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Table of Contents Welcome to Kingston

02 41 SIR JOHN A.

Known as the Limestone City, home to the 1000 Islands, and Canada’s first capital! As Mayor, I am pleased to present this walking tour series that takes you through Kingston’s historic moments, from the early stomping grounds of Sir John A. Macdonald, Canada’s first Prime Minister, to the War of 1812, there is something for everyone. While walking the many historical sites in our beautiful city, I hope you will take notice of our dedication and commitment to sustaining and preserving our historical character. To add some unique flavor to one of our most popular tours; “In Sir John A.’s Footsteps,” I invite you to download the audio tour by visiting www. cityofkingston.ca/walkingtours. Here you can select your guide from two of our country’s former Prime Ministers, the Right Honorable Jean Chetien and Paul Martin, or Kingston native Don Cherry, among others. As you stroll the streets on these historic and cultural walking tours I know you will discover what makes Kingston such a charming, vibrant and historically rich community. Enjoy your time in Kingston!

Sincerely,

Mark Gerretsen Mayor of Kingston

MACDONALD

PRINCESS &

BROCK STREETS

ABOUT 1 HOUR

45 MINUTES

1812

WELLINGTON

16 47 WAR OF

ABOUT 1 HOUR

STREET 45 MINUTES

24 52 WILLIAM EARL

STREET 45 MINUTES

STREET 45 MINUTES

30 58 KING

ARCHITECTS

45 MINUTES

45 MINUTES

STREET

JOHN & JOSEPH

POWER

36 63 ONTARIO

STREET 20 MINUTES

ARCHITECTS NEWLANDS &

COVERDALE 45 MINUTES


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02 SIR JOHN A. MACDONALD WALKING TOUR No Canadian leader is more closely identified with a community than Canada’s first Prime Minister, Sir John A. Macdonald. To discuss the Kingston of the 19th century is impossible without invoking Macdonald’s name. APPROXIMATELY 1 HOUR Please be respectful of private property.

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In Sir John A.’s Footsteps BY ARTHUR MILNES

1

Our Tour starts outside the Visitor Information Centre, 209 Ontario Street, across from City Hall.

Before you enter City Hall – built with the idea that Kingston would permanently be the capital of the United Canadas – pause for a moment and consider what this architectural treasure meant in the life of Macdonald of Kingston. The beginning. And the end. John Macdonald’s political life started as an Alderman here in Kingston almost a quarter century before Confederation. His journey was completed in the building you are about to enter. At the time of his death in June 1891, when he was still serving as Prime Minister of Canada, his body was brought here by train and lay in state in Memorial Hall. If you close your eyes for a moment, it’s not difficult to imagine Macdonald as the youthful Scottish immigrant, conversing with one of his fellow aldermen — perhaps after a drink at a nearby tavern — laughing, cajoling, convincing. And usually winning the day. No politician since has mastered his skills of public and private persuasion – except perhaps U.S. President Barack Obama, today. 4 A SIR JOHN A. MACDONALD WALKING TOUR

As the crowds shouted during Macdonald’s last election campaign: “Sir John, you’ll never die.” Here in Kingston, his spirit does indeed live on. It always will.

2 Enter City Hall, go up the stairs and turn right and walk into Memorial Hall. Towards the stage, and on the right, you will see the portrait of Sir John A. that dominates the room, and rightly so.


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to Kingston. Before his burial in the Macdonald family plot at Cataraqui Cemetery, in what’s now the west end of the City, he was remembered on this spot by those who’d known him since his youth — his fellow Kingstonians. This magnificent room in City Hall is still the place where Kingstonians — and all Canadians — honour both the past and present. To pay tribute to the special role Kingston and City resident Judge John R. Matheson, who is now retired, played in the design of Canada’s Maple Leaf flag, then-Prime Minister Paul Martin headed Flag Day celebrations here in Kingston in February of 2005 on the 40th anniversary of Canada’s “new” flag. As we leave Memorial Hall, we move along the hallway towards what still serves as the City of Kingston’s Council Chambers. Macdonald was 76 years old when he died at his Ottawa residence, Earnscliffe, on June 6, 1891. During his final illness, a special telegraph line was installed to carry medical updates to an anxious nation. Thanks to Macdonald, the youthful Dominion stretched from Atlantic to Pacific and was united by a railway — the ‘band of steel’ — a feat of engineering and vision the importance of which is difficult to fathom, even today. And the thought of Canada without Macdonald’s guiding hand on the tiller, was simply impossible for many to comprehend in June of 1891. All told, he had served 8,624 days in the federal Parliament in Ottawa, the vast majority of them as Prime Minister. “The life of Sir John A. Macdonald is the history of Canada,” his greatest opponent, Liberal Sir Wilfrid Laurier, told a hushed House of Commons during the eulogy for Macdonald — the most famous oration of its sort in Canadian history. After thousands of citizens had paid their respects in Ottawa, the funeral train carrying Macdonald’s body rode those bands of steel home  Sir John A. Macdonald’s portrait hangs in Memorial Hall, Kingston City Hall.

 Views of Kingston City Hall, decorated for the funeral of Sir John A. Macdonald in June 1891.

 Sir John A.’s body lay in state in Memorial Hall before his burial at Cataraqui Cemetery.

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 Memorial Hall as it looks today.  This desk once belonged to Sir John A. himself.

In Kingston we call this the Horseshoe. Here City Council debates the issues of the day. Sir John A. served as a Kingston Alderman from 1843 until 1846. It was during his term in municipal politics that Kingston City Hall was built. Visitors, staff and Kingston councillors have been thanking Sir John A. and his colleagues ever since. If you look to your left, you will see the portrait of the Honourable Norman Rogers, a brilliant professor and Rector of Queen’s University from 1937 to 1940. It was in 1940, while he was serving as Canada’s wartime Minister of Defence that he was killed in a plane crash. His grieving friend, Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King (you’ll be hearing more about him later) unveiled this commemorative portrait. It was widely believed that Rogers would have been King’s successor as leader of the Liberal Party and possibly one day as Prime Minister. Rogers remains one  City Council Chambers

Before we get there, however, you’ll notice on your left the office of the present-day Mayor of Kingston. If you’re lucky, the Mayor is in. Mayor Mark Gerretsen, like many of his predecessors, has been known to show off the desk in the office that once belonged to Sir John A. No other mayor in Canada can make that claim. At the end of the hall are the City Council Chambers. 6 A SIR JOHN A. MACDONALD WALKING TOUR

 Portrait of Norman Rogers


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fence attorney, for two years, taking on some of the most serious and controversial cases of his time. Brutality, floggings and capital punishment were facts of life in Canada during the Victorian era. Sir John A. had some infamous clients. Despite a brilliant defence conducted by John A., one man was convicted and sentenced to a date with the hangman. (Always later called Mr. Ellis by Canadian tradition up to Canada’s last hangings which took place at Toronto’s Don Jail in 1962.) At his execution it turned out that the rope chosen was too long! The man was dropped through the gallows’ trap and landed safely in the coffin laid out for him. Alive. Very much alive in fact. “You see!” he shouted. “I am innocent; this gallows was not meant for me.” Officials found a shorter rope and tried a second time, the protestations of the condemned man notwithstanding. They were successful this time in their gruesome task. of the great “what if?” figures in Canadian history, and it is fitting he is honoured here in this room. Ironically — especially so considering the way he died — Kingston’s airport is named in Rogers’ honour. This twist of fate in naming is rarely mentioned today. Let’s proceed down the stairs for a taste of 19th century criminal justice. Stop at the elevator.

Though we cannot visit the jail cell located in the basement unescorted, this is the perfect time to discuss another part of John A.’s fascinating career. (If you wish to see the jail cell, you can ask one of the City Hall tour guides or take the escorted City Hall tour.) Before he entered politics, Sir John A. Macdonald was one of Kingston and Eastern Ontario’s leading lawyers. It is no surprise that John A. looked towards a career in this field. As the first Auditor General of Canada, John Langton, once said, “I know of no money-making business in Canada, except the law, store-keeping, tavern-keeping and perhaps I might add, horse-trading!” Some things never change. While John A. spent most of his legal career in commercial law, he practiced criminal law, as a de-

3

Leave City Hall and exit through the back door of the building located to the left of the lobby’s reception area. Turn right and walk towards the fountain.

You are now standing in Springer Market Square. As you look at the buildings around the square you’ll see that not much has changed since Macdonald’s day. If you ignore the cars and other signs of modernity, it is not hard to imagine the  If you wish to see the jail cell, you can take the escorted City Hall tour.

 Offices on Clarence Street where Sir John A. Macdonald practiced law.

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 Confederation celebrations in City Hall’s market square on July 1, 1867.

thousands of citizens who gathered on this very spot on July 1, 1867, the day Sir John A. Macdonald’s dream of one Canada was realized. While Kingston’s most famous son, who became the new country’s first Prime Minister, had to attend to duties and celebrations in the new capital of Ottawa, two hours away today by car, the day was also duly marked right here. For John A., July 1 was special in a personal sense as well. It was announced that same day that Queen Victoria had knighted him. From that moment on, he was affectionately known by the name we still call him today. “Sir John A.”

4

We’ll now leave the Square and head west along King Street, turn left at the corner of King Street East and Market Street. Continue along to 191 King Street East (Sir Richard Cartwright House) located at the corner of King Street East and Gore Street.

As visitors to Kingston interested in the life and times of Sir John A., you’ve probably already heard a few stories about our first Prime Minister’s encounters with alcohol. Yes, Sir John enjoyed a drink. A bit too much at times. At his gravesite in 1991, on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of his death, the 18th Prime Minister, Brian Mulroney, quoted the late 8 A SIR JOHN A. MACDONALD WALKING TOUR

Senator Heath Macquarrie of Prince Edward Island, who had pointed out that “While the lovable [Scottish bard Robbie] Burns went in for wine, women and song, his fellow Scot, John A. did not chase women and was not musical!” One also has to remember the times. In 1857 police records show that Ontario Street, a downtown thoroughfare in the heart of the old city, boasted 37 taverns, nearby Wellington Street another 9, King Street 14, Princess Street 20, Johnson Street 12, while the market square area had another 19 taverns. And as if that wasn’t enough, there were another 61 taverns scattered throughout the town including two taverns located right inside City Hall! So, Sir John A.’s fondness for drink came naturally in those well-lubricated times. He recognized the dangers of drink as well, once ordering one of his cabinet ministers to abstain, warning him that a Macdonald government couldn’t afford two drunks! You have probably formed the opinion that Sir John A. was beloved by all. Well, that certainly wasn’t the case. In fact, that’s why we’ve stopped here at the Cartwright House. To say that Sir Richard Cartwright hated John A. would be a grand understatement, even by political standards. “Detest” and “disgust” are more accurate words.


