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Contains articles and clippings related to the buildings and architecture of Bradford West Gwillimbury, from F-L

The Broderick Farm House on Lot 24 of Concession 6 in Tecumseth.

Photograph of Bessie Sutherland Campbell and her children, Elizabeth “Libbie” Florence Campbell and William L. Campbell outside of Bessie & William Campbell’s house on Johns Street, c. 1915. William's dog can also be seen in this picture.

Photograph of Elizabeth “Libbie” Florence Campbell and her mother, Bessie Sutherland Campbell outside of Bessie & William Campbell’s house on Johns Street, c. 1915.

Article about the history of the Phillips-Stoddart mud brick house, built circa 1837.

An animal footprint in a building brick. The brick is displayed on a wood mount with a gold plaque. The item was recovered by Bill Patton during the demolition of the Convent in August 1994.

This is Algonquin Lodge, later known as the Convent. it was the residence of Rev. Egerton R. Young in 1906.

Description : William Armson came to West Gwillimbury in 1820, from Nottingham, England. He served in the Britisharmy and had been decorated for outstanding service during the Peninsular Campaign of the Napoleonic Wars. In recognition of his military service, he was granted the 200 acre parcel described as Lot 5, Conc. 7 in West Gwillimbury, on the northwest corner of County Rd. 88 and Sideroad 5. At the farm gate, a Simcoe County Historical Plaque states, "William Armson - elected as the Township's first Councillor in 1843, appointed Warden in 1846, and first elected as Warden of Simcoe County in 1847. He served this position until 1852" - the longest-serving term for a Warden of the County. Armson played a leading role in establishing the County of Simcoe in the 1840s, and was the first Reeve of West Gwillimbury, in 1850. On his death, his son John took over the arm. The south half of the lot was sold to Robert Wood in 1881, and was in possession of the 3rd generation of the Wood family when it was recently sold to developers. The two families - the Armsons and the Woods - had owned this farm for 180 years. While the Armson home is of historical interest because William Armson lived there, it is also of architectural interest. Built in 1843, this farm home is the only two-storey mud block house in Simcoe County, and one of the few remaining mud block houses built in the Township. It was built as a full 2-storey in the prestigious "five over five bay front" style, with end gables and chimneys, and a wing on the rear. It is an excellent example of the impressive homes built in the mid-19th century. As evidenced by the photograph, the exterior - except for the modern window sash - remains largely original. Much of the interior detail is also original, and well-preserved. The remarkable and rare feature is the mud block method of construction. Clay, likely from the farm was mixed with straw in a mud puddle. The mixed mud was placed in moulds, and set out to dry. After baking in the sun, the blocks were removed from the moulds and laid out on boards to dry. This mud block building is and excellent example of the ingenuity of the pioneers in employing local building materials to build their new homes, as they became established in West Gwillimbury. The Armson-Wood house is a building that embodies both local and provincial heritage attributes, and is a wonderful part of the Heritage of Bradford West Gwillimbury.

This house is located at 99 Essa St. (on the southwest corner of Frederick and Essa Streets). It was once the This house is located at 99 Essa St. (on the southwest corner of Frederick and Essa Streets). It was once the home of Dick Lee. (1)

The Pringle House is located mid-block on the east side at 99 Barrie Street. It was the home of Walter Pringle, owner and manager of the first Dominion store (on Holland St.) in the 1930’s. The 1½-storey, two-bay ‘bungalow’ was built in the Arts and Crafts style. The construction of this house (and six others) was begun in 1912 by Lieutenant George Stoddart. When Stoddart went overseas during WWI, the projects were completed by builder Art Saint.
The house has a simple form with an asymmetrical façade and a rectilinear plan. It has a bell-cast roof on the centre dormer and a steeply-pitched, truncated gable roof that extends down to reduce the scale of the building. This roof also covers the raised porch and is supported on wood half posts on brick piers. The porch has a simple, wood handrail and baluster. Wood lattice encloses the underside of the porch. A wide band of windows across the front of the dormer emphasizes the horizontal lines and the massing of the house. The building has wide window openings with low floor to ceiling heights. Ground-floor and basement windows and the front door are set into segmented, arched openings with concrete sills. Second-storey windows are offset from the ground-floor windows and have plain, wood sills and trim. The mix of exterior cladding materials and the wood fascia band (expressing the line of the floor structure between the ground and second floors) is common to this style. There are returned eaves at the porch roof. The house has wood frame construction with brick masonry cladding, painted wood shingles on the dormer, and a painted, concrete foundation. The front ground-floor and second-floor windows are not original. According to the 2000 inventory, the house is in good condition with many original features that have been maintained well. (1, 2, 3)