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| Address: |
2977 16TH AVE |
| Original Address: |
9240 Woodbine Avenue |
| Property Legal Description: |
PLAN 4387 PT LOTS 1 & 2 RS65R11848 PART 2 |
| Historical Name: |
The Jonathan Calvert House |
| Heritage Conservation District: |
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| Ward: |
2 |
| Year Built: |
1875 |
| Architect Style: |
Gothic Revival, Ontario Classic |
| Heritage Status of Property: |
Part IV (Individual) |
| Designation Bylaw: |
93-98/307-83 |
| Heritage Easement Agreement: |
No |
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History Description |
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This Ontario Classic house and adjoining blacksmith shop were originally located at the northeast corner of Woodbine and Sixteenth Avenues. Jonathan Calvert, a Scottish-born blacksmith, purchased 73 acres of Markham Township Lot 16, Concession 4, north of Buttonville, in 1861. Prior to this, he operated a blacksmith shop on a portion of the Button property immediately to the south. His account book spanning the years 1851 to 1859 has been donated by the Calvert family to the Markham Museum. Jonathan Calvert and his younger brother William, also a blacksmith, resided in a frame farmhouse that had been constructed during the ownership of the property by Henry Brown. Jonathan Calvert built a blacksmith shop on the western portion of the property at the crossroads and continued in his trade while his brother William was a farmer. At the time of the 1871 census, the brothers continued to reside in the same household but by then William Calvert had married Mary Walker and was starting a family. By 1875, according to Markham Township assessment records, Jonathan Calvert had established his own residence next to the blacksmith shop. By 1881, Jonathan Calvert owned the entire south half of Lot 16. His brother William Calvert had purchased the west half of Lot 18, Concession 4 in 1877 but according to assessment records continued to reside on his brother’s property on Lot 16.
Jonathan Calvert was one of the nine children of John and Elizabeth (Wilson) Calvert. The Calvert family originated in Kirtlebridge, near Lockerbie, Dumfrieshire, Scotland and came to Markham in the mid-nineteenth century. Elizabeth Calvert and eight of her children emigrated to Canada after John Calvert’s death in Scotland in 1843. Their sons were blacksmiths by trade. Jonathan Calvert’s brothers George and John were blacksmiths in the hamlet of Mongolia in northeastern Markham. Jonathan Calvert’s older sister Christina remained single and shared the house next door to the shop.
Jonathan Calvert died in 1913. His nephew Jim Calvert lived in the house until his death in 1948, and his wife Janet (MacPherson) Calvert remained here until her death in 1955. From the 1960s into the 1980s the old blacksmith shop was the location of the Village Forge Antique Shop. When the future of the Calvert house and blacksmith shop was threatened by the planned widening of Sixteenth Avenue, business owner John Capon relocated the buildings to the opposite corner of the intersection of Woodbine Avenue and Sixteenth Avenue, where they were connected together and restored.
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| Contemporary Photograph |
Heritage Photograph |
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Key Map
Please note that the yellow polygon symbol is not indicative of the actual heritage area and is only meant to highlight the property the heritage building(s) is located at. For a complete description of the actual heritage property please refer to the Designation Bylaw found above. |
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