The William Curry House is a mid-block building located at 73 Holland St. West. It was built in the Gothic Revival style around the 1890’s. Bill Curry, a carpenter, and his wife and children (Harvey and Jessie) moved here from the 14th Line, West Gwillimbury. Members of the Curry family have lived in this house for many decades. The two-storey, ‘L’-shaped building has large window openings, high floor to ceiling heights, and a medium-pitched, gable roof. The shutters (but probably not the colour) may be original. A wrap-around entrance porch is original and has Regency overtones. Although the windows and doors have been replaced, the original wood, lug sills remain. The building has brick veneer on wood frame construction. Window awnings and attic vents are twentieth-century alterations. The soffit infill, if original, has an altered eaves detail. According to the 2000 inventory, the building is surrounded by a well-maintained, landscaped yard. (1, 2, 3)
The mid-block building located on the south side at 48 James St. was built in 1840-60 in the Ontario Vernacular style. The one-storey cottage was once the home of Mrs. Peterman. It has a rectilinear plan, a medium-pitched, gable roof and an asymmetrical façade. There is no porch addition. The glazed entrance door has a transom above and a more recent awning addition. All the original windows have been replaced, but the plain, wood, lug sills and trim remain. The shutters are not original. Wood frame construction is covered by vinyl siding. The structure probably had wood cove siding originally. There is a parged, stone foundation. According to the 2000 inventory, this building is very old. (1, 3)
The mid-block building located on the north side at 101 John St. East was built pre-1900 in the Gothic Revival Cottage style. Originally, there was a woodshed across the back. It was the home of Mrs. Leduc or Mrs. Paul Courier, a French descendant from the old lumber mills. She wove rugs and blankets and repaired clothing. After her death the house was rented. Howard Robson and his wife lived here with part of their family, namely, Alvin, Garret and Phyllis. The building then became the home of Henry Pringle and his wife Joan. He was a retired railroad section man and owner of a garage on Holland Street. It was still the home of Joan Pringle when this photo was taken in 1995. The 1½-storey, three-bay house has a rectangular plan, a centre hall, and a symmetrical façade. Its medium-pitched, gable roof has a centre gable over the entrance. The building has small windows with low floor to ceiling heights. There are double-hung windows in rectangular openings with plain, wood frames and sills. The entrance porch, its windows, screen door, and the metal awnings are not original. A brick chimney at the exterior wall is also a recent reconstruction. The building has wood frame construction, vinyl siding and a parged stone foundation. Originally, the cladding was stucco. According to the 2000 inventory, the building’s basic form is camouflaged by the later additions. (1, 2, 3)
The building located at 27 John St. West (on the northeast corner of John and Moore Streets) was built around 1890 in the Gothic Revival style. It was the home of John Lee (a retired farmer from north of Bradford) for many years. After World War II, it was the home of Mildred Peelar and her family. Walter Mundy later lived here before the house was sold. The 1½-storey, ‘L’-shaped, main building has a medium-pitched, gable roof with a steeply-pitched, gable dormer. These are Gothic features. There are round-head, coloured transom lights over several ground-floor windows that are structurally supported above by arched, brick voussoirs. There is also a rectangular transom over the entrance door. Windows of various sizes (indicating post-1880 construction) have the original, wood lug sills. The structure has brick, masonry construction and a rusticated, stone foundation. According to the 2000 inventory, the replacement porch varies from the original design intent. (1, 2, 3)
The mid-block building located on the north side at 111 John St. West was built around 1880 in the Neoclassical style. It was known locally as “The Edmanson Home”. Thomas Edmanson was an undertaker and a businessman who lived here for many years. The house became the home of Charles Soper and his wife Eva (Edmanson) and daughters Doris and Caroline before World War II. The two-storey, rectangular building has a one-storey rear addition that was originally the summer kitchen. It also has a symmetrical façade, a centre hall plan, and a medium-pitched, gable roof. The original entrance probably had sidelights, a transom, and a roof with a steeper slope. It may also have been wider. The house has large window openings with high floor to ceiling dimensions and large, double-hung windows. Second-floor windows are slightly smaller than those at the ground floor (a local vernacular modification). The original windows would have been multi-paned. Wood frame construction has replacement exterior siding and there is a parged, stone foundation. The existing chimney is also a replacement. Chimneys originally located at the roof peak have been demolished. According to the 2000 inventory, the existing entrance, porch, and many windows and doors do not reflect the original design intent. (1, 2, 3) Please contact the Bradford West Gwillimbury Public Library (905-775-3328) if you have any other information about this photo.
