Residence.
Details of Site Location: The east side of Walmer Road at the edge of the escarpment, near Spadina House .
Boundary History: The property on top of the escarpment was substantial and consisted of acreage that was both flat and also ran down the sides of the escarpment, some 10 acres in all, with the house and additions occupying up to two acres. The Spadina estate was the boundary to the south, Walmer Road to the west, the grades of the escarpment to the north and east.
Current Use of Property: A subdivision of large houses.
Historical Description: John Eaton married Flora McCrea in 1901. When he succeeded his father, Timothy, as President of the T. Eaton Company in 1907, the couple decided to build a suitable home. The cachet of living on top of the escarpment still appealed, and they purchased the Arthurs estate and tore the existing house down. All around were the trees and plants of the escarpment, so the name chosen for the new house reflected those surroundings; Ardwold, a word meaning “high green hill,” was drawn out of the Eatons’ Irish ancestry. Designed by A.F. Wickson, the house was built in 1909/10 and finished in 1911. Of red brick, it had light-brown stone detailing, a high pitched roof with a belvedere, and a balustraded walk that led through a garden to a twelve-bay front facade. Like others on the escarpment, it was designed as a country house, and it was the largest of houses built by the Eatons up to that time. The gardens had terraces, a pool, and a fountain and were formal in character. Indoors there was a swimming pool and a private hospital. A Great Hall reached up two storeys and contained a fine organ. When John Eaton died in 1922, Flora travelled and never returned to the house. Some of the interior furnishings she had removed and taken to a property outside the city, and the remainder were sold at auction. In 1936, the house was demolished but the gate lodge retained to lead into a new housing subdivision. When Timothy Eaton died, his estate was distributed to various family members. Timothy’s mansion was left to Josephine Burnside, who turned it over to the I.O.D.E.
Relative Importance: Both Timothy’s and Sir John’s houses have vanished, along with other houses of the family and the empire built by the Eatons. For their influence on the city and the country, and for their many charitable works, the family needs to be remembered. At this location, where so many other great houses were built, and which bears the name of the Eaton house, close to the churches supported by the family, commemoration should be made of both the house and the family.
Planning Implications: It is recommended that a plaque be mounted at the gates built for Ardwold.
Reference Sources: City of Toronto Archives; Toronto Reference Library.
Acknowledgements: Community History Project.