Doors Open Highlights 2010: Inside Antiquities

Doors Open also provided a chance to look inside the Antiquities Building. I had the shock of my life in there. This simple frame building from 1872 has an almost posh interior. Magnificent wainscoting, corner closets in upstairs bedrooms, a back staircase for the maids, wallpapered ceilings. But with horsehair insulation, no central heating and a crumbling foundation, much will have to be done to this building to bring it to modern standards. I'm just glad I had a chance to see it the way it is now, truly a monument to another time.

Doors Open Highlights 2010: Banting Bliss

My second stop on Doors Open was Banting House National Historic Site. Now the embarassing thing is, I've lived in London 26 years and never been there. (Probably for the same reason New Yorkers have never been to the Statue of Liberty or Parisians up the Eiffel Tower - but I digress.)

I found out Sunday morning what a wonderful little museum this is. It commemorates one of the most important medical breakthroughs of the 20th century, when Frederick Banting came up with the idea that led to the discovery of insulin. His upstairs bedroom is filled with emotional tributes left by visitors, many of whom wouldn't be alive without his research. Down the hall there's a room full of his artwork. Turns out he could also paint and in the style of the Group of Seven - maybe it should have been the Group of Eight! Truly a great site dedicated to one of our all-time greatest Canadians.

London, Strut Your "Stuff"

An Ian Gillespie article in the London Free Press this past week highlights one of this city's long-term heritage problems. The article discusses former fire chief Jim Fitzgerald's collection of firefighting memorabilia, some of which dates back to the 1840s. The artifacts include photos, posters, helmets, hoses, alarms, masks, coats, etc. Every item tells a tale about brave firefighters of London's past. 

Jim's collection was recently on display at City Hall lobby. Which is nice because normally no one would get to see it. Though he's tried for years to get the city to establish a firefighting museum, the city's just not interested. "I can't get to first base," he was quoted as saying. "It's sad." He adds: "It's a damn shame this stuff isn't in a permanent home." Well, they are of course. Jim's home. 

Of course, it's not just firefighting "stuff" that doesn't have a permanent home in London. Witness the recent closure of the Guy Lombardo Museum near the former Wonderland Gardens and the wrangling over ownership of the music legend's speedboat. Then there are the various London museums in crowded, inappropriate quarters - like the First Hussars Museum in an Ontario cottage behind the Old Courthouse. Or the ones in out-of-the way places - like the Secrets of Radar Museum somewhere behind Parkwood Hospital. (I know, veterans will find it there - but who else?) 

What this city needs is a real historical museum (by "real" I mean not like Museum London which is mainly empty space) with sections devoted to: the founding of the city at the Forks, the First Hussars, the Western Fair, Guy Lombardo and the Royal Canadians, the Medical Hall of Fame, Royal Canadian Regiment and the Secrets of Radar. There would be room for firefighting artifacts. Throw in a section on London's role as a refuge for fugitive slaves before the Civil War. Have a special display on our worst disaster, the Victoria riverboat capsizing. The role of the railway in developing the city. 

I could go on but you get the point. Most of our heritage should be under one roof, not scattered throughout the city. And we don't even need to build new. There's an unused library on Queens Avenue with a lobby that's (probably) large enough to hold Engine 86 (although the current owner of the building apparently prefers to let it fall down). There are dozens of underutilized spaces on Dundas Street. There's an empty Normal School in Wortley Village. If we build it - and make it worth visiting - they, the visitors, will come. Even pay. And Jim could get all that "stuff" out of his basement.

Update, 2016: The Normal School has now been taken over by the YMCA of Western Ontario, which is a wonderful reuse of this historic building in Wortley Village. 

From Vanneck to Dunboyne

Having expressed concern over the closing of Hyde Park United Church, I was pleased to see two rural United Churches celebrating birthdays this month. 

Vanneck United Church, at the corner of Vanneck and Ilderton roads, is celebrating its 150th anniversary. Once known as the English Settlement Church, the congregation was first established in 1825 and relocated twice before building the present sanctuary. The church is an excellent example of the simple but elegant architecture of 1860 and was one of the first country churches in this area to have a pipe organ.

Also celebrating an anniversary this month is Malahide United Church, at Imperial Road and Calton Line in Elgin County. Also not the original building of the congregation, its precursor dated back to 1857. The current Malahide building is younger than Vanneck, dating to just 1910, but it's also an attractive example of southwestern Ontario's Christian heritage. 

Coincidentally, both these churches are located at the sites of vanished hamlets. In the 1880s, Vanneck consisted of a post office, shoemaker, tile maker, doctor and general store with a population of about 50. Malahide Church was located at the hamlet of Dunboyne, which at the same time period consisted of a post office, schoolhouse, shoemaker and the Dunboyne Cheese and Butter Factory. After the cornerstone for the new church was laid in 1910, the large crowd gathered for the event strolled over to the cheese factory for a celebration supper. There's nothing at either Vanneck or Dunboyne today to suggest these intersections were once little settlements. So there's yet another reason to conserve historic churches - many of them are the last remaining reminders of extinct rural communities.

Update: As is the trend, Vanneck Church is now closed. The building will become a daycare, which is at least a good example of adaptive reuse. (Thanks to Sheila Johnston for this update.)

