The mid-block building located at 89 John St. East is set well back from street. It was built around 1860-1880’s in the Ontario Vernacular Cottage style. John Edwin (or Harry) Cerswell, a retired gentleman, lived here at one time before selling the house. Dave Mundy and Walter moved here from their farm on the 10th line. Dave worked for Holland River Gardens and Walter worked for the Spence Lumber Co. Walter built a garage at the back of the house. When Dave died the house was sold. Years later, a small house was built along the back fence to provide housing for marsh workers. Joe McMillan and his daughter rented it, as did Dick Roberts and Wilma. Lorne Campbell and his wife also lived here after World War II. It was later demolished. The one-storey, three-bay cottage seen in this photo from 1995 has a rectangular plan with a centre hall. A box hall was typical for this style. It also has a symmetrical façade and a shallow-pitched, gable roof. There is a simple entrance with a single door set into a rectangular opening. It opens directly into the house from slightly above grade level. No porch or weather protection shelters the entrance. The house has small windows with low floor to ceiling heights. There are double-hung windows on either side of the entrance. The 2/2 windows appear to be original. Windows are set into simple, rectangular openings with plain, wood frames and sills. The building has wood frame construction, vinyl siding, a stone-rubble foundation, and a basement with window openings. Originally, the siding was wood. A one-storey addition at the side of house is not original and it has different foundation material. According to the 2000 inventory, this simple cottage probably had few decorative details originally. It notes that other than the building’s form, few existing building elements appear to be original. (1, 2, 3)
This building is located at 26 Holland St. West. H.F.S. Gardner, his wife Bertha, and children Tom and Ada (who was in a wheelchair) moved from Newmarket to this area in 1920. They opened a combination general and hardware store that sold clothing, boots, shoes, paints, tools, coal, oil, etc. The business used all the available space in the building, including the two floors and the basement. The family lived on Simcoe St. in a house owned by Miss Hill. (1, 2)
The mid-block building located at 52 Simcoe Road was built post-1900 (1902?) in the Gothic Revival Cottage style. The house, which is larger than other older cottages of a similar style in Bradford, was built on property owned by Charles Adams. Originally, there was a garden to the west and a barn on the lane. Later residents of this house included Joe Brown (a retired farmer from the 10th line) and Jessie, who lived here until he died. Joe was a noted gardener who raised his granddaughter Margaret Turner. Paul Margetiak and his wife and son also lived here at one time. He was a gardener, too, and he built a garage on the property. Len Saint did the cement work and added a closed-in porch. Eventually the property was bought by Gary Swagerman. He lived in the house with his wife and family and eventually had the barn remodelled to become the site of a dry cleaner. The garden was paved and used as a parking lot for the business. The 1½-storey, three-bay cottage has a rectangular plan, a centre hall, and a symmetrical façade. The medium-pitched, gable roof has a centre gable over the entrance. There are single windows to the primary rooms on each side of the covered entrance porch. A raised, open porch has a hip roof supported on simple, wood columns set directly on the porch base/foundation. The porch has a simple, wood handrail and balusters. A single entrance door is set into a segmented, arched opening. Windows are set into segmented, arched openings with brick voussoirs and concrete lug sills. The windows and door are not original. A second-storey window set halfway into the centre gable is a reference to the Gothic Revival style. Locally-made bricks were placed by Tom Saint on the wood frame construction. According to the 2000 inventory, the house is in good condition. (1, 2, 3)
The building located at 5 Holland St. East (near the northeast corner of Holland and Barrie Streets) has solid-brick construction. The office of veterinarian Dr. Stephenson (who lived on Queen Street across from the public school) was on the ground floor at this address. Grain buyers worked upstairs. They had their own stairway and a huge, walk-in safe. Later, that space was turned into an apartment that became the home of Rae Green after WWII. Around 1928 or 1930, Fred Buck (a pharmacist) opened a drugstore on the ground floor. It later became Brackens Drugstore and was run by Mr. Harrison. (1, 2) The building located at 9 Holland St. East (beside 5 Holland St. East) also has solid-brick construction. It was the site of Dennis Nolan and Jim’s Model T Ford dealership. There was a garage with an elevator. Overhauling was done in the basement and painting was done upstairs. Hugh Bannerman pumped gas and Rose MacEwan was the bookkeeper. Nolan had as many as 10 employees working for him at one time. Mr. Martin moved in around WWII and opened a used furniture and appliance store here. It was later sold to Bob Sewery, a WWI veteran. (1, 2)
