support the porch. The interior of the home, refinished after the fire of the early 1900s, still contains all of its original features including all fireplaces, wooden staircase and pocket doors separating rooms.

Built on land originally owned by James Campbell, this property has good cultural heritage value. The land that 601 Gilmour Street now occupies was once part of a very large tract of farmland that extended almost to Charlotte Street and contained a large farmhouse. When prominent lawyer Elias Burnham died in 1890, his property which was bounded by Park, King, Charlotte and Monaghan (then Boundary Road) was laid out to become “the Avenues”, then Peterborough’s largest suburban area. 601 Gilmour Street was constructed just west of Monaghan, on the corner, just outside of “the Avenues” area as it was originally laid out, and it was the first house to be constructed on the south side of Gilmour Street west of Monaghan Road. It was originally part of Monaghan Township until annexation as part of Peterborough in 1928.

601 Gilmour Street has architectural value as an intact Arts & Crafts style bungalow with intact interior features. The home features a multi-hued stiff mud brick exterior with a unique river rock/cobblestone verandah and foundation. The decorative stone construction features are somewhat rare in the Peterborough area and add a handcrafted quality to the home, an important feature of the Arts & Crafts movement, and similar to the stone bungalow in Jackson Park from the same era, possibly quarried from the same area.

499 Homewood was originally owned by George A. Cox, who sub-divided the lands of his estate, selling the lots through his company, The Toronto Savings and Loan Company. Lots 24 and 25 were sold in 1887 to Peter Weese Reynolds and were then sold and divided a number of times more to create the parcel known today as 499 Homewood Avenue.

In 1913, the Toronto Savings and Loan sold the lot to Julia Victoria Trebilcock. Like all lots in the area it was subject restrictive covenants that limited the owner to one dwelling on a lot at any given time, required future dwellings to align with other houses on the street, prohibited outbuildings, and required dwellings be built of brick or stone. All plans needed to be submitted for approval to the Toronto Savings and Loan Company. The arts and craft style house was constructed in 1914 by contractor Thomas C. Ephegrave to designs of prominent Peterborough architect William Blackwell.

In 1918, Julia Trebilcock sold the land to Henry Cressman, Vice President of The Cressman Co. department store in Peterborough. In 1927, Cressman sold the property to John Gillespie. The Gillespie family had settled in the Peterborough area in 1903. John’s father, George A. Gillespie, entered the dairy supply business by buying the Peterborough Creamery in 1910 and his family, including John, ran the business until 1960.

The land at 512 Weller Street was originally part of the estate of George A. Cox. Cox owned the land until 1891, when it was sold to Patrick McHugh. The land has several other owners, until Cox repurchased the property in 1911. Upon his death in 1914, the property was passed to his son, Herbert Coplin Cox. Herbert Cox immediately granted the land to Alfred H. Cox, in trust for Annie Scott and her daughter, Irene Scott. Annie Scott (née Cox) was married to Gilbert James Scott. When Annie died in 1920, the property passed to Irene and her husband, John Kirk Hughes, a prominent local car merchant. The property remained in the ownership of the ancestors of George A. Cox until 1950, when the house was sold to Kathleen Bell.

The house has undergone very few structural changes since it was built circa 1907. It is an example of Queen Anne style architecture, similar to many of the other houses in the surrounding neighbourhood. The house is a 2 ½ storey red stretcher bond brick construction, with a gabled front façade. The front façade also features a large veranda, with Doric columns set in brick piers. The property originally had a stable, which was converted to a garage in 1913.

404 Belmont Avenue is one of only a few Georgian Revival houses in Peterborough. Built in 1905 by contractor William Langford, to the designs of noted Toronto architects Sproatt & Rolph, the house was commissioned by Edward Wood as a gift for his parents. The house is typical of the Georgian Revival style with a paneled front door centred in a symmetrical front façade with 6 over 1 double hung windows. The house had undergone few alterations since 1905, with the most noticeable being the enclosure of the back porch.

The property was originally owned by George A. Cox, who sub-divided the lands of his estate selling lots through his company, The Toronto Savings and Loan Company. Development in the area was subject to restrictive covenants that: limited the owner to one dwelling on a lot at any given time; no dwelling could be built to the south of the new house; any future dwelling would line up with other houses on the street; no outbuildings were permitted; and that dwellings would be built of brick or stone.