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Kingston was a small town back in the 19th century, and one suspects there wasn’t enough room here for two leading Conservatives — Cartwright and Macdonald. When the ambitious pair had a falling out, presto, Cartwright became a Liberal. After Sir John A. was removed from office in 1873 due to the mother of all Canadian political scandals — the Pacific Scandal involving John A. accepting bribes to his party from railroad contractors — another man who had lived in Kingston, and a Scotsman and ardent tee-totaller, the aforementioned Alexander Mackenzie, became Canada’s second Prime Minister, serving in that capacity from 1873 to 1878. Sir Richard, who wore one of the greatest growths of whiskers in Canadian history, became his Minister of Finance. Cartwright’s feelings for Sir John didn’t get any better when Macdonald defeated Mackenzie and Cartwright in 1878 and returned to power, despite the scandal. Later, Cartwright watched as Sir John A. defeated the Liberals in a national election over a cause dear to Cartwright’s own heart: free trade with the United States (called reciprocity back then). “A British subject I was born, a British subject I will die!” Sir John A. shouted during that last campaign of 1891 while Liberals like Cartwright could only weep on their way to defeat.  The Cartwright family has been very involved in the life of Kingston and Canada since the arrival of the Loyalists. This neoclassical stone house was built in 1832-33

for Robert David Cartwright and his bride, Harriet Dobbs of Dublin.  Sir Richard Cartwright

Even in death, Sir John A. was victorious. As a Minister in another Liberal cabinet, Cartwright watched, once again, as Canadians turned down free trade.

5

Continue along King Street to Hotel Belvedere at 141 King Street East.

Back in the 40s, Vogue Magazine described this boutique hotel as the “the only reasonable place to stay between Montreal and Toronto.” Before that, it was a private residence and here, in October 1925, only days before election day, there took place one of the stranger incidents in Canadian history. Our Prime Minister at the time, William Lyon Mackenzie King, visited two spiritualists before he delivered an evening speech at the Grand Theatre over on Princess Street. He had even sent ahead one of his handkerchiefs without telling them it was from him so they could do their magic! King left history a massive personal diary and thanks to it, we know all about what happened in the Belvedere that day. “When I sat in the chair opposite to her she asked for something I had been wearing and I gave her another handkerchief which she rolled up in her hands and began speaking very fast and without suggestion from me of any kind,” King recorded in his diary on October 20, 1925. “I sat perfectly motionless, not even assisting with an expression on my face in fact; I was quite A SIR JOHN A. MACDONALD WALKING TOUR 9


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 Hotel Belvedere, 14 King Street East

tired and less ‘clairvoyant’ myself than usual.” And then the spiritualist truly began. Canada’s Prime Minister was told he’d soon marry a younger woman and would live in a big house in California or Vancouver. Sinister figures, who bore uncanny resemblances to his Conservative opponent and the Governor General whom King was angry with, were revealed to him. King wrote thousands of words about this visit to the other side. “The influence of that talk with the little woman (his favourite medium, Mrs. Bleany of Kingston)

is strange,” he concluded. “It has brought me very near to the dear ones in the Great Beyond — what seems more like the Great Omnipresent. Here and Now I can never not believe in spiritualism after today’s experience.” Yes, Prime Minister King was impressed. Too bad the ladies weren’t selling swampland in Florida! But we digress. Prime Minister King also had an idea after the experience: Driving out to Sir John A. Macdonald’s grave to truly visit the dead. “The grave is a very simple one,” he wrote afterwards. “My grave will be like that … I would have liked to have seen on Sir John’s monument ‘Prime Minster of Canada’ with the dates, but perhaps that is better for a statue or other memorial.”

6

Continue on and cross at the lights at West Street and gather at the commanding statue of Sir John A. Macdonald, situated in beautiful City Park.

This statue was erected in 1895 in honour of Kingston’s most famous son. Even today, each January 11 (Sir John A. Macdonald Day across Canada by an Act of Parliament) a hearty group of Kingstonians gather at noon to sing Happy Birthday, O Canada and God Save the Queen in Sir John A.’s honour. A few have been known to sip unidentified liquids from flasks and hoist them in toasts to Sir John A. as well, despite —

As you walk along King Street, first called “Church Street”, it is interesting to note the many historic buildings designed for prominent citizens by leading architects like Edward Crane William Coverdale (see also Coverdale and Newlands Walking Tour, p.52) and Joseph and John Power (see also Power Walking Tour, p.47). Buildings to note include:

 264 KING STREET EAST, which is called Gildersleeve House. This neo-classical style stone house was built for the wealthy merchant Henry Gildersleeve and his wife Sarah in 1830.

10 A SIR JOHN A. MACDONALD WALKING TOUR


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or perhaps because of — the snow and cold. In 1941, on the 50th anniversary of Sir John A.’s death, thousands of his admirers gathered here to mark the loss of Canada’s Father of Confederation. Then-Prime Minister Mackenzie King was joined in speaking that day by a former Prime Minister, Arthur Meighen, while a then-unknown future Prime Minister, John Diefenbaker, was also in the crowd. Even foreign dignitaries — a Prime Minister of Great Britain to boot — have been brought to this statue in the past to lay wreaths in Sir John A.’s honour. Mackenzie King led an obviously reluctant Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin here in August of 1927. Prime Minister King, the colonial, was not, shall we say, amused — surely thinking ahead to future statues placed in his own honour — at how his British guest handled the whole experience. “It was done in a great hurry,” King confided in his diary. “I was a little surprised Baldwin did not proceed less in haste and display more reverence in the act. It was sort of a business affair.”

7

Move north along West Street until you reach Sydenham Street. Turn right, proceed until you reach the intersection of Earl and Sydenham Streets. Stop at 134 Earl Street. Note the historic plaque and stop there.

 225 KING STREET EAST called the Frontenac Club, was built in classical revival style in 1845-46. It was first used as a bank, then a men’s club, and since 2000, an inn.

 Statue of Sir John A. Macdonald in Kingston City Park, unveiled on October 23, 1895.

 221 KING STREET EAST was built in 1834 for John Solomon Cartwright and his wife Sarah. John was a lawyer, judge, banker and member of the Legislative Assembly of Upper Canada.

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 134 Earl Street, where Sir John A.’s sister Louisa and his brother-in-law, Queen’s professor James Williamson resided.  Louisa, Sir John A.’s sister

As you walk along West Street, the park on your left, City Park, is also important in the history of Kingston. City Park is Canada’s oldest municipal public park. It was redesigned by Frederick Todd, then a student of Frederick Law Olmstead who was also the designer of New York City’s famous Central Park and Montreal’s Mount Royal Park. The property which comprises City Park here in Kingston was purchased by the federal government in 1841 and was originally intended as the site for the Canadian parliament buildings. After the death of Macdonald’s sister, Margaret, his other sister, Louisa, and his brother-in-law now widowed, Queen’s University professor James 12 A SIR JOHN A. MACDONALD WALKING TOUR

Williamson, continued living together here, still part of an extremely close-knit family. Throughout his married life, Williamson often had the unique experience of having his Scottish mother-in-law and his sister-in-law Louisa living under his roof as well. From 1865 to 1876, the Williamsons and Louisa also shared a home at “Heathfield” at 1200 Princess Street, then a farmhouse outside city limits, and now the home of the Sisters of Providence of St. Vincent de Paul, the only religious congregation founded in Kingston. With Sir John A. off in the political world after the death of his first wife, this Job-like professor and his wife in effect raised Sir John A.’s son, Hugh John. (For those tempted to believe Sir John A. was lucky in the in-law stakes, especially in comparison with Williamson, it should be noted that Sir John A.’s own mother-in-law, and

 James Williamson, Sir John A.’s brother-in-law


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 Lady Agnes Macdonald, Sir John A.’s second wife, and their daughter, Mary.

brother-in-law, moved in with him in Ottawa after his second marriage in 1867!) Despite the inevitable family tensions, Williamson remained a close friend of Sir John A.’s even after his wife’s death. Sir John A.’s loyal secretary, Joe Pope, described Williamson in 1891 this way: “A widower who lived in a desolate-looking house with the minimum of comforts of any kind, painfully lacking the evidence of a woman’s touch, and [who] was besieged by politicians who thought only of their immediate interests, intent only on extracting from him the last measure of service,” Pope wrote. Sir John A. stayed in this Earl Street house during his final election campaign during the winter of 1891. While in the home, he told Pope something for which every prime minister since has surely felt a certain affinity. “‘Joe,’ said Sir John to me one afternoon as he lay dozing in his cheerless room, ‘if you would know the depth of meanness of human nature, you have got to be a prime minister during a general election.’”

8

Continue walking along on Sydenham Street, about two blocks, then turn right on Johnson Street. Stop at 194 Johnson Street.

Despite his success in politics, Sir John A.’s personal life was anything but happy. As a lad he had looked on as his baby brother was beaten to death by a drunken servant on a Kingston street.

 Lady Agnes Macdonald left Canada after her husband’s death.

Macdonald’s first marriage to his cousin Isabella, followed in this pattern. Isabella spent most of their years of marriage in pain and depression, suffering from a series of illnesses that only opium (a common cure at the time) could dull. Sir John A. arrived home from political duties in Toronto on Christmas Eve of 1857. Isabella was on her final journey. She died three days later. Her funeral was held in this home. Macdonald also lost an infant son to illness, and he had helplessly watched as his daughter, Mary — who was destined to die alone in England in 1933 — struggled to cope with a lifelong disability.

9

Continue down Johnson Street to 180 Johnson Street.

While Sir John A. and his first wife Isabella lived in this house, Hugh John, the couple’s only son to reach adulthood, was born here on March 13, 1850. Although Hugh John faced a rocky future — the loss of his mother when he was still a boy and his eventual alienation from his father because he married an older woman — he was more than a success in life. In one of Sir John A.’s last appearances in the House of Commons, he proudly introduced his fellow Conservative M.P. and son to the House, Hugh John having been elected an M.P. from Manitoba in 1891. Hugh John later became Premier of Manitoba and, like his father before him, was knighted. A SIR JOHN A. MACDONALD WALKING TOUR 13


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 Macdonald’s official portrait hangs in Parliament Hill in Ottawa  Miniature of Mrs. John A. Macdonald inserted in a gold medallion.

10  Notice of Isabella Macdonald’s funeral (born Isabella Clark).

 Photo of Hugh John, Sir John A.’s son from his first marriage.

Continue along Johnson Street for two blocks to King Street and then turn left on King Street, ending your tour in Springer Market Square.

It is fitting this Sir John A. Macdonald walking tour ends here at the Market Square, where Confederation itself was celebrated on July 1, 1867. Less than a year before his own death in 1979, former Prime Minister John Diefenbaker penned a tribute to Sir John A. for the book Macdonald of Kingston, by the late Professor Donald Swainson of Queen’s University. Canada’s 13th Prime Minister wrote the following about the first. “As was said of Sir Christopher Wren, when someone asked: ‘Where is the monument to that great man?’; the reply was: ‘If you would see his monument, look about you.’ Macdonald’s monument is Canada!” 

