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Miss Sinclair’s House is a mid-block building located on the south side at 92 Holland Street West. It was built in the 1890’s in the Italianate style. Miss Bertha Sinclair lived in this house for many years. When she died, her nieces Kay and Isabel (daughters of Robert Spence) moved into the house. They were hairdressers. Isabel later moved and part of the house was rented to George and Ethel Stewart. The building was eventually sold to a real estate agent. The office of Dr. Fitzsimmons was also here at one time. Next to this structure was a vacant lot belonging to the Sinclair family. Many years ago there was a Temperance Hall and a church located there.
The two-storey, rectangular, main building has a single-storey, rear addition, a symmetrical façade, and a moderately-pitched, hip roof with a central chimney. The grand, Italianate scale is reflected in the large window openings, high floor to ceiling heights, and the large, 6/6 sash windows. There are deep, projecting eaves with ornately-decorated, paired cornice brackets and ‘false quoins’ (wood detailing meant to resemble masonry). The window cornices are exaggerated. According to the 2000 inventory, the stone foundation, wood frame construction, horizontal, wood-sided exterior finish (resembling masonry), and painted, exterior, wood trim are maintained well. (1, 2, 3).

The mid-block building located at 90 Church St. was built pre-1900 in the Gothic Revival style. The 1½-storey, five-bay ‘farmhouse’ has a modified ‘L’-shaped plan with an off-centre hall, an asymmetrical façade, and a medium-pitched, gable roof. The open, covered porch with a hip roof is raised above grade. It is a replacement. The house originally had a full-width verandah supported by wooden posts. The upper-floor windows are offset from the ground-floor windows. There are small window openings with low floor to ceiling heights and plain, wood trim and sills. The double-hung windows and shutters are not original. The house has wood frame construction, vinyl siding, and a parged, stone foundation. Originally, the cladding was probably wood cove siding. According to the 2000 inventory, few remaining features are original other than the somewhat atypical form. It appears (by its size) that the portion of the house where the entrance is located is original and that the side wing was added later. That could explain the slight setback in the façade wall where the two join. It also notes that this modest house probably had few decorative details originally. (1, 3)

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)

The Nesbitt House is located mid-block on the west side at 88 Barrie Street. The two-storey, ‘L’-shaped building with a hip roof was built around 1920 in the Eclectic Edwardian style. The shallow, two-storey bay with a wide projecting gable roof is a classical, pediment-like form. The porch roof and balcony above are supported by rectangular colonnettes on brick piers. Other Edwardian features are the large, double-hung windows with shorter, upper-sash windows that are proportioned to resemble rectangular transoms. The wood-shingle texture at the exposed gable is an Italianate feature and the roof curb is reminiscent of an Italianate motif. There are precast lug sills and column bases. The house has load-bearing, brick masonry construction, a stone foundation, and painted-wood porch details. According to the 2000 inventory, the house has been maintained well. (1, 3)

The mid-block structure located on the east side at 87 Toronto Street was built around the 1870’s in the Ontario Vernacular style. It faces the lane and was once the home of Harry Bugler.
The 1½-storey, rectangular building has a one-storey rear addition, a centre hall, and a medium-pitched, gable roof. Its front porch was open originally. The replacement windows have the original, plain, wood lug sills and trim. Metal storm windows and the door are also later additions. There is vinyl siding over the wood frame construction. The original cladding was probably wood cove siding. The structure has a parged, stone foundation. According to the 2000 inventory, little of the original building is apparent other than the form. (1, 3)

The mid-block building located at 84 John St. East was built around 1920-1930’s in the Ontario Vernacular Cottage style. It was erected on property that was originally owned by Tom Saint and was the site of his storage lot (behind his business on Holland St. East). Tom was a noted stone mason, brick layer, and plasterer. He ran his own business from 1871-1925, at which point his son Leonard took over. A two-storey shed and horse stable (with loft above) stood on this lot originally. There was a 6’ wide and 7’ deep open ditch running from Barrie Street beyond Colborne Street. Tom had a large number of hard cement cloth bags that were used as abutments for a pole bridge. Tiles were eventually laid and the ditch was filled before World War II. The storage property was sold years later.
This 1½-storey, three-bay cottage has a rectangular plan, a centre hall, and a symmetrical façade. A box hall was typical for this style. It has a shallow-pitched, hip roof with dormer windows. The enclosed porch has a hip roof with a raised entrance, a single door opening, and windows on the three exposed sides. Its roof is supported on double, wood half-pilasters that are infilled with brick. There are large windows (with low floor to ceiling heights) to the primary rooms on each side of the porch and double-hung windows at the ground floor. The 2/2 windows appear to be original. They are set into rectangular openings with a brick, rowlock course above and concrete sills. The house has wood frame construction, brick siding and a parged, stone foundation. Aluminum siding is found on the dormers and porch. There is a single, brick masonry chimney at the centre of the house. According to the 2000 inventory, the one-storey rear addition and dormers do not appear to be original because of the style of windows, different roof types, and the shallowness of the main roof pitch. It also notes that some other building elements did appear to be original. (1, 2, 3)