The mid-block building located at 21 Joseph St. was built around 1880 in the Gothic Revival style. It is a 1½-storey, ‘L’-shaped building with a steeply-pitched, gable roof. The house has large window openings with high floor to ceiling heights and large replacement windows. It has wood frame construction and new, board and batten siding. The original cladding was stucco. According to the 2000 inventory, all early wood siding in Bradford was either cove or shiplap siding. This new siding is not historically accurate and it would have been painted a colour. A replacement porch, while generally in keeping with the original building style, does not reflect historically-accurate detailing and finishing. It also notes that little of the original building is visible except for the basic form. (1, 3)
The mid-block building located at 51 Moore Street was built post-1900 in the Ontario Vernacular Cottage style. The one-storey, three-bay ’cottage’ has a rectangular plan and a medium-pitched, gable roof. It has a simple form with a symmetrical façade and a centre hall plan. There is a simple, gabled awning above the entrance door. The 2/2 wood, sash windows have plain, wood lug sills and trim. Metal storm windows, the door, and the shutters are later additions. The cornice return at the gable ends may be an original detail. Wood frame construction is covered with shiplap siding and the structure has a parged, stone foundation. A one-storey addition was built at a later time. According to the 2000 inventory, this modest dwelling has been maintained well. (1, 3)
The John Cook House is located mid-block on the east side at 65 Moore Street. It is set well back and was built around 1880 in the Gothic Revival style. The building was owned by the Cook family for many years. Originally, a series of sheds ran along the south side of Joseph Street from Moore Street almost to the houses on Barrie Street. These sheds were owned by John (Jack) Cook. He ran the local livery business and he was also a seed merchant. Fred (the son of Jack) lived in this house after his father’s death. Fred was an insurance agent, town politician, school board member, and a lay minister. The Fred C. Cook Elementary School in Bradford is named after him. The 1½-storey, ‘L’-shaped building has large window openings with high floor to ceiling heights and a steeply-pitched, gable roof. There is an elegant, shallow-pitched, hip roof at the porch. It has elaborately-carved, wooden brackets at the support posts. There are (replacement) sash windows with wide, wood trim and projected, wooden hood moulding above the windows. The entrance door has the original transom and sidelight. Wood frame construction is clad with stained board and batten siding and the house has a stone foundation. The original cladding was stucco. According to the 2000 inventory, the house has been maintained well and it is pleasingly renovated. It also notes that although the shutters are not original, they are a tasteful (and not inappropriate) addition. (1, 2, 3)
The mid-block building located at 94 Moore Street was built in the 1920’s in the Ontario Vernacular Cottage style. It was once the home of the Simpkin family. George Simpkin was a plumber and electrician. His brother Robert was a policeman. On the Collings’ map, the Simpkin gardens ran from Frederick St. to James St. (along the west side of Moore Street). In later years, Mr. Simpkin built a new home on his south garden lot (at James Street). The one-storey, three-bay ‘cottage’ has a symmetrical façade, a rectilinear plan, and a shallow-pitched, hip roof. There is a centre, hall entrance from a prominent, covered front porch. The open, front porch is raised and has a gable roof with a decorative, wood pediment. Its roof is supported on wood half columns on brick piers at the back of the porch, and triple wood posts on brick piers at the front. The porch is raised and has a turned-wood handrail and baluster. There are narrow window openings and narrow windows with low floor to ceiling heights set into segmented, arched openings with concrete lug sills. The house has wood frame construction with brick masonry cladding and a parged, concrete foundation. According to the 2000 inventory, the house is in good condition with many original features that have been maintained well. It also notes that the windows, pre-cast concrete porch stairs, and rear, one-storey addition are not original. (1, 2, 3)
The Dr. Clement House is located at 41 Simcoe Road (on the southeast corner of Simcoe Road and Centre Street). It was built around 1830-1860 (1840’s?) in the Classic Revival style. Dr. Clement lived and died here after practising in the 1870-80’s. He was buried in Clement Cemetery on the 2nd Line in Innisfil (east of Highway 11). His wife Rachel lived here until her death. The house was then rented to Walton, a railroad man for the C.N.R. The barn and garden behind the building ran to William St. (as did all the properties on the east side). Sam Catania and his wife Sarah lived here in later years. They converted the house into two apartments and had a dry cleaning business in the garage that was eventually destroyed by fire. Sam sold the house to Bruce and Barbara Verney. They were still living here when this photo was taken in 1995. Bruce was a chiropractor. A building used as a dry cleaner was constructed later on the property. Jack Pong (a restaurant owner on Holland St.) built a house on the back of this property that extended to Centre Street. The street level has apparently been raised considerably around this house as the current 1½-storey, two-bay house was originally 2½ storeys. It has an asymmetrical façade and entrance, a simplified ‘temple’ form, and a medium-pitched, gable roof. The pediment roof shape has return eaves facing the front. A hip roof on the raised entrance portico is supported on wood beams with decorative, wood dentils. The corner columns have wooden ‘flutes’ and are mounted on brick pedestals. A wood-panelled door is flanked by narrow sidelights and is topped by a transom light. The house has small window openings with low floor to ceiling heights. Small, upper-floor windows are set into rectangular openings with plain, wood frames and sills. A ground-floor, bay window is an angled projection with a hip roof. The brick masonry foundation appears to be a replacement. A horizontal belt line at the top of the foundation is expressed with wood trim. The structure has wood frame construction with stucco cladding and a cut-stone foundation. Bricks found at the bay window foundation and at the entrance porch are probably not original. According to the 2000 inventory, the house is in good condition with many original details. (1, 2, 3, 4)