Audio versions of this tour are available for free download atwww.cityofkingston.ca/walkingtours Choose your narrator for the tour from a growing list that includes the Rt. Hon. Jean Chrétien, the 20th Prime Minister of Canada along with the Hon. Peter Milliken, 34th Speaker of the House of Commons; the Rt. Hon. Paul Martin, the 21st Prime Minister of Canada along with Arthur Milnes, Commissioner of Sir John A. 2015; and hockey greats Don Cherry with Jim Dorey.

Acknowledgments Tom Axworthy; Alison Bogle; Don Cherry; Rt. Hon. Jean Chrétien; Ken Cuthbertson; Jim Dorey; John Gerretsen, MPP Kingston and the Islands; Bruce Hartley; Theresa Horvath; Deborah Kimmett; Library and Archives Canada; Rt. Hon. Paul Martin; Peter Milliken; Queen’s University Archives; John Rae; Senator Hugh Segal; Jane Taber; Chris Whyman and Wilma van Wyngaarden 14 A SIR JOHN A. MACDONALD WALKING TOUR


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Take a break and visit us across from Market Square SIR JOHN A. TOUR, STOP 3

326 KING STREET EAST / 613.545.3234

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16 THE WAR OF 1812 This walk of modern Kingston is of buildings and sites as they existed on November 10 1812. Kingston had started its modern life as Cataraqui in 1783, became known as Kingstown, and by 1812 was the village of Kingston. It had, perhaps, 1000 inhabitants and 100 houses. November 10 1812 was a special day in its life. The plaque at stop 4 will explain. You can also read “Commodore Chauncey’s Attack on Kingston Harbour, November 10, 1812” by C. P. Stacey in The Canadian Historical Review, Vol. XXXII, 1951, or you can search for “Attack on Kingston Harbour” or “Flight of the Royal George” online. APPROXIMATELY 1 HOUR Please be respectful of private property. The 1812 walk is longer than the other City Walks, and will take at least an hour. There are few buildings remaining from 1812, so be prepared to look mostly at sites rather than buildings. An 1812 street map (page 22) shows the small size of the village of Kingston. Note that the 1812 street names are in brackets. Where there is no bracketed name, the street did not exist in 1812.

16 THE WALK OF 1812


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The Walk of 1812 Start at the Visitor Information Centre, 209 Ontario St. across from City Hall.

1 Look into Confederation Park. In 1812 the shore of Lake Ontario was this side of the fountain basin. Between Ontario (Front) Street and the water would be wharves, warehouses and storage buildings. 2 Look west, away from the lake. In 1812, you would have been looking at the new market place which spread from Clarence (Clarence) Street to Brock (Market) Street. There was a covered market building, stocks and a whipping post. It was also used as a parade ground. It had been the site of Lieutenant-Colonel Bradstreet’s artillery batteries in 1758. (also see stop 13). On the far side, where you now see the red brick British Whig building, you would have seen St. George’s Church in the trees. Already 20 years old, it had been enlarged in 1802. Walker’s Hotel was at Brock and Ontario (Market and Front) Streets, and the Kingston Hotel at Clarence and King (Clarence and Church) Streets. Walk south (with the lake on your left) for three blocks to Ontario and Earl (Front and Centre) Streets.

3 The Lines House stood here until 1987. Very few frame houses survived Kingston’s many fires, and it is ironic that this one was burnt in 1988 soon after it was moved. Turn left on Earl (Centre) Street and walk to Battery Park on the shoreline. Turn right and walk across to the plaque. 18 THE WALK OF 1812

2

4  St. George's Church Courtesy Anglican Diocese of Ontario

 Battery Park Plaque

4 Read the plaque. Look across the water to the grey buildings of the Royal Military College (RMC). In 1812, the Provincial Marine Naval Yard was there. You are standing on the site of a one-gun battery. Another small gun battery was where the closest Martello Tower you see was built in about 1855. A blockhouse, with a six- and a nine- pounder gun, was on the high ground of Point Henry, which you can see beyond RMC.


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Continue past the plaque to Gore (Point) Street and turn right. Walk, with the lake behind you, to Ontario (Front) Street, continue south (left) to Lower Union (School) Street and turn west (right). Walk up to King (Church) Street.

5 Look left (south). On the other side of the Park, beyond the houses you see ahead of you, Reverend Dr. John Stuart built his house in about 1785 in what was then the countryside. He was chaplain to the 2nd Battalion, King’s Royal Regiment of New York during and after the American War of Independence, later stationed in Fort Frontenac (stop 13). He built St. George’s Church in 1792 (stop 2). He also started a school in his house. 6 On the north-east corner, approximately where 161 King Street now stands, was the first schoolhouse built in Upper Canada. It was named the Midland District Public School. It had been started by Stuart in his home in 1786, and then moved in to a proper school house here in 1792.

5

7

Turn right and walk one block on King (Church) Street.

7 The house on the corner of Gore and King

(Point and Church) Streets, 59 Gore Street, is

 Rev. Dr. John Stuart Courtesy Library Archives Canada

 59 Gore Street

 232 King Street

8 THE WALK OF 1812 19


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9

a controversial one in Kingston. Legend says that part of it was brought over the ice from Carleton Island (see comment at stop 13) after 1783. If so, it is surprising, as architectural historian Jennifer McKendry notes, that it was placed at the opposite end of the settlement from the protection of the Barracks. It disappears and reappears on maps. Maybe the present building includes the remains of one of the city’s first houses. Church Street continued less than a block further west in 1812. Continue along King (Church) Street to 232.

8 The front of this frame house was probably built before 1812 and has not been greatly altered. The second storey may have been an early addition. It is typical of what the larger frame houses would have looked like in 1812. (photo on previous page)

20 THE WALK OF 1812

 St. Columba's Roman Catholic Church Courtesy Queen’s University Archives

Turn west, away from the lake on William (William) Street and continue to Bagot (Rear) Street, so named because it was the rear of the town.

9 There were very few buildings to the south, (to the left on Bagot), but streets had been planned and building lots had been sold. Where the Kingston Frontenac Housing Corporation apartments now stand was the first stone church in Kingston. It was the village’s second church. Named St. Columba’s Roman Catholic Church, or The French Church, it was built by Master Mason F. X. Rochleau (whose house we will visit later at stop 16). It was used as a hospital in the War of 1812, but would again be a church, known as St. Joseph’s, from 1816 until 1891. Continue north on Bagot (Rear) Street with the lake on your right for two blocks to Brock (Market) and Clarence (Clarence) Streets.


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10 On your left was Selma Park and a one storey frame house built by Sir John Johnson, but now owned in 1812 by Roman Catholic Bishop Macdonell. The Park extended from Johnson to Princess (Store) Streets and west three blocks to Barrie Street. Continue north two blocks to Queen (Grave) Street, turn left, and walk one block.

11 You are at the intersection of Montreal and Queen (Grave) Streets, by the Lower Burial Ground, outside the village in 1812 (there was a Garrison Burial Ground even further out). This cemetery is the earliest consecrated cemetery in Ontario, started in 1783. Early prominent citizens were buried here, including John Stuart (see stop 4) in 1811 in the Stuart “lair”. The original cemetery wall was built by F. X. Rochleau in 1799, but has been rebuilt.

In 1812 Brewery Street was closer to the water than Wellington is now and you would be walking through Kingston’s first brewery built by James Robins in 1793. Look up high on 308 Wellington Street and you will see a beer barrel and a mashtun as a reminder of an 1835 brewery. Take the first left (Place d’Armes) and continue toward the water. In 1812 you would have passed a number of military buildings between North Street and Place d’Armes.

13 Where Place d’Armes joins Ontario (Front) Street, you will find a reconstruction of the northwestern bastion of the old Fort Frontenac. The

 Bishop Alexander Macdonell Courtesy Queen’s University Archives

You now have two options. IF YOU ARE SHORT OF TIME, continue north on Montreal Street for one block, turn right on Ordnance (Cross) Street; walk three blocks east, downhill, to Wellington (Brewery) Street and turn right. Almost immediately, turn left onto Place d’Armes. In 1812 you would have passed a number of military buildings. Continue toward the Cataraqui River, and you are approaching stop 13.

 Lower Burial Ground

10

 Painting of the remains of Fort Frontenac Courtesy of Library and Archives Canada

11

IF YOU HAVE TIME, continue north on Montreal Street for three blocks to North Street (not a four-way intersection). Turn right and go downhill on North Street for two blocks to Rideau (Garden) Street and you will see Rideaucrest Home across the road.

12 The British government built houses for Joseph Brant and his sister Molly here in 1784, outside the village, in recognition for the work they had done in the American colony as British patriots. You will find a plaque by the main entrance (to your left) and a bust of Molly in the courtyard (ask at reception for directions).

13

Go south on Rideau (Garden) Street (keep the water on your left) and take the first street on your left, and then the first right Wellington Street (Brewery).

THE WALK OF 1812 21


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HISTORIC MAP 1812

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13

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10 St. Columba’s Church Église St. Colomba 11 Selma Park/Parc Selma 12 Lower Burial Ground Cimetière inférieur 13 Molly and Joseph Brant Houses/ Maisons de Molly et Joseph Brant 14 Fort Frontenac Fort Frontenac 15 Peter Smith House Maison de Pete Smith 16 Government House Résidence du commandant 17 74 (Store) Princess St. 74, rue Princess (Store) 18 Robert Macaulay House Maison de Robert Macaulay 19 John Stuart’s House Maison de John Stuart 20 Thibood’s Inn

5

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.

21 Gaol/Prison

6

22 Cartwright Wharf

Quai Cartwright 23 Forsyth Wharf/Quai Forsyth 24 Indian Store

Magasin autochtone

Thanks are due to Sue Bazely, Nadine Copp, John Duerkop, Jennifer McKendry, Brian Osborne and the Kingston Municipal Heritage Committee’s Communications and Education Working Group for their comments on this walk, but responsibility for all errors is Peter Gower’s alone. 22 THE WALK OF 1812


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16  70-74 Princess Street

fort was built by the French, rebuilt by them in 1695 and left in ruins after a 1758 attack by the British forces under Lieutenant-Colonel Bradstreet. It was restored in 1783 (see painting on page 25) when the British army had to leave their base on Carleton Island in the St. Lawrence River because it was too close to the proposed new boundary with the United States. They moved here. Cross Ontario (Front) Street (very carefully) and look inside the gates of today’s Fort Frontenac. You can see to your right, below the level of the parking lot, the remains of the southeastern bastion of the old Fort Frontenac. The lake shore used to very close to the north of Place d'Armes — a few yards on the other side of the street when you look from the K Rock Centre. When you look inside Fort Frontenac, the lake shore was about where the three storey buildings stand to your left. Walk south on Ontario (Front) Street, with the stone wall of modern Fort Frontenac on your left. Old Fort Frontenac extended close to the intersection of Ontario (Front) and The Tragically Hip Way (Barrack).

14 At Ontario (Front) Street and Queen

(Queen) Street was Pete Smith’s, Kingston’s first stone house. Turn right and continue west one block to King (Church) Street.

