Whltby Fr.. Prou, Wednesday, March 8. 1995 Page 17 m 0 A HOME -DESIGN AND IMPROVEMENT FEATURE Whaq-t'.9S Up1 with celilngs Ceilings may be the high point of every room, but often the fSniehes they end up with are something of a decorating low point. If you tend te think of ceilings as fiat, level thingait'es because they usua]ly are. They're cheaper te, build that way. By Whitby LACAC One of Whitby's meet interesting designated buildings is a church that does not look like a church. The two-storey brick structure at the niorthwest corner of Centre and Mary streets was the first Methodist Church built within the town limita. Today it is divided into two residences. Built i 1855/56, the church was constructed to look like a meeting hall rather than the style of church that came later, with spires and towers. The Methodists of the 1850s did not believe in fancy decorated churches. In 1854, Rev. David B. Madden, Whitby's first resident Methodist. minister, arranged for the purchase of the lots, on which the building stands, for the trustees of the Methodist Church, from John Ham Perry, son of Whi tby's founder, Peter Perry. Because the congregation of about 80 members did not have much money, Perry donated half the purchase price. When the trustees could not corne up with the rest of the money once the church was built, he donated the balance owing on the lots. The cornerstone was laid on Sept. 6, 1854, and on March 23, 1856, Rev. Enoch Wood, president of the Methodist Church's Bay of Quinte Conférence, dedicated the new Whitby Methodist Church. The official opering continued on March 30, 1856, with addresses by Rev. SM). Rice, governor of the Methodist Victoria College at Cobourg, and Rev. Samnuel S. Nelles, principal of the college. It was generally felt at the tirne of the church's construction that it was too large for the congregation, and' a waste of money No -one rea]ized that it woul dbe obsolete in 20Oyears a.id a much larger church would be required by the Methodists of Celer Your World* ' w W I I But the number of ways you can dress up your ceiling are growing. Prom stained-glass suspended ceilings te an attractive molded minerai-fibre tile with the look of molded plaster blocks, the choices are many. Starscapes on bedroom and dining room ceilings disappear in Whitby. A Sundayschool (still standing) was built west *of the church in the early 1870s, under the direction of Rev. Joseph E. Sanderson, founder of the Ontario Ladies' College (now 'Trafagar Castle School). In 187W76, the Methodist Tabernacle (now St. Mark's United Church) was built te replace the old church* at Centre and Mary streets, with a seating capacity of 1,000. One proposai for the old church was te turn it into a music hall, which was badiy needed in Whitby, but one was built at Brock and Coîborne streets by George Hopkins in 1877. The same year, Rev. John S. Clarke, the minister who built the Tabernacle, purchased the old church and made it inte a double dwelling house, which it has remained te this day. Brick kitchens were added te the weat ide of the building (one WHITBY'S taken in 1921 the dayb*me, but glow i the dark. You can have constellations done in perfect detail, and they may be a good alternative te night lights for cHIldren. Lightweight comices and centrepieces imitate classxc plaster styles te add an elegance te lofty ceilings. In the itchen you ýcan order was removed in 1987) and the vast open meeting hall was converted into two stories of apartments with ceilings 13 feet high on the first floor and 12 feet high on the second floor. Cost of the r'enovations was $2,700. Rev. Clarke rented the dwelling units te, tenants until his death at Niagara-on-the-Lake in 1907. Over the next 88 years, there has been a succession of owners, some of whom owned the whole building and others only half of it. In 1985 the old Methodist Church was designated under the Ontario Heritage Act by the Town of Whitby. It remains teday as the only example of a brick Methodiet meeting hall in VWtby, and one of the oldest buildings on the original tewn site. LACAC (Local Architecturai Conservation Advisory Commit- tee) is a committee that aduises 'Whitby council on heritage matters. EARLIEST Methodist Church, from a photo 6. 24f cotZ Whitby Archives Photo 6"o~ '~ \sZ /sZ "Eggshell Interior Latex 1916 DUNDAS ST. m WHITBY $3 r JMM$1836M -M :e, 18 3.78L custom-made stained-glass suspended ceilings that1 can transform a kitchen or bar area with a bright, modern look. Wrought-iron pot racks and old-fashioned clothes hangers with pulleys can age a kitchen immediatély. in ceilings were once a cheap substitute for costly, carved plaster. Original tin ceilings are antiques now and greatly prized. They weren't tin at ail, but thin sheets of steel or copper, staxnped in squares with a repeated design. Overlapping edges were nailed te furring strips or right on te the ceiling. A new or refurbished tin ceiling should be seaied with clear poly- urethan or acrylic varnish. It should be dusted, and washed if it's in the kitchen, but needa little other maintenance. Ready-made rolîs of twigging can fit between vaulted cottage beams te enhance the rustic.feel, or could give a country look te as city porch. If you have a stucco ceiling you'd like te smooth out, there are producta designed te take off the material -- but only if it hasn't been painted. Ingredients in the stucco are reactivated and it can be scraped off. You can usually tell if a finish is unpainted because it will flake when teuched. A painted finish stays in place. If your stucco ceiling is painted and you really want te be rid of it, you may have te rip it out and re-dywall. Stucco remnoval je a messy job, best done in a room that'. been empied of furniture, or at least weleIcovered with plastic. You can rely on paint te change the look of your. rooms. A white ceiling does reflect light better, and a rom 'will appear bigger if there's similar colour,ý texture and pattern throughout. If you think your ceiling is too high,' a deeper tene will appear te reduce the height. You can set your own eye level by painting the ceiling right down te picture-rail height.; You can create the opposite effect by enhancing the soar of a vaulted -ceiling wivith a long sweep of striped curtain fabric, or hang a huge painting or wall sculpture on a featur.e wall. You'1l find ideas for dressingup, or playing down your ceiling at building supply, lighting and kitchen stores. Do-it-yourself books and magazines at libraries and in stores offer detailed instructions for installizig everything from wood panelling te variable-height ceilinga. This article is prouided by local realtor8 and the Ontario Real Estate Associat ion for t/w beneIt of consumers in t/w real estate market. 1 1 of PICTURE PERFECT Describes this picture bulit home on Rice Drive!! Ail brick - 4 bedroom, gorgeous kitchen with pantry & lumadome ceiling. Central AirNac., f rench doors, lovely landscapiîng only $204,900. Gail Daniel, Sales Representative, 436-1800 Linda g(ubcta CENTRAL WHITBY $167,90b.!! Spaclous 3+1 Br. Bungalow. Features large living room, separate dining room, eaf-in kitchen w/oak cabinets. Large L-shaped rec. room. Backs ont o green space. Immediafe possession!!! Linda Kubota, Assoc. Broker, 436-1800 or 668-6285 ~Bair Buchanan -ýý ý1ý BIG FAMULY VALUE $224,900. Pningfe Creek area. Over 2,700 sq. fi Picfure Home«, huge sunny eat-in kitcher,. Main floor office or den. Loads of space for large famify or in-laws. Lovely lot 50'x150'. Blair Buchanan, Broker/Owner, 436-1800 WE W~ IQg j O BEU'> E *j D Svllgthepas.tfor the fuiture ~- Former church was nothing fancy 1 Ultimate VaLuej b- 1