49: 1248-1250 Lakeshore Road East, Grenvilla Lodge 1

Inventory Report: 1248-1250 Lakeshore Road East, Grenvilla Lodge
49: 1248-1250 Lakeshore Road East, Grenvilla Lodge
1.
Description of Property
Municipal Address
Name (if applicable)
Legal Description
Location of Property
Ownership
Access
Current Use
Existing Designation
General Description
Priority Level
1248-1250 Lakeshore Road East
Grenvilla Lodge. (Incorrectly spelled in the Heritage Register as “Grenvella Lodge”.)
PT LT 4, CON 4 TRAF, SDS AS IN 816118 EXCEPT THE EASEMENT THEREIN SAVE & EXCEPT PTS 1
& 2 ON 20R18020. S/T 45945. S/T & T/W 124561; 1 FT RESERVE, PL 557; OAKVILLE
Located on the south side of Lakeshore Road East between the two arms of U-shaped Colonial
Crescent.
Private
Access not granted, notes and photographs from the street Sept. 2015 (AB)
Residential
Listed on the Register of Properties of Cultural Heritage Value of Interest (NOT Designated).
Description: “Grenvella [sp] Lodge - this property has potential cultural heritage value for its
c.1900 cottage along Lakeshore Road, once the residence of W.H. Brouse.”
Grenvilla Lodge is a fragment of a former lakefront estate established by W.H. Brouse in c.1910
on the Brantwood Survey. It comprises two separate legal parcels: 1248 Lakeshore Road East
and 1250 Lakeshore Road East. An L-shaped, semi-detached house (built c.1910) straddles the
property line between the two parcels. The property includes stone gateposts and a low wall at
the entrance and a number of mature trees along the road.
N/A – No Further Action Required
Figure 1: 1248-1250 Lakeshore Road East, from near the intersection of Lakeshore Road East and Colonial Crescent (AB, 2015)
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Formal
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Lake Ontario
s.
Corporation of the
Town of Oakville
1225 Trafalgar Rd
Oakville, ON
L6H 0H3
Stone
Gates
La
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ial
Residence
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Stone
Piers
Colon
Stone
Gates
Fence
Colon
Co
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Residence
Grenvella Lodge
Fence
Cultural Heritage Landscape
Inventory Map
LEGEND
Assessment Boundary
Building
CHL Study Area
Heritage District
Heritage Trail
Parkland
Co
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al
Park Trail
Road
Site Structures
Vegetation
Cr
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.
Watercourse
Drawing not to scale
Inventory Report: 1248-1250 Lakeshore Road East, Grenvilla Lodge
2.
Key Recommendations
Priority = N/A
No further action is recommended for the following reasons:
•
•
No known vulnerabilities; and
The property is not a strong cultural heritage landscape candidate.
Although no further action is recommended with respect to the property as a cultural heritage landscape, the house itself
may merit a full heritage evaluation to determine whether it retains sufficient criteria to meet the criteria in O. Reg. 9/06 for
cultural heritage value or interest.
3.
Documentation and Inventory of Built Form
List of Built Features:
●
●
●
●
●
4.
An L-shaped house built c.1910, with multiple gabled roof and stucco exterior. It has been divided into two, dwelling
units: one at 1248 Lakeshore Road East and fronting on that road; and one at 1250 Lake Shore Road East, accessed
from Colonial Crescent). Additions have been constructed at the rear (south) and side (west) of the house and the
roofline may have been altered;
A one-store, double garage with gabled hip roof and stucco exterior. The garage appeared in a 2009 photo taken by
the city, but aerial photos suggest that it may since have been removed;
A set of stone steps at the front porch;
Square stone piers and a low stone wall with remnants of hardware at the Lakeshore Road East entrances; and
A peastone gravel laneway and parking surfaces off Colonial Crescent and Lakeshore Road East.
Documentation and Inventory of Natural Form
List of Natural Features:
●
A mixed collection of planted and naturalized trees along Lakeshore Road East (Walnut, Black Locust, Blue Spruce,
Mulberry, Scots Pine);
● Spruce along Colonial Crescent;
● An old, lumpy/unkempt fruit tree on the front lawn; and
● Black Locust in the western side yard.
Historic photographs show a hedge along Lakeshore Road. This is no longer extant.
5.
Design (Typology)
‘X’ all that
apply
Categories of Cultural
Heritage Landscape
Designed Landscape
Organically Evolved
Landscape
X
Relict Landscape
(Evolved Landscape)
Continuing Landscape
(Evolved Landscape)
Description
“…clearly defined landscape designed and created
intentionally by man.”
“…results from an initial social, economic,
administrative, and/or religious imperative and has
developed in its present form in response to its
natural environment”
“…in which an evolutionary process came to an end at
some time in the past.”
“…retains an active social role in contemporary
society closely associated with the traditional way of
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Inventory Report: 1248-1250 Lakeshore Road East, Grenvilla Lodge
‘X’ all that
apply
Categories of Cultural
Heritage Landscape
Associative Cultural
Landscape
6.
Description
life, and which the evolutionary process is still in
progress.”
“…justifiable by virtue of the powerful
religious, artistic, or cultural associations of the
natural element rather than material cultural
evidence, which may be insignificant or even absent.”
Historical and Thematic Associations
The property at 1248-1250 Lakeshore Road East was built between 1910 and 1912 as the suburban home of W.H. Brouse.
