Residence and estate.

Details of Site Location: Bayview Avenue south of Lawrence.

Boundary History: The estate was originally a Farm Lot of 110 acres, the second Lot south of Lawrence Avenue, on the east side.

Current Use of Property: Part of the estate has been developed with housing.

Historical Description: Dr. Herbert Bruce, a Lieutenant-Governor of Ontario, had donated his Homewood house and estate to become Wellesley Hospital. He purchased the farm of the Jones family and laid plans for its conversion to an estate of gracious character. The Jones farmhouse was torn down and architect Eden Smith was hired to design a new house on the foundations. Smith’s design was Jacobean in style. The house was large, and the surrounding grounds landscaped to its advantage. Reached by means of a gatehouse of stone through which the visitor passed, the drive was lined with cedars. An enthusiastic equestrian, Bruce had a stable for more than a dozen horses, a piggery built of brick, clay tennis courts, and extensive formal and informal gardens. The house itself was of two storeys, had leaded-glass casement windows, an attic of considerable height under a steeply pitched roof within the main building, and wings of a single storey at each side. At the rear of the house was the master bedroom, which was like a house in itself, consisting of the bedroom with its own sitting room and a balcony that opened onto the gardens. Bruce moved into the house in 1920 with his wife and son, remaining there until 1930, when he sold the property to Alfred Rogers and purchased a new estate at Steeles Avenue. He was appointed Lieutenant-Governor in November 1932 and completed his term of office in November 1937. Rogers, the new owner of Annandale, under-took costly renovations, adding, among other features, a reflecting pool. When Rogers died in 1953, his widow remained in the house for two years until her death. The estate was sold to James Crothers who demolished the house and developed a subdivision of houses on the estate. Of the original Annandale estate, only the gatehouse remains, converted into a residence.

Relative Importance: The Jones/Bruce/Rogers ownership of the land and the history of the house, plus some information about Wilket Creek, which runs through a corner of the property, is well worth remembering.

Planning Implications: A plaque at either corner of Bayview Avenue and Valleyanna Drive is recommended.

Reference Sources: Who’s Who 1938-9; Plan T-2539, Ministry of Natural Resources, 1976; Miles’Atlas (1878).

Acknowledgements: Maps Project.