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Between naps and snacks we have been exploring the neighborhood. It is one of Brantford's oldest sections and contains some of its earliest buildings. When the weather is cooler, we will expand our explorations, but for now, we have confined our tour to a smaller radius. We often start at the Brantford VIA Rail station which is only a block away. In the morning there is usually a n engine shunting cars about with lots of satisfying banging going on, and then a VIA train arrives from Windsor heading east, and stops to pick and let off passengers,, which provides lots of loud announcements and general bustling about.
The station was finished in 1905 for the Grand Trunk Railway. Previously the Grand Trunk line which was laid from Niagara to Windsor in 1849, had its station in Harrisburg some miles away,because the city fathers did not offer sufficient incentives to bring the rail line through Brantford. It was over fifty years later that an agreement was reached to bring the mainline through Brantford.
Kitty-corner to the train station is a new bakery and visiting here is definitely going to require longer walks for me.
As we wander further up the street we find an Italian food restaurant tucked unexpectedly in this lovely building that was originally the parsonage of the First Baptist Church which is further up the street. It was built before 1875 but after 1852, according to the city maps.
Above the transom window which sits above the door, is a lovely stone keystone. The wide decorative moulding that arches down from it on both sides is called drip moulding and is supposed to deflect at least some moisture away from the door or window that it is installed above. There is a metalwork balustrade on the little balcony above the entrance.
The three wall gables have decorative metal finials on them which probably have some religious symbolism. Carved brackets support the gables and apparently there is a lovely herringbone pattern of brickwork under the present coating of white paint. According to the Heritage Inventory, the 1919 Fire Insurance Plan showed a slate roof and frame porch existed on either side of the brick front entrance. Must have been so lovely.
This little Regency Cottage was built before 1852 according to city records. The bricks on the walls shown here are laid in an irregular bond, which means that there is no pattern to the laying of the bricks. I read that this is required when using recycled bricks, so maybe that is the case here. It has however stood intact for a very long time and currently houses a sandwich shop. A permit was given in 1914 to a J.A. Taylor to build a garage on the property at a cost of $125.
This lovely old building in the Italianate style, was build as a residence by Dr. Peter Marter. It was featured as the home of A. Bunnell in the 1858 Tremaine's Map of the County of Brant. It was designated a Heritage Property for architectural and historic reasons.
In 1861 Sara Jeanette Duncan was born in this same house and a plaque, erected by the Ontario Heritage Foundation, now commemorates her literary achievements. Clearly an extraordinary woman of her time.
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Although this home has served a very different purpose since 1917, its beauty remains preserved and unchanged.
I think the scrollwork trim on this roof is quite lovely and the mini spire at the peak of the gable is called a gable post. I don't speak fluent 'architecture'. This house is believed to have been built prior to 1852 and belonged for many years to Abram Bradley who with his business partner Asa Pursel, operated the Simcoe-Brantford Stage Line.
Apparently this gable trim can also be referred to as bargeboard, vergeboard or gableboard. Originally the end rafters, or 'barge rafters', extended beyond the wall, so bargeboard was a decorative way to cover the ends of these rafters. Who knew? The louvered window would have provided some ventilation to the attic.
The original single storey cottage was built before 1875. In 1894 Joseph Stratford, who was the brother of John H. Stratford, founder of the Stratford Hospital, added the tower addition to the building. Although the paint obscures some of the details, many are still obvious on this unique structure.
There are four gables on the roof, all of which are clad in hexagonal slates. Beneath the carved roof brackets is an ornate frieze panel that sits atop a row or course of brick set in a sawtooth pattern. The blind windows have beveled side edges and a course of sawtooth bricks underneath, and are just meant to mimic windows and provide a sense of symmetry to the structure. This home was owned by Thomas Secord, proprietor of Brantford Ice Co., and George Woolams, who was an Alderman from 1912-1915.
This last little cottage is close to where my son and daughter-in-law live, and I have met the owner. The house was built prior to 1875 and has been carefully kept. The side yard is enclosed by a metal railing and contains a lovely garden with vegetables, flowers and fruit trees. The little Italian Nonna or grandmother who lives here, came to this country in 1950. She lived in a house across the street with a family who had eight children. Her father had left Italy for work in Pennsylvania, and her mother remained in Italy. When this little home came up for sale two years later, she was able to buy it with help from Italy. Her son now owns that first house. I asked her permission to take her picture and write a little about her on this blog. 'Blog' and 'computer' were not words that she is familiar with, but I wanted to pay tribute to this sweet neighbour with the courage to cross the ocean and make a home and a future here. She turns 90 next year.
There are more things to explore in this neighborhood, so my sweet boy and I will continue venturing out.
1 By Unknown - http://www.virtualreferencelibrary.ca/detail.jsp?Entt=RDMDC-PCR-222&R=DC-PCR-222&searchPageType=vrl, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?
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2 By Transferred from en.wikipedia to Commons. Transfer was stated to be made by User:YUL89YYZ., Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=3266821
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