The William Grant House is a two-storey Georgian-style dwelling located on the west side of Burr Oak to the north of 16" Avenue. The property, located in a residential subdivision, is situated within the contemporary community known as Greensborough.

Features

• two storey, cubic form;
• ashlar stucco exterior wall finish with quoining and lintels;
• remnants of the shed roofed, wrap-around verandah supported on turned wood posts ornamented with fretwork brackets; wood front door with transom light;
• one over one wood sash windows with wood surrounds and projecting wood sills;
• hipped roof with wide overhang and wood soffits, fascia and associated mouldings;
• single-storey kitchen wing on the west side of the building.

History

Lots 16 Concession 9 was originally a Crown Reserve lot, leased to John Scheffer in 1813, then deeded to King’s College (the forerunner of the University of Toronto) in 1835.

George Miller (1796-1880), a native of Dumfries, Scotland, purchased 150 acres of this 200 acre Township lot in 1839. Local history records that he arrived in Markham in 1832. “Rigfoot Farm” was expanded by another 150 acres in 1840 with the purchase of the larger portion of Lot 17, Concession 9, the adjoining property to the north. Miller, a noted cattle dealer and stock breeder and prominent member of the Home District Agricultural Society, became the owner of several hundred acres in this concession block and the surrounding area. His two storey mud brick home, built in 1839, still stands on the east side of Lot 16, fronting on the 10" Line. In addition to his agricultural pursuits, George Miller owned a sawmill on the Rouge River, and according to Nason’s Directory of 1871, served as a Justice of the Peace.

George Miller and his wife, Catherine Somerville, had several children. His eldest daughter, Mary, married Simon Beatty. Their daughter, also named Mary, was raised by her grandparents after her mother’s untimely death in 1862. Her father, Simon Beatty, moved to Pickering Township after his wife’s death, then returned to Scotland, where he died in 1888. In 1879, George Miller gave 80 acres of the west half of Rigfoot Farm to his unmarried granddaughter, probably to help provide for her future. The parcel consisted of equal portions within Lots 16 and 17, Concession 9.

Mary Miller Beatty (1860-1892) married William Grant (1854-1929) in 1884. They built their farmhouse on the land gifted from Mary's grandfather. William and Mary had three children, Catherine, Bella and William. The 1891 census records that they resided in a two storey frame house containing 8 rooms. Unfortunately, Mary died in 1892, and William remarried. His second wife was named Isabel. William Grant sold the property to Wellington Goodwin in 1928. In 1946, the executors of Wellington Goodwin sold the farm to Allan Muirhead, and in 1950, Clarence Muirhead was the next owner.

Architecture

The Grant House is a stuccoed, two storey frame building with a cubic plan. The building is oriented to face south, with a 3-bay front. Openings on the other sides of the building are positioned asymmetrically. There is a one storey kitchen wing on the kitchen wing is offset to the front, allowing a gable-end entry off the front porch.

The stucco finish has a smooth texture, and is marked off in blocks in an imitation of keystones are found over the door and window openings, and there are remnants of large-scale quoins visible in areas that have not been repaired. The decorative accents colour.

The wood front door has horizontal “ladder” panels and a flat-headed transom light. It is centrally placed on the facade. The sash style wood windows are flat-headed, with a one over one glazing pattern. The wood window surrounds have a square-edged backband and have projecting wood lugsills.

The pyramidal roof has a wide overhang with closed eaves and narrow tongue and groove wood soffits. A single-stack red brick chimney is located on the north slope.

The shed-roofed verandah is supported on turned wood posts, with small-scale fretwork brackets. There is clear evidence that the verandah once wrapped around the complete south and west sides of the house.

Style

At first glance, the Grant House looks like an American Foursquare style dwelling of the early 20th century, but when its architectural details are examined, its late 19th century origin becomes apparent. The turned verandah posts, fretwork brackets, door and window treatment, and ashlar stucco wall finish are consistent with the circa 1884 date of construction suggested by the historical research.

Stylistically the Grant House represents a simple, vernacular interpretation of the Italianate architectural style, a mode of building that enjoyed considerable popularity in Markham Village and vicinity during the latter half of the 19th century. Italianate, along with Gothic Revival, were prominent “Romantic” architectural styles in Ontario from the 1860s to the 1890s. They were promoted by the means of pattern books, builder’s manuals and journals such as The Canada Farmer.

While the Grant House has the cubic form, hipped roof, wide overhanging eaves, and tall, narrow windows characteristic of the Italianate style, its wrap-around verandah and lack of decorative soffit brackets or arched window heads contribute to a decidedly vernacular character. In contrast, the ashlar stucco treatment alludes to a more sophisticated interpretation of the style. An element that is missing from thebuilding as it currently stands are the original chimneys, which would have added to the grandeur of the Grant House in the rural landscape.

Context

The Grant House is located on its original site, facing 16th Avenue. It is surrounded and well-screened by coniferous trees, however when it was first built, with its light- coloured stucco and two storey form, it must have enjoyed a prominent place in the rural landscape. Although this house was once part of a working farm, no barns survive. There are two old sheds to the north of the house.

From an historical standpoint, the Grant House, with its ashlar stucco and allusions to a high-style Italianate house, represents the aspirations of William and Mary Grant as they began their married life on a part George Miller”s impressive “Rigfoot Farm” estate.