Alex Sutherland’s bakeshop was located at 27 Simcoe Road for many years. It was later sold to Howard Bowser. Howard converted it into a rental dwelling. The building was eventually owned by a market gardener who had a cement garage and storage building constructed by Len Saint on the property. Neil Lathangue and his wife lived here for a time years later. After they left, Tommy and Bill Whiteside moved in and remained here until they died. (1, 2)
The Standard Bank is located at 65 and 67 Holland St. West. It was built in the Romanesque Revival style around 1860-1900. O.M. Seim, previous owner of the Bradford Witness newspaper (1916-1932), and his family (Gordon, Ken, Marjorie, Maurice and Betty) once lived here. Dr. McMichael, a dentist, lived on John St. but had his practice here many years ago. Aubrey Stewart (and her son Bruce) at one time had an Insurance company here and the living quarters were rented. The building was eventually converted into apartments. The commercial building (67 Holland St. W.) is set close to the street. Originally, there was a large, walk-in vault at the rear of the building on the ground floor. Residential quarters were on the second floor. The two-storey building has tall window openings with high floor to ceiling heights and an asymmetrical façade with a simplified ‘temple’ form. There is a medium-pitched, ‘pediment’ gable roof facing the front and a tympanum with a rose window. Brick pilasters support a plain cornice and frieze at both the ground and second floors to create the image of a classical Greek temple (combined with the more Roman arch form). The commercial entrance is contained within one of the two corbelled arches and is raised slightly. A double-panelled door is topped by a multi-paned transom light. The ground floor bank window is set into a corbelled arch opening with a transom light and stone or concrete lug sills. Upper windows are set into rectangular openings with transom lights. The cornice and frieze at the ground and second floors are ‘supported’ on corbelled brick brackets. This building has brick masonry construction and a cut-stone foundation. The residential wing (65 Holland St. West) is set further back from the street to provide greater privacy to the living quarters. It takes a more recessive form with an open verandah at the ground floor and an enclosed porch on the upper floor running the full width of the house. There is a hipped roof on the residential wing. The entrance door to the house also a transom light, but like the rest of the residential wing, it does not have the rich texture or detail found on the more public portion of the building. The residential porch posts, railing, door, and windows are not original. According to the 2000 inventory, the structure is in good condition with many original details remaining. (1, 2, 3) Please contact the Bradford West Gwillimbury Public Library (905-775-3328) if you have any other information about this photo.
Ed Cave built the flat-roofed, cement building located at 32 Holland St. East. It was originally used as a milk creamery. Around 1934, Cousins Dairy (from Aurora) took over and put Roy in charge. A restaurant was added at the front that was run by Mrs. Walt Mussen and Mrs. Ossie Depew. It employed several local girls over the years. There was a bus stop in front of the building and bus tickets were purchased in the restaurant. Jim Phillips (a butter maker) and Gord Bantam worked here. Ossie Depew delivered butter, milk, and buttermilk to Beeton, Lefroy, etc. Cousins Dairy later sold the building to Jim Phillips. He worked there until his death. When the business folded, Roy went to Brussels where he opened another creamery. In this photo taken in 1995, the building was the home of the Bradford West Gwillimbury Times newspaper. La Mexicanada Restaurant is located here in 2014. (1, 2) Please contact the Bradford West Gwillimbury Public Library (905-775-3328) if you have any other information about this photo.
The original building located at 4 Holland St. West (on the southwest corner of Holland and Simcoe Streets) was built in the 1840’s and was situated on land originally owned by James Drury. He was one of the early immigrants who reached Upper Canada. Drury rented the corner lot to Thomas Driffill (a blacksmith), who opened a hardware store at that location. The lot was later sold to Robert Cooke, who leased the property to Driffill for another 20 years. Thomas Driffill became the village of Bradford’s first reeve when it was incorporated in 1857. The great fire of 1871 destroyed all but the building’s foundation. It was rebuilt incorporating the intact, old vault and locally-made bricks. Thomas Driffill bought the building in 1885, eventually retired, and left the business to his sons, Joseph and James, who eventually sold it to Andrew Thompson, Driffill's partner. It became Thompson's Hardware. A series of different owners and different types of enterprises followed. William Barron bought the building in 1946 and relocated his hardware business to this site. He made several renovations, including adding a new stone façade, new plate glass windows, and an elevator to facilitate deliveries to the tinsmithing shop upstairs. He retired and left the business to his son Norman. The building later became a motorcycle shop, and eventually, for several years, the Winchester Arms Restaurant. (1, 2, 4, “Four Holland Street West: A Short History” by Lorraine Philip - Bradford West Gwillimbury Public Library, Local History Collection).