17  Macaulay House Courtesy Queen’s University Archives

15 Here the Commanding Officer’s, or Government House would have blocked your way. It was built in the middle of the present day intersection. The Commanding Officer’s wife had to ‘hurry the children into the cellar to avoid the bullets that pierced the wooden walls of the pretty white cottage’ during the November 10th 1812 attack. Read about it in Historic Kingston, volume #13 page 10, available in the Central Kingston Public Library, 130 Johnson Street. Turn left and walk south on King (Church) Street to Princess (Store) Street, turn right and walk a little way up.

16 Across the street is 70-74. This stone house was built by Francis Xavier Rochleau (see stops 9 and 11) in 1808 — look high up on the wall next to the passageway for his mark. The house was built right on the property line, as was the custom at the time, to give private space behind for the owners. Walk back towards the lake to Ontario (Front) Street.

17 Robert Macaulay’s house was on the southwest corner. He probably rafted it across from Carleton Island, and used it as a General Store. It survived well into the 20th century. Turn right on Ontario (Front) Street, and you will soon be at the Visitor Information Centre, having walked all around the Kingston of 1812.  THE WALK OF 1812 23


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24 EARL STREET WALKING TOUR This walk covers four city blocks of Earl Street, one of the oldest streets in Kingston. APPROXIMATELY 45 MINUTES Please be respectful of private property.

24 EARL STREET WALKING TOUR


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Earl Street Earl Street has a wide range of homes, some originally built for factory workers and others for the wealthy. In order of typical construction, they include a variety of frame, stone, stone and brick and all-brick homes. They have different features such as rooflines, porches, trim, chimneys, windows and transoms. All the houses contribute to the “streetscapes” that are so important in the district. This street had two earlier names — Centre St. and Arthur St. In 1850 it was renamed Earl St. after Captain Hugh Earl of the Provincial Marine. His wife, Anne, was one of the daughters of Molly Brant and Sir William Johnson. Anne owned a large piece of land between West and Johnson Streets above Bagot St. Her half-brother, Sir John Johnson, owned the adjacent land between Johnson and Princess Streets. Begin at the intersection of King and Earl Streets.

Walk downhill on the left (north) side of Earl St. towards the water. Notice the row of brick houses at 16-18-20-20½ Earl St. These were homes for employees of the Locomotive Works, flour mill, shipyard and other industries that used to be on Ontario St. Cross Earl Street to the south side and proceed up the street (away from the water). Look across the street. 26 EARL STREET WALKING TOUR

1 21 EARL ST. This two-storey stone house was built before 1832 by the prominent Cartwright family. It has a high basement on the street side. The main door might have originally been at the rear (north), facing the garden, which was reached through gates to the east. A stone wall runs north from the house, dividing the city block on which it sits. 2 47 EARL ST. is of frame construction. It was built as a boarding house in 1841. The wood is now hidden by stucco. During the 19th century most homes in Kingston were small frame buildings like this one. 3

49-53-55 EARL ST. 49 EARL, a single house, was built about 1834. 53-55 were built about 1844. This pair of houses was designed by Thomas Rogers, the first architect to settle in Kingston. 53 was the home of the owner, an engineer, who built 55 to rent out.

4 65 EARL ST. is a frame cottage sandwiched between two brick houses. Called “LaSalle Cottage”, it was built after 1865. Thomas Hanley (brother of Joseph Power) and his family lived in this house at least 1890-1950. The family were connected with the Great North Western Telegraph Company and then the Canadian National Telegraph Company for 62 years.


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5 67 EARL ST. on the corner was built in 1847. The roof balcony was added about 1900 and the two roof windows about 1960. Joseph Hanley (brother of Thomas) and his descendents lived in this house from 1858 to about 1950. They were well known 1871-1946 as Grand Trunk Railway (later CNR) and steamship ticket agents. 1

6 91 EARL ST. was built in the early 1840s. Beginning in 1806 the land was owned by the Roman Catholic bishop and then by the Church itself. The first tenant rented the land to operate a milk delivery and cartage business. The Church sold it to a labourer in 1879. This simple dwelling is one of very few surviving “ordinary” houses from the period. 7

2

8

73 SYDENHAM ST. is at the corner of Sydenham St. This two-storey brick house was built in 1888 for John McKay who had a leather and fur business. There is interesting terra cotta (hard, kiln-fired clay) decoration at the second floor level and bargeboards on the west dormer.

8 46 SYDENHAM ST. is on the right hand corner at Earl St. Called “Rosemount”, it was built in 184950 in the style of a Tuscan villa. The first owner was a Mr. Hardy who owned a dry-goods business. It is now an inn and spa. This large home used to have extensive verandahs. Note the balconies, tall chimneys with decorative arches, the finial on the tower and, especially, the restored original cast iron fence. 9

149-151 EARL ST. Built in 1873-74, they have a high basement and three storeys, making them taller than the surrounding houses. A fashionable mansard roof (flat or almost flat top with sloping sides) covers their top floors. Notice the pattern of the slate shingles and the detailing of the façades.

9

10 155 EARL ST. was built in 1848-49. The family of John Kerr, the manager of the gas works, lived in it from 1854-1904. It was once painted red and then grey. Traces of those colours remain. The porch may be original. 11

11

161 EARL ST. was built for the Fraser family in 1847-48. Mr. Fraser was in the wholesale hardware business. The Frasers had ten children. Various nephews from Scotland also lived with them while attending Queen’s. William Coverdale (see also Newlands and Coverdale Walking Tour, p.52) EARL STREET WALKING TOUR 27


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designed this house, as well as 155 and 169.

12

169 EARL ST. was built in 1849-50. A fire destroyed the second storey in 1876 and it was rebuilt. This home was once the Agnes Maule Machar Home for Protestant Women. The front of the house was once painted grey.

Cross the street and proceed back down Earl Street.

12

13

158-160-162 EARL ST. was built of brick in 1867. They are called “Mozart Terrace” (a terrace is a row of attached houses that look alike). Note the tower.

14

148 EARL ST. was built in 1870 by Thomas Moore, a tailor. This was his home but he also had many rental properties. A window on the left side was converted into a door, which led to the office of Dr. Macgregor who lived here for 40 years.

15

15 132-134 EARL ST. was built in 1866. Sir John A. Macdonald’s widowed brother-in-law lived at 134 for 25 years and Sir John’s unmarried sister Louisa lived here before she died in 1888. The house was one of those owned and rented out by Thomas Moore, who lived at 148. 16

118-120-122 EARL ST. was built in 1868. They were built of stone with fashionable brick façades and were advertised as “professional gentlemen’s residences”.

16

17

82 TO 96 EARL ST. If you look closely you will see that this row of six attached houses actually consists of three pairs of houses.

18

66-68 EARL ST. on the SE corner of Wellington St. was built in 1842. Note the doors’ curved tops with “Venetian” windows at the top, and the false door recess on the Wellington St. side of 68.

18

19

52 EARL ST. was built in 1886, designed by Joseph Power. Note his “sunburst” design on the façade. This was originally the home and office of Dr. Anglin. Attached on the west side is 56, built in 1905 and possibly also designed by Joseph Power. The doorway and windows all have different shapes.

If you wish to make your way to City Hall and Springer Market Square, continue up Earl Street half a block (the starting point of the tour). Turn left on King Street.  28 EARL STREET WALKING TOUR

19


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EARL STREET WALKING TOUR 29


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30 KING STREET WALKING TOUR

A tour of five blocks along King Street East. First named Church St., King St. has far too many historic buildings to include here. This tour includes a sampling of humble houses as well as buildings designed by leading architects for prominent citizens. Compare the interesting chimneys, roofs, turrets, gables, windows, doorways, porches and building materials. APPROXIMATELY 45 MINUTES Please be respectful of private property.

30 KING STREET WALKING TOUR


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King Street 1 264 KING ST. E. (Gildersleeve House). Henry and Sarah Gildersleeve built this neoclassical style stone house in 1825. Henry came from Connecticut after the War of 1812. He launched the first steamboat on the Great Lakes, the Frontenac, in 1816. The Gildersleeves owned this house until 1909. The original wrought iron hitching posts and stone carriage-step remain in front at the curb. 2 232 KING ST. E. This wooden double house, covered in stucco, may have been built as early as 1812. The Davis family, who owned a drydock at the north end of Wellington St., lived here for many years.

1

3

224-228 KING ST. E. is a handsome two-storey stone double house with a carriageway at each end. It was built in 1843 during the building boom while Kingston was the capital of Canada.

4 218 KING ST. E. was built as a house in 1833 but was converted to a store by 1850. It was later used as a medical clinic and the large store windows were filled in by the present white woodwork. 5 156 KING ST. E. (Earl Place). Built in 1851, this house was likely designed by William Coverdale (see also Newlands and Coverdale Walking Tour, p.52) for Colin Miller. Miller was the son-inlaw of Captain Hugh Earl of the Provincial Marine and his wife Anne, a daughter of Molly Brant and Sir William Johnson. 32 KING STREET WALKING TOUR

2

3


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At the intersection of LOWER UNION ST. AND KING ST. E., you can see the last coal gas streetlamp in the city. It was put here about 1948.

Continue to the intersection of King St. E. and West St. Cross to the other side of King St. E. and start back in the direction you came from.

4

5

6

6

85 KING ST. E. — Power & Son (see also Power Walking Tour, p.47), built in 1877. This Victorian mansion was built by Richard Tossell for Rybert Kent, who was, for 20 years, proprietor of the British American Hotel (at King and Clarence Streets), and a partner in the Canadian Express Company. The three-storey stone house has some of the finest ironwork and carpenter trim work in Kingston. The design details show the best work of Joseph Power and features a mansard roof (flat or almost flat-topped with sloping sides) and dormers (windows projecting from a sloping roof ).

7 95 KING ST. E. (Hendry House) This high Victorian house in Queen Anne style was designed by Joseph Power and built in 1886. It was described in the British Whig as “probably the handsomest residence in the city this year”. An excellent example of asymmetrical design, it has a variety of roof heights and construction materials. The terra cotta (hard kilnfired clay) panels are noteworthy. The owner, James Hendry, was a wholesale grocer. 8

131-133 KING ST. E. was built in 1842-43 to plans by William Coverdale. The owner was Noble Palmer, founder of the Kingston Spectator. This stone double house served as the temporary residence for Governor General Sir Charles Metcalfe. It was later occupied by the Kingston Seminary for Young Ladies.

7

9 141 KING ST. E. This elaborate house, designed by Joseph Power, was built in 1880. It had a very stylish plan, scale and decoration. It was built for John Hinds and, after he went bankrupt, it was owned by Dr. Kenneth Neander Fenwick. Note the use of both brick and stone, and the slate mansard roof with dormers. (photo on next page) 10

8

157 KING ST. E. Joseph Power, built in 1882 This large brick Victorian mansion, built for Dr. Edward Horsey (second son of the architect Edward Horsey), is an excellent example of the work KING STREET WALKING TOUR 33


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of Joseph Power. The house was sold to the government in 1887, when the doctor moved to Montreal. It served for many years as a residence for army commanding officers. This is a slightly larger and more elaborate version of 49 King St. E., built three years earlier.

