In the two months since The Niagara Foundation acquired the entirety of a local landmark, they have secured one building and undertaken a major clean-up of two others, “all in the midst of a severe winter storm,” said Richard Merritt during the finale of a series of lectures hosted by the Niagara-on-the-Lake Museum.
To a zoom audience of more than 80 participants on Feb. 26, Merritt gave an in-depth history of the plot of land known as The Wilderness and outlined the work the foundation has completed since December, as well as future steps.
“Its Indigenous, military, administrative, early horticultural and nature advocacy elements all contribute to its claim as one of the most unique properties still in private ownership in Ontario,” said Merritt, a director for The Niagara Foundation, a registered charity invested in championing and safeguarding the architectural, cultural and environmental integrity of Niagara-on-the-Lake.
And it is largely the actions of women who were instrumental in recognizing the historical and horticultural significance of the five-acre parcel of land which borders King Street on one side, and Regent Street on the other.
One half of the property came to the foundation via Ruth Parker, one of three sisters who last owned the it, when she bequeathed the land to The Niagara Foundation.
In December, the foundation took ownership of the other half, once owned by Parker’s sister, Fran McKay, then subsequently by McKay’s daughter, Kea Read. When Kea died in 2016, her husband Ken Read inherited the property. Read sold the property to the foundation for an unspecified amount.
However, “it is perhaps the story of the indomitable Mrs. Eliza Taylor that deserves even more attention,” said Merritt. Living with her four young children in a house which had just lost its roof to an American cannonball, her husband, the Fort Major at Fort Niagara, evacuated with the withdrawing British forces towards Burlington, leaving Eliza and her children to fend for themselves.
Eliza tried to move into the abandoned house, but the occupying American forces forbade her to do so. Desperate, she took refuge in the tiny, unheated, wet root cellar on the edge of the One Mile Creek and somehow survived there with her children until the town was liberated in mid-December.
“Her story of heroic survival should certainly be a focal point of The Wilderness site,” said Merritt, who noted that, “tantalizingly,” there are still visible remnants of the cellar. This will be a focal point of a future archaeological study, he added.
The story of The Wilderness as a developed piece of land starts in 1799 when Chiefs of the Six Nations, under Joseph Brandt’s direction, presented four lots to William Johnson’s daughter, Ann Johnson Claus, for “many kindnesses shown to the Six Nations by the Johnson-Claus family,” explained Merritt.
Her father, William Johnson, was Northern Superintendent of Indian Affairs and his primary responsibility was to maintain the ongoing friendship and mutual understanding between the British Government, British crown and Indigenous allies.
The four lots changed hands often over time but were never severed.
Peter Stokes, a renowned restoration architect now deceased, carefully studied the present house in 1992. He concluded that there was probably no “grand plan for the abode” which began with a construction of one room in 1816. He described the site “as nestled in its wilderness like an intended bird, almost camouflaged by greenery and hidden from the road.”
A few more buildings were added to the site and for awhile it became a favourite picnic locale known as Geale’s Grove.
Johnson was a prolific gardener who kept “remarkable detailed garden notes,” said Merritt, and “at least several large trees of various species of first growth Carolinian forest has survived well into the 20th century.”
Towards the end of the century another owner, William Austin, introduced various horticultural specimens, one of which in particular has survived. In 1911 on the occasion of the coronation of George the 5th, the Government of Japan presented Canada with a number of sacred ginkgo trees. Through some government connection, Austin obtained one such sapling, which he later planted on his newly acquired wilderness. “It is still standing witness today as a healthy, magnificent specimen, the largest in Canada,” said Merritt.
Merritt talked about how readers of Ontario's newspapers were confronted with the headline that read “Ontario's oldest resident has died” when In 1982, a red oak on the property certified as the largest of its species in Ontario, “if not the country, was no more.”
Causing further damage, a severe ice storm in the early 1990s had taken off the tops of some of the tallest trees on the property.
A late fall initial assessment of the flora and fauna has been conducted and further assessments will occur this spring. “However, one does not need to be an expert to recognize that there are dozens of dead trees, some leaning dangerously, many others requiring extensive trimming of huge dead branches.”
Also, many invasive species have been located on the property: Bishop’s weed, false bamboo, euonymus, poison ivy, “and so forth.”
Merritt said that a topographical study will be finalized shortly and tenders have been requested for a professional archaeologist to undertake an initial assessment. An experienced heritage firm has reviewed and conducted a preliminary on-site inspection of the property and made helpful recommendations to move forward.
Meanwhile, a landscape architect student has formulated a useful list of various options by which The Niagara Foundation can hopefully, eventually, provide ready access to the property by the general public.
Serious consideration will also be given to apply for an Ontario Heritage Trust easement as well as “appropriate provincial and federal historical plaques.”
The foundation will continue to approach government granting agencies at all levels, and private foundations and individuals for funding.
“For the most part,” said Merritt, “financial assistance from the public at large will dictate the extent to which the property and its buildings can be rehabilitated, preserved and available for interpretation and or adaptive reuse.”
“It is the sincere hope of The Niagara Foundation that each of you will ultimately be able to experience and truly appreciate the unique saga of this extraordinary property in Old Town Niagara.”