View of Bronte Creek from "Woodlands", 1242 Bronte Road, ca1935
Description
- Media Type
- Image
- Text
- Item Type
- Photographs
- Description
- One of several photographs in the digital collection of the Trafalgar Township Historical Society taken by George S. Atkins, of the Bronte Creek valley below his house property at 1242 Bronte Road in about 1935.
From the Autumn 2002 Newsletter of the Bronte Historical Society with additional information from the December 2002 Newsletter with the response of George Atkins: A house was built in 1846 on the property for the Sawyer and remained for his use and that of subsequent employees (of the sawmill on the property).
James White built the grander house in 1864 for his use. He owned at least 350 acres on both sides of Bronte Road from the Lower Middle Road (now the Queen Elizabeth Way) to Upper Middle Road, which area was called Merton. The property was called "Woodlands". James was a major developer of the timber resources in the Twelve Mile Creek valley. He established a farm with stables, breeding and foaling barns, and a racetrack. In June 1860, James' horse, Don Juan, a 5 year old bay, won the 50 guinea winners purse at the first running of the Queen's Plate. A plaque on the east side of Bronte Road records the event.
John, brother of James, served as a magistrate for Halton County. John moved to Milton, became the Liberal Member of Parliament for Halton and was largely responsible for Milton becoming the County seat.
The Atkins family came from the United States in 1921. They farmed the property and managed the woodlots. George became well known in the world of radio with the CBC farm broadcasts and later was recognized for his work with The Worldwide Developing Countries Farm Radio Network. A link to the Wikipedia page for George Atkins is included for your further information. (One note: a mention in the Nelson Women's Tweedsmuir records is of George singing a solo as a child.) As of 2002, the Atkins sold the house and moved to Ontario's Bruce Penninsula area.
1242 Bronte Road is on Lot 31, Con 2 SDS Trafalgar. The 1877 Illustrated Historical Atlas : The County of Halton shows the considerably large original property as owned by James White as to the present day part of Lot 31 where the house sits.
The house is a Designated Heritage Property of the Town of Oakville.
If you click on the "Full" view of the photo, you will see figures in the upper right, on a flat area of land. This area was popular for picnics and games. - Notes
- This photograph and information about James White and George Stuart Atkins have been shared with the Trafalgar Township Historical Society by the Bronte Historical Society. The Bronte Historical Society has a wealth of information on the Bronte area of Halton County, Ontario. A link to their website is provided for your further information.
- Inscriptions
- Circa 1935 Woodlands Ravine
- Date Of Event
- 1935
- Subject(s)
- Personal Name(s)
- George Stuart Atkins James White John White
- Local identifier
- TTGSA000610
- Collection
- Trafalgar Township Historical Society
- Language of Item
- English
- Geographic Coverage
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Ontario, Canada
Latitude: 43.4149462186505 Longitude: -79.7483751693726
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- Copyright Statement
- Copyright status unknown. Responsibility for determining the copyright status and any use rests exclusively with the user.
- Recommended Citation
- View of Bronte Creek from "Woodlands", 1242 Bronte Road, ca1935
- Contact
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Trafalgar Township Historical Society Sponsor: Jeff Knoll, Local & Regional Councillor for Oakville Ward 5 – Town of Oakville/Regional Municipality of Halton