11

191 KING ST. E. (Cartwright House). The Cartwright family has been very involved in the life of Kingston and of Canada since the arrival of the Loyalists. This neoclassical stone house was built in 1832-33 for Rev. Robert David Cartwright and his bride, Harriet Dobbs of Dublin. The appearance of this house has not changed since it was built. Even the fence in front is original.

12 57-59 GORE ST. (Stuart Cottage) occupies the corner of King St. E. This wooden house is one of the oldest buildings in Kingston, part of it having been built about 1808.

9

10

13

221 KING ST. E. This impressive house was built in 1834 for John Solomon Cartwright and his wife, Sarah. John was a lawyer, judge, banker and member of the Legislative Assembly of Upper Canada.

14 225 KING ST. E. (Frontenac Club) This 184546 building was designed by architect Edward Crane as a bank in classical revival style. The Bank of Montreal used it until 1906. It then became a men’s club. Since 2000, the club has operated as an inn. There is a plaque on the north wall honouring members of the men’s club who died in the First World War.

11

15

243 KING ST. E. (Commercial Bank) This Renaissance revival building was designed in 1853 for the Commercial Bank of the Midland District. Later sold to another bank, it was also a Catholic boys’ school, from 1899 to 1914, and then became an office building again. In 1936, Empire Life Insurance bought the building and moved its head office to the premises.

16 261-263  KING ST. E. on the corner of King St. E. and Johnson is now part of the Empire Life complex. This red brick building was built in 1904 as three townhouses. The bottom floors were later commercial. It underwent a prize-winning reconstruction after a fire in 2005. Another storey was added at the same time. E.A. Cromarty was the architect for the restoration.  34 KING STREET WALKING TOUR

14

15


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CANADA'S PENITENTIARY MUSEUM In 1869, while holding the offices of Prime Minister and Minister of Justice, Sir John A. Macdonald gave approval for the construction of an official Warden's residence facing the gates of Kingston Penitentiary. Today, this building houses Canada's Penitentiary Museum. This award-winning museum offers visitors a rare glimpse of the life inside Canada's federal penitentiaries since 1833. Displays range from wonderful works of inmate art, to cell reconstructions, to sobering contraband items and the older 'tools of the trade' no longer used to maintain order and control.

MON-FRI: 9 a.m.-4 p.m., SAT-SUN: 10 a.m.-4 p.m.

555 King Street West / 613-530-3122 www.penitentiarymuseum.ca

PICTURE: KINGSTON PENITENTIARY

Admission By Donation

When you drop by for a visit, see if you can find

Sir John's portrait on display!

KING STREET WALKING TOUR 35


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36 ONTARIO STREET WALKING TOUR A look at three blocks of Ontario Street.

APPROXIMATELY 20 MINUTES Please be respectful of private property.

36 ONTARIO STREET WALKING TOUR


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Ontario Street Start your tour in front of the Visitor Information Centre. Look across the street.

1 216 ONTARIO ST. (Kingston City Hall). George Browne and William Coverdale (see also Newlands and Coverdale Walking Tour, p.52) designed City Hall. This magnificent building was built in 1842 to 1844 as a public market building or “shambles” and “civic centre” as well as for town offices. Also in the building were the Royal Mail Post Office, the Customs Office, public meeting halls, a library, the police station and cells, a print shop and restaurants. On the lower level there were also offices to be rented to lawyers (including John A. Macdonald) and brokers. It also had a room where citizens could come and read the latest newspapers. The building is Paladian in style, with each side of the façade being a mirror image of the other. It has an imposing Tuscan portico. As built, the dome had no clock faces and no glass “lantern” on top. Its imposing façade faced the waterfront because visitors to the city usually arrived by ship. Kingston was the capital of the United Pro38 ONTARIO STREET WALKING TOUR

vince of Canada when the building was started. By the time it was finished, however, the government and the civil servants had moved to Montréal. The remaining citizens of Kingston could not pay for the new building. For many years, they rented out parts of it to a bank, churches, saloons, a women’s medical college and for other uses. There was originally a driveway through the centre of the building. It has been replaced by the central part of the present front steps and what are now the main doors. The city government and a public meeting hall now occupy the entire building. Parts of City Hall were restored after fires in 1865 that destroyed the market wing behind the building, and in 1908 that destroyed the dome. The portico was rebuilt in 1966 and the building was fully restored in the 1970s. The dome was re-coppered in 2002 with the entire roof re-coppered in 2011. Free guided tours are available in the summer. Cross the street to the foot of City Hall’s stairs. Turn and look back across the street.


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2 209 ONTARIO ST. (Kingston and Pembroke Railway Station). The K&P Railway station is now the Tourist Information Office. In the early 1800s, there was a market here between Ontario St. and the water. From 1846 to 1875, the space was occupied by a large stone gun position called the “Market Battery.” The land became a park after the battery was torn down. In 1885, some stone from the battery was used to build this station, designed by William Newlands (see p.52 for Newlands and Coverdale Walking Tour). The park became a railway yard. The K&P Railway brought lumber, iron ore, phosphates, mica and other natural products to Kingston where they were transferred to ships. The present park was built in 1967 to celebrate the Centennial of Canadian Confederation. The Canadian Pacific Railway’s steam locomotive number 1095, named “Spirit of Sir John A.”, was built in 1913 at the locomotive works further south on Ontario Street. It remembers Sir John A. Macdonald, Canada’s first prime minister who was the Member of Parliament for Kingston. Turn right and proceed south across Market and Clarence Streets. Look across Ontario St.

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3 193-195 ONTARIO ST. These 1848-49 buildings were designed by William Coverdale. The Royal Canadian Horse Artillery (RCHA) was Kingston’s army garrison from 1871 until it went overseas at the beginning of World War II in 1939. Walk further south and look at the end of the building. The remains of a brick fireplace and chimney flues you can see are from an adjoining building that has been demolished. Continue south to Johnson St. Look ahead of you and diagonally across Ontario St. to your left.

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167 ONTARIO ST. (Grand Trunk (or “inner”) Railway Station). This 1886 station was designed by William Newlands. Connecting trains ran from here to the mainline or “Outer” Station, that was farther north on Montréal St. The Grand Trunk Station has a prominent mansard roof. The Hanley family operated a railway and steamship ticket agency in this building 1871-1930. It was once covered with railway and steamship ads that were painted on the brick. Cross Ontario St. Turn left (north) towards the Visitor Information Centre. Look back across Ontario St. ONTARIO STREET WALKING TOUR 39


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172 ONTARIO ST. (Anglo-American Hotel) and 176 ONTARIO ST. The hotel was built before 1844.

It was named the Anglo-American in 1851. If you look carefully, you can see cast iron arches with carved heads above the second storey windows. There is a floral design on the stone string between the second and third storeys. The hotel owners built 176 Ontario (on your right) as a store. Continue north towards the Visitor Information Centre.

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178-186 ONTARIO ST. (Frontenac Hotel). The hotel got that name in 1889. The southern (your left) end was built as a house in 1822. It was heavily damaged during an explosion and fire that destroyed much of the area in 1840. The house was repaired and reopened as a hotel. It was given a new front in 1853 when architect John Power (see also Power Walking Tour, p.47) added the large expansion on the north (your right) end. Notice the decorative iron pilasters (half columns) on either side of the doorway to 178 Ontario.

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192-194 ONTARIO ST. This office building was built sometime between 1853 and 1860. The architect was probably John Power. The façade is brick that was fashionable at the time, but the end wall is less expensive stone. Notice the iron pilasters beside the doorways similar to 178-186 Ontario.

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196 ONTARIO ST. This modest frame building dates

from between 1878 and 1880. It was built as the ticket office for the Folger Brothers’ steamboat excursion line. An interesting feature is the beaded wooden shingles designed with semi-circular arches.

9 200 ONTARIO ST. (Prince George Hotel). The hotel has been called the Prince George since 1918. The façade is actually three separate buildings. The middle part is a stone house built about 1817. New stores were built on each side of the house in 1847. The buildings became a hotel after a fire in 1848. William Newlands designed the third floor and the mansard roof that were added in 1892. These changes made the three buildings look like one. The hotel’s most recent restoration was in 2008. Intricate ironwork on the tower, the copper roof and the decorative woodwork on the verandah are distinguishing features. Arrive back at the Visitor Information Centre.  40 ONTARIO STREET WALKING TOUR

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41 PRINCESS AND BROCK STREETS WALKING TOUR A tour through the old Kingston business district. APPROXIMATELY 45 MINUTES Please be respectful of private property.

PRINCESS AND BROCK STREETS WALKING TOUR 41


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Princess and Brock Streets Starting from the Visitor Information Centre, cross Ontario St., turn right and proceed north a block and a half to the corner of Ontario and Princess Streets. Look across Princess St.

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1 27 PRINCESS ST. The original part of this imposing commercial building, the west seven windows on Princess St., was built about 1820. It was a combined grocery store and home for the grocer. In 1841, architect George Browne added to it with five windows each side of a rounded corner (one of three buildings with round corners he designed in the city; see #17 on p.46). It then consisted of three stores with housing above. The building was later used as a piano factory and to manufacture vehicles. It was completely gutted by fire in 1908. Only the walls were left. Rebuilt, it became an army barracks during World War II; and from 1959 to 2009, the S&R Department Store. It is now called the Smith Robinson Building. Cross Princess St., turn left and walk west (uphill and away from the harbour). Look across the street.

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2 44 PRINCESS ST. Built in 1833, interesting features of this building include the open colonnade that is now filled in with show windows, and above the much-changed first floor, you can see a classical stone building, with large 24-pane windows inside arches. The building first served as a bank and later became the office of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons. Cross King St. E.

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68 PRINCESS ST. This 1893 brick façade conceals an 1820 stone house. Look up and you will see a high central gable with the 1893 date and an arch with an intricate brick design. William Newlands designed the new façade (see also Newlands and Coverdale Walking Tour, p.52).

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70-74 PRINCESS ST. Known as the Rochleau House, it was built in 1808 by François Xavier Rochleau who left his mark ‘F.X.R. 1808’ high up on the fire-break wall next to the passageway facing Princess St. The first floor has been modified greatly over the years. PRINCESS AND BROCK STREETS WALKING TOUR 43


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Cross Wellington St. Continue up Princess St. Stop at the corner of Bagot St. Look ahead of you and diagonally across Princess to your left.

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156 PRINCESS ST. This is an 1842 building, five windows wide on Princess and four deep on Bagot St. It is hammer dressed stone with a projecting stone band. There are stone arches (voussoirs) above the windows. (photo on previous page)

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Cross Princess St., turn left and walk half a block downhill towards the harbour. Look across Princess St.