Edward Wood worked for the Toronto Savings and Loan Company when he purchased 404 Belmont for his parents, Jane and John Wood. John Wood was headmaster of the Ashburnham School. After their parent’s death the property was occupied by Edward’s sister Annie until her death in 1962. Following the Wood family, the house was bought by W. Donald Bark, a local solicitor.

The W. H. Bradburn House, was constructed between 1891 and 1893 in the developing upper middle class suburban neighbourhood, now known as the Old West End. It was most likely constructed by carpenter and builder Arthur Rutherford before it was purchased by prominent local businessman, Thomas Bradburn (1817-1900), the largest individual landholder in the Peterborough area in the late nineteenth century. The property was subsequently occupied by his son, William H. Bradburn (1870-1942), and grandson, Herbert I. Bradburn (1904-1988), both local businessmen and politicians with active connections to the development of the city throughout the early twentieth century.

503 Homewood Avenue is an excellent example of Second Empire domestic design executed in brick. Its use of the style is exemplified through the overhanging mansard roof with fish scale shingles and decorative bracket decorative dormer window mouldings; and an asymmetrical plan which emphasizes the entranceway through a unique two-storey wooden, verandah. One of the earliest houses in the Old West End area, it also was extremely influential in the development of the local residential neighbourhood as it served as an explicit benchmark for building standards in the surrounding properties.

408 Belmont Avenue has cultural heritage value or interest as an early twentieth century residence constructed in the English Cottage style. Constructed in 1911, the property displays the characteristic elements of the English cottage style including asymmetrical massing, a cross gable plan, and mock half timbering in the gable ends. It is an excellent, representative example of this style in Peterborough which is executed to a high degree of craftsmanship. Notable features include the recessed entranceway with ogee arch and oriel windows on the north and west elevations. 

The property has historical significance in its association with Claude Henry Rogers, the first owner of the house. Rogers was the son of James Z. Rogers, one of the founders of the Canadian Canoe Company. The house is also important as one of the domestic designs of the Toronto architectural firm Bond and Smith, founded by English architect Herbert Acton Bond and Sandford Fleming Smith, a Peterborough native and the nephew of Sir Sandford Fleming.

408 Belmont Avenue also holds contextual value as part of the city’s Old West End neighbourhood. The house contributes to the historic neighbourhood’s overall character through its placement on a large landscaped lot with mature trees and significant setbacks.

487 Hunter Street West has cultural heritage value or interest as the only Prairie Style house in Peterborough. Constructed between 1915 and 1916, the property employs a neutral colour palette, horizontal massing, compositional asymmetry, and limited ornamentation that are typical of the Prairie Style. It displays a high level of craftsmanship in its exterior and interior features which include two sets of original stained glass windows executed in opalescent glass and a coach house designed to match the main residential building.

The property has historical significance in its connection to local businessman Alva W. Cressman and his family. Cressman operated Cressman’s Department Store in downtown Peterborough between 1898 and 1927 and became an extremely prosperous member of the Peterborough business community. Cressman’s younger son, Frederick Christie Cressman, served in the First World War and is commemorated on the Peterborough Citizen’s War Memorial. The property also has important historical significance as a rare Prairie Style design executed by Toronto architect, Stephen Burwell Coon.

487 Hunter Street West is an important feature of the cultural landscape of the Old West End neighbourhood. A landmark structure on a corner lot, it is located in an area of 2 and 3-storey brick homes and maintains the proportions, sizing and materiality of the surrounding properties.

469 Weller Street is an excellent and representative example of a period revival style house influenced by the Arts & Crafts movement, dating from the early twentieth century. Constructed in 1914, it showcases many of the characteristics of period revival styles influenced by the Arts & Crafts movement including Tudor-style and medieval English style elements in its construction materials, small window groupings, asymmetrical massing, and informal orientation, including the gable end facing the street and recessed side entrance through the garden.

The property also has important historical significance as being constructed on land formerly owned by George A. Cox, prominent Peterborough philanthropist, Senator, and financier, and its first owner, Mr. John Crane, a prominent businessman and community member heavily involved in civic activities in Peterborough from the 1880s to 1935.

469 Weller Street has excellent contextual value as it helps to define, maintain, and support the character of the neighbourhood known as the Old West End and yields information about the development of new neighbourhoods in Peterborough and other cities in Canada in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries as a means of retreating from the congested urban centres.