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Windsor Ontario La Fontaine House; Pitt St E and Mercer b. 1875 so the mansard roof is probably original; shown in 1950s as a buff colored brick home. Note original polychrome roof.
The History:
The following Analysis form, Feb. 1978, from the Windsor Architectural Conservation Advisory Committee says the following:
Location: 395 Pitt St E (at Mercer)
Architect: unknown - attributed to an anonymous builder in New York City Builder: James K. Webster (a tailor financed in large part by Edward LaFountaine, bro. Of Leopold)
Present owner: Ellarene LaFontaine (Mrs. Joffre LaFontaine)
Completed: c. 1875
Architectural description and Evaluation: The house consists of 3 stories above ground, one below. It is of buff brick. The seventeen rooms (9 bedrooms) are contained within the 6-cornered structure. It is Victorian in design, with the main entrance facing the corner of the intersection of Pitt and Mercer Streets. The roof is mansard with some original metal shingles. The wooden cornice on the second storey is very elaborate with an exaggerated overhang. Dormer windows illuminate the third floor. The overall effect is one of elegance and concern about architectural detail.
Historical significance: The LaFontaine family figures prominently in Windsor's history. Edward, the person who financed the house construction (which was presumably built by James K. Webster), had seen a house in New York City, and it inspired the design of the Windsor mansion. Edward never saw the house. He died in 1881. Following Webster's bankruptcy the house became a rooming house run by Mrs. Lyons for Edward's widow who resided in Toronto. Leopold came to Windsor c. 1900 from Guelph where he and his brother operated a fur business. He opened The Lafontaine Fur Co. Ltd in Windsor in 1903. He bought out his two brothers and, later, his mother who lived in Windsor with him in the house. Leopold LaFontaine is considered to be one of Windsor's more colorful characters, having made a fortune, lost it, regained his equilibrium, and delved into a variety of interested activities, from taxidermy, to construction, to gambling of one sort or another. He died in 1947 at the age of 65. Joffre La Fontaine, named after a French military figure, continued in his father's fur business until recent years when ill health necessitated his retirement. He died on February 23, 1978, the last of the three generations of the family to be identified with the old mansion.
Present condition: The basic above-ground structure appears sound, although the wood trim (i.e. porches, moldings, sills, etc.) is in a very poor state of preservation. Some question has been raised about the condition of the basement and foundation. In spite of a fire in the commercial block next door to the house a few years ago, the west face is in reasonably good condition. Some damage to the roof is evident. It appears that no effort has been made to repair or restore any part of the exterior.
Historian Ken Watson provides the following:
"The brick octagonal schoolhouse (nicknamed the Pimple since it is set up on a hill) was built between about 1852-53 for the model village of Morton, established by George Morton a businessman in Brockville. There were falls in Morton and excellent sites for mills. Morton more or less, ran the village for about 25 years before he went bankrupt and established a new settlement in Manitoba. He was sometimes called the "cheese king" since he pioneered true dairy farming and cheddar cheese production in this area. Why the school was built the way it was is a total mystery. I do know that octagonal buildings were in fashion in the 1850s. It was used in the village until about 1900 when a larger brick school was built. After 1900, it became a private residence although it was last lived in around 1980. (Morton also built a store and several tenant houses in the village around 1852 all from brick from his newly opened brickyard.)
It was in use from that time to about 1900. In 1908 it was sold to a private owner and became a residence. It was abandoned when the last owner died in 1982 - although a new owner restored the roof in the late 1990s."
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The 1997 images above shows restoration work in progress.
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Robin Dickson provides the following information:
The octagonal house, made of brick, was built on Concession 14, Lot 1 of Townsend Township. It was built around 1850 and owned by Peter O'Carr. The octagonal house was built on, what became known as O'Carr’s Hill. The story goes that Mr. O'Carr was on his way to church one December morning when his horse became frightened and Mr. O'Carr was thrown from his cutter and killed.
It is noted in one account, that the structure is similar to the octagonal house built in Mt. Pleasant, Brant County. The house in Brant County had a much more ornate roof.
It appears on censuses that his wife lived there until 1880, when she passed away, but her daughter Susanna and her husband George Forrest Counter, were there from mid 1860’s until the land was sold in 1901.
George was a very successful Jeweller, having a business on Norfolk Street in Simcoe. It was noted in Mr. Counter’s obit that "He was longer in business here than any other man in Simcoe".
George and Susanna then moved into the Town of Simcoe and resided at the corners of Talbot and Chapel streets. Both George and Susanna passed away in 1915.
Unfortunately, we do not have any photographs of the O'Carr/Counter house in our collection, but on the 1856 Tremaine's map of Norfolk County, there is an illustration. Norfolk Ontario (Simcoe near Queensway.) the Counter home.
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Port Hope Hexagon House b. 1855 "Architectural Description: Port Hope's only example of a one-storey brick hexagonal house is constructed of brick laid in the stretcher bond pattern... Each flat portion of the six-sided structure contains either a door or window opening. The opposite can be seen at The Octagon where the windows are located on the four corners of the building. The corners of 45 Bruton Street are interesting. Each is treated with brickwork to give the appearance of a flat-faced buttress or pilaster... The windows also conform to the overall hexagonal shape... The house is low and hugs the ground. It is situated well back from the street in a small depression." (p. 168) Port Hope Branch of the Architectural Conservancy of Ontario (ACO) entitled "From Georgian to Vernacular - Port Hope: An Architectural & Historical Inventory" published in 2007.
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