6 101-139 PRINCESS ST. Most of these buildings were built after an 1851 fire destroyed the block. Note the unity of design above the modernised first floors (the upper storey of 113-117 was destroyed in a 1940 fire). 101 was built in 1841-42 as a grocery store. 105 was built in 1852-53, and 111 by 1857 for a shoe-making business. 123129, built in 1854, originally housed a grocer, a chair maker and a shoe maker. 131-139 was built in 1851 as a hotel with stables for 100 horses and sheds for 35 carriages.

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Continue down the street. Cross Wellington St. and look across Princess St.

7 85 PRINCESS ST. This was built as a house by 1840. In 1845 its brick walls stopped a fire that was spreading east from Wellington St. Notice the upper storey double-hung sash windows each with 24 panes and above them the blind arcade of twelve ‘windows’ beneath the cornice.

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75-77 PRINCESS ST. Originally built in 1820 as a coffee house to attract the stagecoach traffic on the York (Toronto) to Montréal route, it had a large enclosed yard for circuses, etc. It has housed a library; a ballroom; a military hospital; a grammar school; a hard- ware store; and today, a general store and apartments. This is a good example of a solid stone commercial building that has been adapted through the years.

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Turn right at the corner of King St. Proceed one block south to the corner of Brock St. Look across King St.

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37-43 BROCK ST. William Coverdale designed this building in 1856 — one of three similar buildings he designed around what is now called Springer

44 PRINCESS AND BROCK STREETS WALKING TOUR

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Market Square (see also Newlands and Coverdale Walking Tour, p.52). The second one was on the corner where you are standing and is now Jack Astors. The third one was where the Bank of Montreal is now located on the other side of the Square. Together, they made the Square an imposing commercial centre. The use of brick was a deliberate contrast to the many limestone buildings in Kingston. It is called the Anchor Building after the name of an insurance company that was one of its first tenants. Look up Brock St. on the other side.

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10 56-60 BROCK ST. This 1839 two-storey stone building was first built with a frame façade. A new façade and third storey were added in 1912 to better blend with the adjacent bank. There are two recessed entrances with show windows. The central entrance has a semi-circular arched transom. 11 62-66 BROCK ST. These are amongst the oldest buildings downtown. They were built as a frame house sometime between 1825 and 1828. The street level of the house was later divided in two with housing above and given a brick façade. Notice the faucet above the door of 66. There were tinsmithing, steam fitting and plumbing shops here for more than 150 years. This building has been restored by the Frontenac Heritage Foundation. Cross Brock St. Turn right and proceed uphill away from the harbour. Look across the street.

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12 55-61 BROCK ST. Despite appearances, this is a single building that was deliberately built in two sections about 1865. Notice the second floor windows. 55 has a carriageway (square-headed at the front, arched at the rear) and 24-paned windows. It has two-and-a-half small stories with small upper windows. 57-61 is two full stories high and has large windows. Over 61’s doorway, you will see the stained-glass sign bearing the name “Henderson”, the brothers who owned the “Italian Warehouse” here before 1924. Today it is still a grocery store with a Victorian atmosphere. 13 65-69 BROCK ST. was designed by William Newlands in 1885 and built of brick and stone. There is a recessed entrance at each end and a carriageway in the middle. The higher you look, PRINCESS AND BROCK STREETS WALKING TOUR 45


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the more decoration there is in the brickwork. It was originally a plumbing supplies business.

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71 BROCK ST. is another 1885 Newlands building. Note the round-headed windows and the decorative brickwork.

15 73-75 BROCK ST. Built of brick in 1885, this building has been occupied by tailors, dressmakers and clothing stores. It has irregular windows and an off-centre raised parapet to emphasize the main part of the building. Notice the abundance of elaborate decoration, especially in the brickwork.

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77 BROCK ST. This 1882 building replaced an earlier one where the Daily British Whig (now The Kingston Whig-Standard) had its offices. The Whig is Canada’s oldest continuously published daily newspaper (1834). Notice the large second storey window with keystone and the semi-circular arched windows on the third floor.

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When you come to Wellington St., look ahead of you and diagonally across Wellington St.

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CORNER OF BROCK AND WELLINGTON STREETS

George Browne designed this 1842 building as a series of arches. It is one of three he built in Kingston with a round corner. In 1972 architect Wilfred Sorenson restored the building which extends for 13 windows north on Wellington St. The narrow attic windows appear to be original.

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Cross Wellington St. and continue west (away from the harbour).

18 125 BROCK ST. The hotel was built in 1840-42 as three separate buildings (the fire walls protruding through the roof show the divisions). The eastern (your right) one has its windows and roof out of line with the others. A cornice with dentils (teeth) runs the length of the first storey and unites the three buildings. Behind you, in the triangle of land between Brock and Clarence St., is a cast iron horsewatering trough. It is a reminder of times before the automobile.

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Return down Brock St. to Ontario St. to see the Visitor Information Centre across the street to your right. 

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46 PRINCESS AND BROCK STREETS WALKING TOUR


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47 WELLINGTON STREET WALKING TOUR

Wellington St. was originally named Grass St., after Michael Grass, a Loyalist who arrived in Kingston in 1783. This tour highlights some of the 19th century architecture on Earl, Gore, Lower Union and West streets, where they intersect with Wellington St. APPROXIMATELY 45 MINUTES Please be respectful of private property.

WELLINGTON STREET WALKING TOUR 47


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Wellington Street Start on Wellington St. at the corner of Johnson St.

1 103 WELLINGTON ST. is an 1837 Greek revival cottage. It has an elaborate doorway with the pattern repeated over the windows.

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2 96 WELLINGTON ST. is an unusual three-storey double house or duplex at the corner of Wellington and William Streets. Built in 1841, it was a rental property when Kingston was the capital of Canada. The walls facing the street are stone but parts of the rear walls are brick. It is possible there would have been additions to this building if the capital had not moved to Montréal in 1843. Continue along Wellington St. to Earl St. and look left toward the water.

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This is one of the most interesting streetscapes in Kingston. While there have been additions and alterations over the years, they are faithful to the architects’ intentions.

3 67 EARL ST. on the left corner was built in 1847. The right hand side of the house was probably duplicated on the left before alterations. The windows and balcony in the roof are all additions — the balcony in about 1900 and the two windows in about 1960. 3

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66-68 EARL ST. on the right corner was built in WELLINGTON STREET WALKING TOUR 49


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1842, a two-storey, limestone double house. Notice the doorways with Venetian windows and balconies above them. Other houses on Earl St. are included in the Earl St. Walking Tour.

5 47 WELLINGTON ST. was built as the Wellington Street School. It was designed by John Power (see also Power Walking Tour, p.47) in 1873, cost $7,200 and was the most modern school in the city at the time. Since it closed in 1927, it has been a badminton club, HMCS Cataraqui, an engineering laboratory and apartments — which shows just how buildings can be repurposed.

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Continue along Wellington St. to Gore St. and look down towards the water.

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89-91 GORE ST. is on your left at the corner of Gore St. and Wellington St. It is a three-storey stone house with two doors on Gore and one on Wellington St. There are semi-circular arched entrances with recessed doors and a large blind arch above each. This house was built in 1842 as a rental property when Kingston was expected to boom as the capital city of the United Provinces.

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92 GORE ST. across the street, on your right at the corner of Gore St. and Wellington St., was built in 1839 as a double house without the wing on Wellington St. One of the doorways on Gore has been blocked off. When it was built, a carpenter lived there with his woodworking yard behind the house. Note that the second floor windows have pieces of ironwork in the lower corners. These pieces originally held back shutters.

8 32-38 WELLINGTON ST. is a brick terrace (a row of attached houses that look alike) built in two sections between 1873 and 1879. Examples of middleclass housing, they have a high stone foundation. There are two carriageways with arched entrances. Each house has a recessed doorway, and there are six dormers (windows that project from a sloping roof ). The porches are later additions.

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Continue along Wellington St. to the corner of Lower Union St.

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81 LOWER UNION A few houses down on the left is 81 Lower Union St., a one-and-a-half-storey brick cottage built in 1875. Notice the door, especially

50 WELLINGTON STREET WALKING TOUR

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the very narrow sidelight windows, and the porch with its Doric pillars. The dormers are Gothic in style and there is a carved wooden (bargeboard) decoration in the central gable.

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10 75 LOWER UNION ST. (Charles Place) is a regency cottage that was built sometime before 1832. The Oliver family owned it from 1832 to 1898. The servants’ quarters upstairs were converted to family bedrooms in the 1840s. That is when the dormer and the small upper porch were added. It is called “Charles Place” for one-time owner Charles Oliver, to avoid confusion between it and a house belonging to George Oliver. It has a deeply recessed central porch. The doorway and sidelight windows are intricately designed with fancy borders. The other windows at the front of the house include both 8 over 8 panes of glass and 12 over 12 panes. Return to Wellington St. and turn left. Continue along Wellington St. to West St. which at one time was the western limit of the village. In the war of 1812, a stockade along this street defended Kingston, with a blockhouse at this intersection. Walk towards the water on West. St. and you will see a row of interesting houses.

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11 65 WEST ST. has a corner tower, very popular in 1879. It was built for $1,275. This house completed a streetscape of red brick buildings all built in the 1870’s. 12

57-63 WEST ST. (Westbourne Terrace) was built in 1874. 63 was lived in by the original owner while three of his children lived in other parts of the terrace. It has a two-storey bay window with a projecting gable roof. The other three have singlestorey bay windows. There is a central carriageway.

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55 WEST ST. Located at the far end of Westbourne Terrace, it was built in 1877 and altered in 1892. It is similar in appearance to Westbourne Terrace, although it was built separately and later. The first owner was a lawyer, Cornelius Price, who later became a judge.

You may now retrace your steps to downtown.

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Or, go a little further down West St. to the intersection of West St. and King St., turn left and follow King St. back to downtown.  WELLINGTON STREET WALKING TOUR 51


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52 WILLIAM STREET WALKING TOUR

William Street was developed in the early 19th century on the west edge of commercial Kingston. Early Queen’s University buildings are on William Street, as well as examples of the changing designs of apartment buildings. APPROXIMATELY 45 MINUTES Please be respectful of private property.

52 WILLIAM STREET WALKING TOUR


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William Street Leave the Visitor Information Centre and turn left. Walk south along Ontario St. You will cross Clarence and then Johnson and come to William St. Johnson & William are the only streets in the 1790 Kingston street plan that still have their original names. Cross William St. to the left (or south) side of the street, and walk uphill. The properties that you will be viewing on this tour will always be on the opposite side of the street from whichever one you are on. Look across King St.

1 244 KING ST. E. AND 41 WILLIAM ST. are on the right corner. This is an 1890 brick building of two-and-a-half stories. Notice the large windows, the octagonal dormer (a window projecting from a sloping roof ) and the tall chimneys. It also has an unusual double gabled roof — one gable over the two-storey bay windows, and a larger one over the windows and entranceway.

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Cross King St. and look back to

2 243 KING ST. E., now Empire Life Insurance, was built in 1853 for the Commercial Bank. The three-storey high main entrance was on King St., and projects out. Access to the Manager’s apartment was from William St. through a similarly grand but only one-storey entrance. The style is baroque revival, the material is smooth ashlar stone, but there are different treatments to the stone to give it variety and grandeur.