Brouse was likely a wealthy Toronto businessman, possibly a broker. 1 Grenvilla Lodge is provided as an example of “a
lakeshore home” in Griffin’s 1912 Oakville: past and present. A photo of the house and stone gates appears in a 1913
promotional brochure for “Brantwood Survey” published by the Cumberland Land Company. Named in honour of Mohawk
Chief Joseph Brant, Brantwood was touted as:
…a modern suburban residential district second to none in Ontario. Stately maples, oaks and elms
abound, and groves of majestic pines give an air of dignity and grandeur and dignity to the
landscape which is charming beyond description, while here and there may be seen broad, natural
expanses of velvety turf, seeming to need but the addition of a rambling bungalow, or a stately villa,
to complete the harmony, and give a touch of life to the picturesque scene. 2
The caption in the Cumberland brochure indicates that the house was built for by W.H. Brouse. The text describes “Grenvilla
Lodge” as a “spacious estate”, one of at least ten already in place in Brantwood.
Many of these are bungalows, constructed of brick and stucco, and the diversity of design and
artistic talent displayed in their architecture, combined with the well-kept lawns and pleasing
effects in shrubbery, will prove an inspiration to the newcomer.
The short distance to the Toronto’s business district (36 minutes by train, with the train schedules provided in the brochure),
healthy air, convenient location, social life, opportunity to garden and the natural beauty of the surroundings, were all
promoted as advantages to building a house in Brantwood.
7.
Contextual Associations
The house is located in a residential subdivision. It does not currently have water frontage.
1
Archives of Ontario. Registrations of Births and Stillbirths – 1869-1913. MS 929; Reel 141.
Cumberland Land Company, Brantwood: Beautifully Located, Healthful Surroundings, Inviting Prospects, Pleasing Vistas with City
Conveniences (Oakville: Cumberland Land Company, 1913).
2
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Inventory Report: 1248-1250 Lakeshore Road East, Grenvilla Lodge
8.
Evaluation (O. Reg 9/06)
O.Reg.9/06 Criteria
1. The property has design value or
physical value because it,
i. is a rare, unique, representative or
early example of a style, type,
expression, material, or construction
method,
ii. displays a high degree of
craftsmanship or artistic merit, or
iii. demonstrates a high degree of
technical or scientific achievement.
2. The property has historical value or
associative value because it,
i. has direct associations with a
theme, event, belief, person, activity,
organization or institution that is
significant to a community,
ii. yields, or has the potential to yield,
information that contributes to an
understanding of a community or
culture, or
iii. demonstrates or reflects the work
or ideas of an architect, artist,
builder, designer or theorist who is
significant to a community.
3. The property has contextual value
because it,
Criteria
Potentially
Met (Y/N)
Potential Justification
N
The property is an example of the
large country houses built in the
early-20th century along Oakville’s
waterfront for those seeking to
escape the cities of Toronto and
Hamilton. It may also be an example
of an early-20th century style such as
Arts-and-Crafts. However, alterations
to the property including the
subdivision and sale of lots between
the house and the water, and the
subdivision of the house into two
units, suggest that it has lost integrity
and no longer functions as a
representative example.
N
Not shown.
N
Not shown.
Y
This property is associated with the
development of the “Brantwood”
area of Oakville. As one of the
earliest estates in the area, it was
used to promote sales of other
properties.
N
Not assessed.
N
Architect/builder unknown.
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Inventory Report: 1248-1250 Lakeshore Road East, Grenvilla Lodge
O.Reg.9/06 Criteria
Criteria
Potentially
Met (Y/N)
i. is important in defining,
maintaining or supporting the
character of an area,
ii. is physically, functionally, visually
or historically linked to its
surroundings, or
iii. is a landmark.
9.
Potential Justification
N
Not known.
N
Not known.
N
The property is not a landmark.
Photographic Documentation
Figure 3: Pre-1912 photograph of Grenvilla Lodge showing hedge and stone gates. (From Griffin, 1912.Provided by Town of Oakville.)
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Inventory Report: 1248-1250 Lakeshore Road East, Grenvilla Lodge
Figure 4: Photograph of Grenvilla Lodge facing Lakeshore Road East, date unknown. (Cumberland Land Company, “Brantwood”. Provided by Town of
Oakville.)
Figure 5: Stone wall and gate posts along Lakeshore Road East (AB, 2015)
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Inventory Report: 1248-1250 Lakeshore Road East, Grenvilla Lodge
Figure 6: Garage in March 2010 (Town of Oakville)
10.
Analysis & Recommendations
Potential Heritage Value:
The property at 1248-1250 Lakeshore Road is associated with the early 20th-century development of the “Brantwood” area of
Oakville. It is an example of the large country houses built in the early 20th century along or near to Oakville’s waterfront for
those seeking to escape the cities of Toronto and Hamilton. However, the integrity of the property and its ability to serve as a
representative example have been severely compromised by its subdivision into smaller building lots, and the ensuing
residential development along Colonial Crescent, which has meant the loss of water frontage and of any connection with the
lakefront. The hedge that ran along the roadside edge of the property has been removed and the stone entrance gates have
been altered by the addition of the low stone wall. The house has been subdivided into two units, its roofline has been
altered and additions have been built on the rear and side. The mixture of trees at the front of the property appear to have
been planted or naturalized more recently and do not appear to be connected with the construction of the house in c.1910.
Actions:
In its current condition, the property no longer functions as a cultural heritage landscape. However, a full heritage evaluation
might confirm whether the house itself retains any heritage value.
No further action is recommended for the following reasons:
•
•
No known vulnerabilities; and
The property is not a strong cultural heritage landscape candidate.
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Inventory Report: 1248-1250 Lakeshore Road East, Grenvilla Lodge
11.
Sources
Archives of Ontario. Registrations of Births and Stillbirths – 1869-1913. MS 929; Reel 141.
Cumberland Land Company, Brantwood: Beautifully Located, Healthful Surroundings, Inviting Prospects, Pleasing Vistas with
City Conveniences (Oakville: Cumberland Land Company, 1913).
Griffin, George A., Oakville: past and present, (Toronto: Griffin & Griffin, 1912).
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