Campbell House (Toronto)

Campbell House is a historic house in downtown Toronto, Canada. It is the oldest remaining house from the original site of the Town of York and was built by Upper Canada Chief Justice Sir William Campbell and his wife Hannah in 1822. The home was designed for entertaining and comfort, and constructed at a time when the Campbells were socially and economically established and their children had grown to adulthood.

The house is one of the few remaining examples of Georgian architecture left in Toronto and is constructed in a style in vogue during the late Georgian era known as Palladian architecture.

The house was originally located on a plot of land 1.5 kilometers to the east of the intersection of what is now Adelaide St. and Frederick St. After Sir William Campbell's death in 1834, the house was willed to his wife, Lady Campbell for her use. After her death in 1844, the property and the contents of the house were auctioned off and the proceeds were distributed amongst their heirs. For most of the 19th century the house was a private residence and maintained. It continued to house various local notables until 1890. By then the neighbourhood had changed into a commercial and industrial zone. The building eventually came to be used by several businesses after the turn of the 20th century as office space and a factory, including a horseshoe nails company and an elevator company.

The 1972 Move

In 1972 the last owners of the property--Coutts-Hallmark Greeting Cards Company--wanted to demolish the house in order to extend their parking lot. Prior to demolition the house was offered to anyone who could remove it from the property. A professional association of Trial Lawyers known as the [http://www.advocates.ca Advocates Society] , launched a campaign to save the building. Eventually it was arranged that the building would be moved to its current location at the corner of University Avenue and Queen Street West south of the Canada Life Building. With assistance from the Toronto Transit Commission maintenance trucks, the 270 tonne home was moved 1617 metres northwest from Adelaide Street to the current location in 1972. The move was a major spectacle, and attracted a large crowd as several downtown streets needed to be shut down. Fully restored, it was reopened by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother on April 1 1972. Today, the home serves as both a museum and a club for the members of the Advocates Society. The preservation of the house was an important turning point in architectural preservation in Toronto. During the 1950s and 1960s 19th century homes were demolished at a rapid rate, and architect Eric Arthur's even predicted that by the year 2000 there may be no 19th century buildings left in the city. The move to save Campbell House was the first of many successful preservation efforts that have greatly limited the number of older structures demolished in subsequent years.Fact|date=May 2008

ee also

*List of oldest buildings and structures in Toronto

External links

* [http://www.campbellhousemuseum.ca Campbell House Museum Website]

References

*Cruikshank, Tom. "Old Toronto Houses." Toronto: Firefly Books, 2003.