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Continue up William St.

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53 AND 55 WILLIAM ST., located across the street, are a pair of unusual cottages, set far back from the street. When 53 was built in 1830, it was more usual for residences to be on the street property line so that there was room for a private space behind them. Its door is protected by a gable-roofed vestibule. 55 was added in about 1843. It has a simple classical surround to its doorway. Notice the dry stacked (without mortar) stone wall located at the front.

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63 WILLIAM ST. is an 1841 limestone double house that once had tall brick chimneys and entrances on both William and Wellington Streets. The dormer windows on the roof are later additions.

54 WILLIAM STREET WALKING TOUR

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The door is recessed and the reveal (the side walls of the entrance) is paneled. Cross Wellington St.

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93 WILLIAM ST. was built by architect John Power and Son (see also Power Walking Tour, p.47) in 1880. It was originally a double house, but the left hand entrance has been converted to a window. The front retains its symmetry but the two very tall chimneys which added elegance to the building have been demolished.

Continue up William St. and cross Bagot St.

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6 129 WILLIAM ST. is an 1870 limestone cottage with decorative bargeboards (boards that hide the ends of the roof timbers) that run along the roof line and a finial (ornament) in the centre of the peak of the gable. The entranceway is very detailed with its roof and columns. 7

73 SYDENHAM ST. is at the corner of Sydenham St. This two-storey brick house was built in 1888 for John McKay who had a leather and fur business. There is interesting terra cotta (hard, kiln-fired clay) decoration at the second floor level and bargeboards on the west dormer.

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8 Sydenham Street United Church is also at this corner. Built for the Wesleyan Methodists in 1851, it is made out of stone in a gothic style. The central tower (added in 1854) is buttressed and rises to a spire topped by a finial. The arched doors and windows have many intricate details. Cross Sydenham St.

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9 185 WILLIAM ST. is an unusual 1855 house with a recessed two-storey umbrage (porch) in the centre of its front. Notice the decorated chimneys and iron cresting on the roof. Lighter bricks are used for the quoins (on the corners) and the string course (the row of bricks that separates the two storeys). It was designed by James Stewart for himself. Cross Clergy St.

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10 203 AND 205 WILLIAM ST. is a simple two-storey stone building with a mansard roof (flat, or almost flat, with sloping sides) and dormers. Originally a WILLIAM STREET WALKING TOUR 55


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single dwelling, it was built in 1841 by architect George Browne who also designed some of the City's prominent buildings, including Kingston City Hall and the Smith Robinson building located at the corner of Princess and Ontario Streets. Browne’s payment for designing that building was the lot for this house. It was both his dwelling and his office until 1844. Queen’s College then bought it for classes and a preparatory school. It became two dwellings in 1862.

11 207 WILLIAM ST. is a hammer dressed stone double house built in 1846 for Thomas Morton who owned a distillery. The house was rented to Queen’s College between 1847 and 1854. Queen’s banned whiskey from the house! The foundation is not visible. Notice the central three-storey porch serving both sides of the house, with its turned wooden columns. The roof has unusual dormers and the eaves are supported by decorative brackets. (photo on previous page)

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Look across Barrie St.

12 244 BARRIE ST., the Villa St. Clare, faces down William St. It is one of Kingston’s early apartment buildings, built in 1917. The façade you see has recessed balconies, and an angled projecting bay at each corner. The high foundation gives additional living area. This building is now a condominium.

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Cross William St. and walk back down the north side towards Ontario St. Look across William St.

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200 AND 202 WILLIAM ST. was built in 1850. It has a stone front and brick sides unlike most houses of the time, where usually the sides were cheaper stone and the front was expensive brick. It is simple but attractive, in great contrast to 185, also designed by James Stewart.

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186, 170 AND 150 WILLIAM ST. are unusual in that

they were all stables and converted to private houses at some time during the 20th century. All three were built from rubble stone in contrast to the brick or dressed limestone used on most of the street. They have hip roofs. 186 William St. is two stories and close to the street; it was the stable for 169 Earl. 170 William St. is one-and-a- half stories and set back; it was the stable for 155 Earl. 150 William St. is one-and-a -half stories and was the stable for 46 Sydenham St., around the corner. The left and right 56 WILLIAM STREET WALKING TOUR

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single-storey sections are recent additions. The brick semicircles show where the original windows were. Look across Sydenham St. as you come to it.

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15 The Annandale Condominiums are ahead of you and to your right, fronting on Sydenham St. Started in 1927, with modernistic influences, they replaced the stone carriage house of the 1841 Carruthers Villa. The villa, on the corner of Earl and Sydenham Streets, survives as part of the condominium complex but has had an extra storey added. Cross Sydenham St.

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16 112 WILLIAM ST. is an 1857 house with unusual decoration. Light brick was set against the red brick of the house in Greek cross and lozenge patterns to separate windows and stories. The arched carriageway led through to the stables that most houses would have had at the back. Cross Bagot St.

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17 70 WILLIAM ST. AND 96 WELLINGTON ST. are in an unusual three-storey building from 1841. It is mostly built of limestone, with stone window sills, and quoins on the corner. The Wellington St. entrance is protected by a porch. The William St. entrance is recessed. Cross Wellington St.

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56, 58 AND 60 WILLIAM ST. are a brick terrace built in 1854 as rental properties. The doorways are cut through the foundation and have recessed paneled doors, semi-circular transom windows and paneled reveals.

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225 KING ST. E. can be seen diagonally ahead. Built in 1845-46 as the Bank of Montreal in classical revival style, it is as dignified as the Commercial Bank across the street. The entrance to the Bank of Montreal was on King St. The door of the manager’s apartment was accessed from William St. The windows are symmetrical and quite elaborate. Note that the two sides of the building away from the streets are not as elaborate as the street sides.

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Cross King St. and walk downhill towards Ontario St., turn left to arrive back at the Visitor Information Centre. WILLIAM STREET WALKING TOUR 57


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58 ARCHITECTS JOHN AND JOSEPH POWER WALKING TOUR

A tour that highlights some of the fine architectural contributions of two prominent Kingston architects to Old Sydenham Ward. Architects naturally designed houses for the well-to-do. Other than the courthouse, it is not surprising that all the remaining buildings on this tour are what might be called “mansions.” APPROXIMATELY 45 MINUTES Please be respectful of private property.

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Architects John and Joseph Power “John Power of Devonshire came to Kingston in 1846 and died here in 1882, aged 66. He was City architect and associate architect for the Psychiatric Hospital. He designed every kind of structure from a swing bridge over the Cataraqui River to hotels, churches and many fine dwellings.” (Volume V, Buildings of Architectural and Historic Significance, Kingston, Ontario, page 1) “Joseph Power, eldest son of John, entered partnership with his father in 1873. He was an Associate of the Royal Canadian Academy, a President of the Ontario Association of Architects and a Fellow of the Architectural Institute of Canada as well as a superintending architect for the Department of Public Works and the Department of Defence.” (Volume V, Buildings of Architectural and Historic Significance, Kingston, Ontario, page 1) Start your tour at the corner of King St. E. and Lower Union St.

1 157 KING ST. E. — Joseph Power, built in 1882. This large brick Victorian mansion, built for Dr. Edward Horsey (second son of the architect Edward Horsey), is an excellent example of the work of Joseph Power. The house was sold to the government in 1887, when the doctor moved to Montréal. It served for many years as a residence

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for army commanding officers. This is a slightly larger and more elaborate version of 49 King St. E., built three years earlier.

2 141 KING ST. E. Joseph Power, built in 1880. This elaborate house had a very stylish plan, scale and decoration. It was built for John Hinds and, after he went bankrupt, it was owned by Dr. Kenneth Neander Fenwick. Note the use of both brick and stone, and the slate mansard roof with dormers. 3

95 KING ST. E. (Hendry House) — Joseph Power, built in 1886. This is a high Victorian brick corner house, built in 1886 in Queen Anne style. The first owner was James A. Hendry, a wholesale grocer. It was described in the British Whig as “probably the handsomest residence in the city this year”. An excellent example of asymmetrical design, it has a variety of roof heights and construction materials. The terra cotta panels are noteworthy. It sits on an important corner facing City Park and Sir John A. Macdonald’s monument.

4 85 KING ST. E. — Power & Son, built in 1877. This Victorian mansion was built by Richard Tossell for Rybert Kent, who was, for 20 years, proprietor of the British American Hotel (at King and Clarence Streets), and a partner in the Canadian Express Company. The three-storey stone house has some of the finest ironwork and carpenter trim work in Kingston. The design details show the best work of Joseph Power and the siting of the building is excellent. 5 31 KING ST. E. (Parkview House) — John Power, built in 1853 This two-storey stone dwelling is important to the streetscapes of both Emily St. and King St. With its neighbours, it is an interesting study of the cottage orné style


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popular in the 1850s. The site is part of the Murney property subdivided in the 1840s. This house was built for Robert Gaskin, a ship owner and ship builder. It was sold in 1855 but Gaskin’s granddaughter, Isabella Gaskin Waldron, and her husband bought it in 1909. Gaskin was a British patriot. For instance, two of his vessels were named St. George and British Lion. The Gaskin family donated the cast-iron British lion that now stands in the park just to the south. The residences at 7-9 Emily St. are part of the original rear wing, coach house and servants’ quarters of the house.

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20-24 BARRIE ST. — Joseph Power, built in 1889. The main architectural feature of this red brick terrace is three large projecting angled bays, which rise two stories to balconies protected by truncated gable roofs. Stone and brick string courses and carved tiles, plus the rectangular transoms in all windows and doors, moderate the vertical thrust of the bays. This three-dwelling block was built for Robert Crawford, owner of fuel yards which had been established in 1875. He occupied 24 and rented out the two other dwellings.

7 72-74 BARRIE ST. — Power & Son, built in 1879 This large brick dwelling has a central entrance flanked by large projections, edged with quoins, which rise three stories to sharply peaked gables with decorative bargeboards. Windows on each storey are set under decorative cornices. The house was built for Richard Thomas Muir Walkem, a barrister, and his wife, Emily Henderson, who had bought the lot in 1875. The building was occupied for a few years around 1903 by the Kingston Ladies College. It was divided into apartments in 1938. The property was sold to Kingston General Hospital in 1974 and is now the site of Hospice Kingston. (photo on next page) 8 5-21 COURT ST. (Frontenac County Court House) Built in 1855, architect: Edward Horsey. Rebuilt under supervision of Power & Son. Early in his career, John Power worked under Edward Horsey. After a fire, the Powers used Horsey’s original plans for the court house’s reconstruction. The Powers’ major addition was an enhancement of its dome. Their work on the court house appears to have gained them a reputation for successful large buildings. He went on, in 1888, to rebuild St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church after it was destroyed ARCHITECTS JOHN AND JOSEPH POWER WALKING TOUR 61


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by a fire. He also expanded St. George’s Cathedral in 1891 including a large dome, and again after an 1899 fire. The Courthouse fountain was built in 1903 as a memorial to Sir George Kirkpatrick, MP for Frontenac, Speaker of the House of Commons and Lt. Governor of the Province of Ontario.