Magnificent Meadowlily

On August 28, residents of London's east end celebrate Meadowlily Bridge's 100th birthday. The metal truss bridge has stretched over the south branch of the Thames since 1910, when it provided a route for area farmers to deliver milk or visit London's market. Now for pedestrian use only, the bridge is located inside Meadowlily Woods Environmentally Significant Area. When I visited, I had the pleasant sensation of travelling back in time, as I strolled down a tree-lined country road in the former London Township.

Meadowlily was constructed by Isaac Crouse, the same man who built Blackfriars Bridge. Though not as architecturally significant as Blackfriars (London's oldest iron bridge dating back to 1875) Meadowlily is still of importance to Eastenders. We have a few other oldies as well, like the King Street Bridge, dating to 1897, or the Thames Street Railroad Overpass of 1889 (my personal favourite - it looks so ancient).

Info on Meadowlily and other bridges may be found on http://www.historicbridges.org/, a Michigan-based website that records historic bridges in surrounding states and Ontario. But prepare yourselves. The webmaster doesn't have high praise for Canada's bridge-recording track record: "In Canada, there does not appear to be such a requirement in place that mandates the evaluation of all bridges in the country...it seems that agencies like the Ministry of Culture do not even know about the bridges in the first place. If the local counties, townships, or municipalities want to consider their bridge historic and preserve them, or consider them non-historic and demolish them, that is their own decision." What Canada needs, it seems, is an historic bridge inventory, a list of all bridges over 50 years old, so that structures on the list may then be evaluated for significance.

Ouch. Canada, we should get on to that right away. I haven't been able to find much out there other than this list on Wikipedia, which I'm not sure is a comprehensive inventory. How come it's up to an American website to highlight our heritage for us anyway? Couldn't someone out there get busy and make a nice bridge website? I'd do it myself but I'm too busy writing these rants...

Note: A developer plans to build condos on Meadowlily Road near the Park Farm, a property featuring an 1840s brick cottage. Details (well, a few) may be found on the city website. Naturally there's been pushback from area residents who'd like to see a smaller development so close to an ESA. 

Another Note: Why was it necessary to put metal fencing down the centre of Meadowlily Bridge?

I know, it's for safety; the City of London doesn't want anyone falling off and suing them. But couldn't something more attractive than this band aid solution be found? No wonder local residents call it "the cage." 

What to do with an old church...

Another church is closing. Hyde Park United is shutting down after 134 years. Built as a Presbyterian Church in November 1876, the congregation has served its community well. But sadly, its dwindling congregation has decided it cannot afford the upkeep. A September 19th open house service will celebrate the church's long history and a final service will take place on September 26th. 

Many of you might say, so what? In our increasingly secular age, the United Church of Canada is closing a church a week. Other denominations aren't doing much better. But from the point of view of heritage preservation, the closure means another historic building is threatened. What will happen to this old sanctuary and its manse? Well, they're likely to be put up for sale and, as a Free Press reporter euphemistically put it, the land "redeveloped." To put it more candidly, a land developer will likely regard the property as a fine place to build "luxury" condos. 

Here are some better ideas. Check out this - if Stratford can do it why not our very own H.P.? Or this. I know, some people will be offended at the thought of church structures being used for culinary or domestic purposes. But as we say in the heritage world "it's better than tearing it down."

Update, March 23, 2011: Rumours are circulating. A potential buyer wants to remove the steeple, stating it would cost too much to repair. Stay tuned.

A long overdue update: The building was rescued by a new owner, dermatologist Dr. Wei Jing Loo, who moved her business, DermEffects, into the building in 2012. Although the tower was torn down, it has been replaced by a replica. The manse next door was demolished but its bricks used to renovate the rear of the church building where businesses have opened. Wooden pews now make up the seats in the waiting room. Altogether, a fine example of adaptive reuse. For more info, see here.

Red "Antiquities" Building Finds New Owner

2010

The "Red Antiquities Building" has been saved from demolition, partly because over 200 Londoners have been willing to contribute money to preserve it. An agreement has been reached between Heritage London Foundation and The Pathways Skill Development and Placement Centre to restore the building for Pathways' use. The stabilization of the foundation will begin shortly.

Pathways is an organization that provides skills training for the unemployed or underemployed in London. In other words, they're not a heritage organization. That's okay. That means we have a ground-breaking initiative here. Two organizations - one heritage and one not - have come together to save an interesting part of London's past. This is the kind of partnership we need to see more of in the future. Adaptive reuse here we come!

Update, March 23, 2011 - Renovations have now begun on this historic building. Two chimneys have been removed and soon the entire structure will be moved off its rotting foundation so a new one can be poured.

Update, June 14, 2012 - The building is finally ready for Pathways to move in. An open house was held this evening so community members could check out this new old building. Great work!

Update, January 6, 2021 - The "Antiquities Building," as some of us still call it, has recently been sold and rumour has it that a new business will soon be moving in. Congratulations to the new owner! It's a busy location with about 30,000 vehicles driving past a day. It's always great to learn that one of our historical treasurers has found a new purpose.

2021 - Wellington Street view

2021 - Hill Street view