The Dr. Ellis House is located mid-block on the west side at 84 Church Street. It was built pre-1900 in the Gothic Revival Cottage style. Dr. Ellis owned the house in 1900.
The 1½-storey, three-bay structure has a medium-pitched, gable roof and a rectangular plan with a centre hall. The building originally had a symmetrical façade with a centre gable over the front entrance. There are single windows (to the primary rooms) with high floor to ceiling heights on each side of the entrance. The covered, open porch has a flat roof supported on a simple, wood entablature and four ‘half columns’ set onto brick piers on a stone foundation. There is a single door with ¾ height, glass sidelights set above recessed, wood panels and a glass transom at the entrance. The second-storey window above the porch is set halfway into the centre gable in a full, arched opening with brick voussoirs. This window is a full-height casement with a fanlight above the opening onto the roof of the porch and is not original to the house. Double-hung windows at the ground floor are set into segmented, arched openings with brick voussoirs. The 2/2 windows appear to be original. Wood frame construction is clad with brick siding and there is a stone foundation. A single, brick masonry chimney is set in from the exterior north wall. An enclosed, brick-clad extension has been added to the front of the house (adjacent to the porch). Access to the open porch appears to have been changed to the side with new, precast stairs added. According to the 2000 inventory, the front addition has destroyed the original symmetry of the façade and it is not in keeping with the character of the house. (1, 3)

The single-family residence located at 84 Barrie St. (on the northwest corner of Barrie and Joseph Streets) was built post-1900 in the Eclectic Edwardian style. The two-storey, ‘L’-shaped building has a hip roof. The projecting, two-storey bay has a wide, projecting gable roof. Edwardian features also include the generous fenestration accentuated by keystones and projecting sills (at the bay windows). Queen Anne features include the variety of textures and materials such as rusticated block on the main building and the wood shingles at the exposed gable. The “wrap-around” nature of the ground-floor verandah and the second-storey balcony are Regency Revival features. Its moulded roof curb is an Italianate feature. This building has load-bearing, block masonry construction and a block foundation. According to the 2000 inventory, the replacement balcony and the post supports are unsympathetic with the original design. (1, 3)

The mid-block structure located at 83 Holland St. East was built in the Ontario Vernacular Cottage style. It was constructed pre-1900 on what was once the site of a pop manufacturing plant. According to local history, bottles were still being unearthed many years later. After the plant closed, the property became the site of a blacksmith shop run by Bill Cukens. The house seen in this photo originally had a back kitchen and wood shed at the rear, as well as a large, two-storey barn with loft above (for horse feed). It was the home of Bob McKinstry, his wife and children Michael (Mike), Maisil, and Dorothy. Bob was a huge man and a blacksmith for several lumber companies after the local mills folded. He was also a noted field lacrosse player on the team that won the championship in 1905 (1907?). Bob and his son both played lacrosse until their worn-out legs forced them to quit. In those days, lacrosse players worked ten-hour days at hard physical labour, played lacrosse for a couple of hours, and then ran the six miles to Bond Head to cool off. Mike was a bookkeeper who also worked for his father in the garage and blacksmith shop. Maisil became a nurse and Dorothy worked in a restaurant and stayed at home to look after her family.

The one-storey, three-bay ‘cottage’ has a rectangular plan with a centre hall, a symmetrical façade, and a shallow-pitched, gable roof. The enclosed porch has a hip roof and the entrance is raised above grade level. There is a simple entrance with a single door with windows on each side. The porch stairs are not original and the entire porch may be a later addition. There are double-hung windows at the ground floor. The 2/2 widows appear to be original and are set into simple, rectangular openings with plain, wood surrounds and sills. Exterior aluminum storm windows are a later addition. The building has wood frame construction with vinyl siding and a stone-rubble foundation. It had wood cove siding originally. According to the 2000 inventory, the building’s form is one of the few existing original building elements. It also notes that the modest cottage probably had few decorative details originally. (1, 2, 3)

The Bradford Presbyterian Church was once located at 81 John St. West (on the northwest corner of Church and John Streets). A Presbyterian church in Bradford dates back to 1856. The original frame building was built on this site and used until 1893. At that time it was sold to the Anglican Church and moved a short distance north to be used as the Parish Hall. The structure seen in this photo (from 1996) was designed in the Romanesque style by Siddell Baker Architects in Toronto. It was constructed in 1893 for $5,000 by local builder Dougald (George) MacDonald. George was able to do short-hand blueprints and he was also the Sunday school teacher. The church pipe organ was installed in 1915 (with a portion of it funded by the Carnegie Foundation). A seven-foot section of interior, cornice molding fell off and crashed through some front seating and the floor and landed in the basement in 1937. It was rediscovered years later in George MacDonald’s barn.
The 1½-storey building had a modified, cruciform plan with an apse, narthex, and square and polygonal entrance towers. There was a steeply-pitched, gable roof with pyramidal and polygonal roofs on the towers. This structure was a complex massing of heavy, simple forms, each of which had a clear function. The main entrance was through a large, round-arched doorway with a crescent-shaped transom light and a heavy, panelled, wood door. It was set into a high, square tower at the southeast corner of the church and it marked the site as a landmark within the town. Tall, narrow, window openings had thin windows with a vertical emphasis. Some secondary windows were set in rectangular openings (but with the same narrow proportions). Windows having round-arched openings of various sizes in groups, and as singles, lit the nave. The simplicity of this church and the lack of typical Romanesque Revival details such as heavy, stone stringcourses and lintels gave the church a Norman feel with its squared tower and massive walls. Square pinnacles topped the four corners of the entrance tower. The building had masonry construction with brick cladding and a cut-stone foundation. Len Saint, a local stone mason and brick layer, did the plastering for the church. There were metal panels on the steeple and tower roofs. According to the 2000 inventory, the church was in excellent condition with many original features.
The congregation moved to St. John’s Presbyterian Church which was located on the Middleton Sideroad (circa 2004). Trinity Anglican Church purchased the old Presbyterian Church building and land in 2004 and the building was demolished in 2005 to provide additional parking for the congregation of Trinity Anglican Church. (1, 3, 4, Trinity Anglican Church Bradford website)