Notice of intention to designate - 3444 Trafalgar Road
Wednesday, September 13, 2023
On September 11, 2023 Oakville Town Council resolved to pass a Notice of Intention to Designate the following property under Section 29 of the Ontario Heritage Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. O.18, as amended, as a property of cultural heritage value and interest:
Bentley Family Farmhouse
3444 Trafalgar Road
Pt Lot 13, Con 1 Trafalgar, North of Dundas Street, Pt 1, 20R20807; Town of Oakville
The subject property is located at 3444 Trafalgar Road on the west side of Trafalgar Road, south of Burnhamthorpe Road East. The property contains the Bentley Family Farmhouse, a c.1840 one-and-a-half storey stucco-clad stone structure built in the Gothic Revival style of architecture.
The Bentley Family Farmhouse building has design and physical value as a representative and early example of a 19th century Ontario Gothic Revival style residential structure. Constructed circa 1840, the house is composed of multiple sections, including a rear section that may have been constructed earlier than the front of the house. The house has a unique construction, built of lakestone mixed with smaller rocks and mortar, and then clad in stucco. The house contains design elements reflective of the Gothic Revival style, including its one-and-a-half storey height with steeply pitched roof and symmetrical facade. A projecting frontispiece with entryway is capped with a common and distinctive Gothic Revival feature: a steeply pitched centre gable with a pointed centre gable window. The building is modestly decorated but the front gable retains its decorative bargeboard and its tall, slender finial.
The Bentley Family Farmhouse property has historical value because of its direct associations with early settler families and with the agricultural development of Trafalgar Township. The property is directly associated with its long-term owners, the Bentley family who owned the property for 106 years. Through the rear wing of the house, that may have been constructed prior to the front portion, the property has potential to yield information about early European settlement and the construction of early settler homes.
The Bentley Family Farmhouse property has contextual value because it is physically, visually and historically linked to its surroundings. The house has cultural heritage value as a reminder of the agricultural and settler history of Trafalgar Township. The Bentley Family Farmhouse property’s location, set relatively close to the road, has meant that it has been identified as a familiar landmark along Trafalgar Road and Burnhamthorpe Road East.
Key attributes of the Bentley Family Farmhouse that exemplify its cultural heritage value, as they relate to the one-and-a-half storey front portion of the house, include the following:
Any objection to this designation must be filed no later than October 13, 2023. Objections should be directed to the Town Clerk, 1225 Trafalgar Road, Oakville, Ontario L6H 0H3.
Further information respecting this proposed designation is available from the Town of Oakville. Any inquiries may be directed to Carolyn Van Sligtenhorst, Supervisor of Heritage Conservation at 905-845-6601, ext.3875 (TTY 905-338-4200), or by email at carolyn.van@oakville.ca.
Bentley Family Farmhouse
3444 Trafalgar Road
Pt Lot 13, Con 1 Trafalgar, North of Dundas Street, Pt 1, 20R20807; Town of Oakville
Description of property
The subject property is located at 3444 Trafalgar Road on the west side of Trafalgar Road, south of Burnhamthorpe Road East. The property contains the Bentley Family Farmhouse, a c.1840 one-and-a-half storey stucco-clad stone structure built in the Gothic Revival style of architecture.
Statement of cultural heritage value or interest
Design value or physical value
The Bentley Family Farmhouse building has design and physical value as a representative and early example of a 19th century Ontario Gothic Revival style residential structure. Constructed circa 1840, the house is composed of multiple sections, including a rear section that may have been constructed earlier than the front of the house. The house has a unique construction, built of lakestone mixed with smaller rocks and mortar, and then clad in stucco. The house contains design elements reflective of the Gothic Revival style, including its one-and-a-half storey height with steeply pitched roof and symmetrical facade. A projecting frontispiece with entryway is capped with a common and distinctive Gothic Revival feature: a steeply pitched centre gable with a pointed centre gable window. The building is modestly decorated but the front gable retains its decorative bargeboard and its tall, slender finial.
Historical value or associative value
The Bentley Family Farmhouse property has historical value because of its direct associations with early settler families and with the agricultural development of Trafalgar Township. The property is directly associated with its long-term owners, the Bentley family who owned the property for 106 years. Through the rear wing of the house, that may have been constructed prior to the front portion, the property has potential to yield information about early European settlement and the construction of early settler homes.
Contextual value
The Bentley Family Farmhouse property has contextual value because it is physically, visually and historically linked to its surroundings. The house has cultural heritage value as a reminder of the agricultural and settler history of Trafalgar Township. The Bentley Family Farmhouse property’s location, set relatively close to the road, has meant that it has been identified as a familiar landmark along Trafalgar Road and Burnhamthorpe Road East.
Description of heritage attributes
Key attributes of the Bentley Family Farmhouse that exemplify its cultural heritage value, as they relate to the one-and-a-half storey front portion of the house, include the following:
- The massing and form of the one-and-a-half storey building with steep side gable roof and frontispiece with gable roof;
- Masonry walls made of lakestone, small stones and mortar and clad in stucco;
- Lakestone foundation above grade;
- Red brick chimney;
- The fenestration and shape of the window openings on the north, east and south elevations, excluding the small replacement window on the first storey of the north elevation;
- Wood cornice and soffits;
- Decorative vergeboard and finial on frontispiece;
- Remaining historic wood windows, wood shutters and front door; and
- The orientation of the building facing Trafalgar Road.
- Key attributes of the Bentley Family Farmhouse that exemplify cultural heritage value, as they relate to the original one-and-a-half storey rear portion of the house, include the following:
- The massing and form of the one-and-a-half storey structure with side gable roof.
Any objection to this designation must be filed no later than October 13, 2023. Objections should be directed to the Town Clerk, 1225 Trafalgar Road, Oakville, Ontario L6H 0H3.
Further information respecting this proposed designation is available from the Town of Oakville. Any inquiries may be directed to Carolyn Van Sligtenhorst, Supervisor of Heritage Conservation at 905-845-6601, ext.3875 (TTY 905-338-4200), or by email at carolyn.van@oakville.ca.