9 24 SYDENHAM ST. Power & Son, built in 1879. Built of red brick, this house has a tower, many gables and a mansard roof. At one time it was owned by the Bank of Montreal as a place for visiting executives to stay. Its name, “Hochelaga”, comes from an Iroquoian village located where the city of Montréal is now. It was later converted to apartments, and became an inn in 1985. Its design includes extensive decorative touches in wood and brick. There are heavy mouldings, many brackets under the eaves, some leaded glass windows, a prominent double chimney on the north side, Corinthian columns and delicate ironwork on the very top of the octagonal tower.

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10 65 WEST ST. — Power & Son, built in 1879. This brick corner house, part of a whole block of brick dwellings, was built after Westbourne Terrace (57-63) was completed. The round corner tower, bay window and central two-storey umbrage are notable aspects of architecture for the period. 11 57-63 WEST ST. (Westbourne Terrace) — Power & Son, built in 1874. This red brick, fourdwelling terrace was built for George M. Wilkinson and three of his eight children. The row of three similar two-storey dwellings with single-storey bay windows is dominated by the fourth end dormer. Westbourne Terrace constitutes the major section of this important streetscape facing City Park. 12

23 ONTARIO ST. (the Pump House Steam Museum) — Original building, circa 1850; John Power addition, 1890. Following the establishment of the City of Kingston Water Works in 1849, a simple low-roofed limestone industrial structure housed the first water pumps. The City purchased the company in 1887 and expanded the structure with a substantial Romanesque-style brick addition containing two new water pumps. The water works operated until 1952 and has housed the Pump House Steam Museum since 1973.

Follow Ontario St. back to downtown.  62 ARCHITECTS JOHN AND JOSEPH POWER WALKING TOUR

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63 ARCHITECTS NEWLAND AND COVERDALE WALKING TOUR

A tour that highlights some of the fine architectural contributions of two prominent Kingston architects to Old Sydenham Ward. The area contains many works by William Newlands and William Coverdale covering the period 1842-1917. Coverdale’s contributions are tied to the mid-19th century and Newlands’ are attributed to the late 19th century and in the case of Villa St. Clare (244 Barrie St.), the early 20th century. APPROXIMATELY 45 MINUTES Please be respectful of private property.

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Architects Newlands and Coverdale William Coverdale, carpenter and architect (1801-1865) was born in England. He arrived in Kingston by 1833 from the Richelieu area of Quebec. He designed Kingston Penitentiary, Rockwood Lunatic Asylum and the Portsmouth Town Hall. He took over supervision of the construction of City Hall when George Browne left Kingston. Apart from these major works, Coverdale designed many different buildings, including simple cottages, churches, industrial buildings and country mansions. He was the City Architect from 1846-1865 and designed the present rear wing of City Hall after a fire destroyed the previous one in 1865. William Newlands (1853-1926) was a native of Kingston. He began his career as an architect in 1882, designing churches, schools, houses and industrial buildings. His early works are described as often being in the Queen Anne Style, with later works exhibiting elements linked to a style known as Richardsonian Romanesque. Leave the Visitor Information Office, walk out to the street and look back at the building you just left.

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209 ONTARIO ST., the Kingston and Pembroke Railway station, was designed by Newlands in 1885. The railway brought natural resources from the north through Kingston enroute to their markets, thus encouraging Kingston’s shipping, smelting and manufacturing industries. The station’s symmetrical series of arches and the bellcast roof are important architectural features. (photo on next page)

Cross Ontario St. at the corner of Market St. (the nearest corner to you). Proceed up Market St., away from the water, for one block. Turn left on King St. and walk south crossing Clarence, Johnson, William, Earl and Gore Streets.

2 169 KING ST. E. was designed in 1885 by Newlands for banker Donald Fraser. Together with the other houses in this block, it shows

changes in design and ornamentation over a quarter of a century. This three-bay, two-storey house is built on a high stone foundation. The one-storey verandah was added later. It has paired columns on brick piers and a plain balustrade. The corners of the façade have quoins with raised panels and the channeled hood-moulds over all windows have decorative keystones and ends. (photo on next page)

3 165-167 KING ST. E. is a double brick house commissioned by Richard Cartwright (later Sir Richard). Coverdale designed it in 1858 as a rental property. Conway Cartwright, Sir Richard’s younger brother, lived here for a time. This house has distinctive paired windows with round heads in the second storey. The windows, together with the fanlights, are typical of Coverdale’s designs. (photo on next page) Cross Lower Union St.

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131-133 KING ST. E. is a large Coverdale-designed limestone double house built in 1842 and 1843. The extension to the southwest was a later addition. The first owner was Nobel Palmer, a chemist (druggist) and founder of the Kingston Spectator. Half of the building was first occupied by Governor-General Sir Charles Metcalfe. The Kingston Seminary for Young Ladies occupied part of the building in 1851. (photo on next page)

Continue walking along King St., crossing West, Simcoe, Maitland and Emily Streets. As you approach a large stone tower (the Murney Tower) look to the left of it on the shoreline and see.

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1 KING ST. W. (Newlands Pavilion) was designed by Newlands in 1896. Architectural drawings of this music pavilion are in the Queen’s University Archives. It has a cross-form shingled roof decorated with wave-like scrolls on the cresting. The pavilion is open for visibility and maximum exposure to the lake breezes while at

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the same time giving shelter from the sun. It was restored in 1979 with new cedar framing, shingles, a projection for a band, balusters, cresting and latticework by architect Lily Inglis with the support of the Sydenham Ward Ratepayers Association, the Ontario Heritage Foundation and the City. Walk away from the water, crossing King St. at the traffic lights and proceed up (north) on Barrie St. Keep to the left (west) side of the street.

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18 BARRIE ST. was extensively altered by Coverdale between 1862 and 1865. It commands attention on a prominent corner overlooking Macdonald Park. The original house facing King Street was built by architect Thomas Rogers in 1830. It is disguised under Coverdale’s later remodeling and the 1905 addition of the portico for the Bermingham family. The outline is irregular, but attention is primarily focused on the portico. Four tall Ionic columns are repeated on the one-storey side and end verandahs. There is also an Ionic porch on the north side. The house pulls together into the predominant mood of Classical Revival, even though a surprising variety of styles are used.

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Cross Okill St.

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68-70 BARRIE ST. is a brick double house built by Newlands in 1905 and 1906 for H.F. Mooers. An impressive three-stories (the top one under a mansard roof), the building is made more interesting by the two-storey bay windows and the aggressive position of the deep balconies with colossal Doric columns topped by colonettes on the attic balconies. This house has spectacular views of the park and, in turn, looks spectacular when seen from the park.

Cross Stuart St.

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82-84 BARRIE ST. is an 1889 double brick house designed by Newlands. A proposed plan is in the Queen’s University Archives. The first occupants were Michael Flanagan, Kingston’s city clerk, and merchant Robert Ford. Each unit of the house has a different appearance, although united under a hipped roof and resting on a stone foundation.

Cross Union St.

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9 172-174 BARRIE ST. is a mirror image of 1897 semi-detached houses and good examples of Newlands’ work. The elements that define the character of this building are the two-storey bay windows with gabled balconies, brickwork and stone sills. The upper portion of 174 verandah was later enclosed. The lower windows and doors are topped by transoms with heavy mouldings. The double house bears a strong resemblance to its neighbor, 178. 10 178 BARRIE ST., a two-storey brick house, is similar in appearance to its neighbour to the south, 172-174. Both buildings were built in 1897 by the same architect and builder, Newlands and C.J. Graham respectively. 178 was built for Thomas Mills. The two-storey bay window is on a stone foundation and capped with a gable sheltering a balcony. It matches 172-174, including the variant of a Palladian window in the balcony. But the twostorey porch is markedly different, appearing lighter in form with delicate ornamentation giving the house more of a Queen Anne style. Cross Clergy and Earl Streets.

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11 244 BARRIE ST. (Villa St. Clare) is one of the earliest “modern” apartment buildings in Kingston. It was built by Newlands for Evangeline Elder in 1917. A set of architectural drawings is in the Queen’s University Archives. This is an interesting example of an early apartment building style that marks the change from row houses to modern horizontal flats. The three-storey brick building features angled projecting bays at the front corners flanking recessed balconies on each level. Modern additions match the original style. This large building originally contained six apartments. It is now a condominium. (photo on next page) Proceed up Barrie St. to Johnson St. Turn right and walk east on Johnson. Keep to the right side of the street.

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228-230 JOHNSON ST. is a handsome double house with paired windows, stone balconies and decorative brackets. It was built by Coverdale in 1852 for John Mowat. A former soldier, Mowat stayed in Kingston when his regiment was recalled to Britain in 1814. He became a grocer and a director of the Commercial Bank, the Board of Trade and the Kingston Gas Company. He was an elder of St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church and one of the

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founders of Queen’s University. His son, Oliver Mowat, became Premier of Ontario. The Mowat family owned the western half of this house until 1903 and the eastern half until 1938.

13 222 JOHNSON ST. is a large stone house on a high foundation. It towers over 218 on the east but is similar in scale to the double house on the west. Coverdale built this house in 1860 as a family home for Dr. J. R. Dickson who was also the owner of 218. Amongst other things, he was a city alderman and Dean of Medicine at Queen’s University. This three-bay, two-and-a-half-storey stone house has an entrance with a semicircular arched transom. The corners of the façade have projecting beveled ashlar quoins. All the windows have six over six double hung sash and louvered shutters. Cross Sydenham St.

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178-180 JOHNSON ST. (Greystone Manor) was owned for many years by Thomas Askew. It was built by Coverdale in 1843. John A. Macdonald was a tenant from 1849 to 1852. Macdonald’s son, Hugh John, was born here. The shed dormer on the third floor is not original. This house shares many of the features of neighbouring stone and wood buildings along this stretch of Johnson St., including its flat façade, symmetry, side gable roof, and central entranceways. The series of double and terrace houses on this street make economical use not only of the land but also of the prevalent and on-the-spot building material – Kingston limestone.

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Cross Bagot and Wellington Streets.

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90 JOHNSON ST. was built by Coverdale in 1851 for James A. Henderson, a barrister (lawyer) and later a judge. It is a handsome house with stone chimney caps that resemble those found on other Coverdale buildings. A verandah, facing east towards King St., can be seen on Brosius’map of 1875. It was removed in 1886 when a double house (since demolished) was built next door. 90 was occupied by Anglican Bishop Kenneth Evans from 1952 until his death in 1966. The building then became the new Anglican Diocesan Centre.

Continue down Johnson St., crossing King to come to Ontario St. Turn left and walk to the Tourist Information Office two blocks north.  68 ARCHITECTS NEWLANDS AND COVERDALE WALKING TOUR

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