Thunder Bay Unseen

Superior History

Court Street Ridge

As one travels north east from down town Port Arthur you quickly come to an area of beautiful architecture and obvious affluence. The homes of the Court Street Ridge take full advantage of their topography adding greatly to the character of the area. The large homes atop the ridge stand in sharp juxtaposition of the homes below which were predominantly small immigrant homes as are the homes along Algoma Street behind the ridgeline. The ridge itself is former shoreline of Lake Superior stretching back to the retreat of the glaciers at the end of the last Ice Age.

Court Street owes its name to the original surveryor, Hugh Wilson, who intended that a Courthouse be built in the vicinity of the street.Indeed, one was, closer to the Port Arthur Downtown core.

Below the Court Street Ridge lies St. James Public School. Built in 1907, St. James is one of the oldest still operating schools in the city. It is also a wealth of architectural wonders. Most obvious are the abundance of windows that have been closed over, shrunk in size, or completely eliminated. Also of note is the stone arches over the front entrances and the cap centred between both entrances, reminiscent of the Queen Anne Style. At the rear of the original building is an addition which, although attempts were made to match the materials, is of a much different style to the rest of the building.

St. James Street was named for St. James, Manitoba. St. James itself may have been named for any number of Christian saints, including the author of the Epistle of James in the New Testament of the Bible.

At one time the Court Street Ridge continued straight across here. There were two homes that sat atop the ridge here but they were destroyed and the ridge demolished in order to extend River Street through from Court Street to Algoma Street after the construction of the McVicar's Creek culverts below Regent and Peter Street, connecting the lower parts of River Street with the upper portion. The line marking the edge of the former continuation of the ridge is very aparent on the left hand side of this photo, where the slope abruptly changes and descends down to the street.

Almost all of the homes along the ridge are larger than regular homes, having been built in many cases around the turn of the century, for various business owners and politicians. They are a testament to the early settlers, entrepreneurs and visionaries of Port Arthur. Though not many of the homes are still single family dwellings, not all are subdivided into apartments. The home seen here is the former site of the Top of The Harbour Bed and Breakfast. The house affords beautiful views and a great amount of space to those who stay there. The rise of the automobile, since the construction of the home, is evident in the abandoned stairway at the front of the house leading up from Court Street (photo lower right). At all of the homes along the ridge, automobile access is provided from the lanes behind the homes.

Many of the homes along the Court Street Ridge had stairs leading up the hill from the street below. Most have fallen into disrepair.

This street is named for Sir John Douglas Sutherland Campbell, the Marquess of Lorne, Governor-General, and representative of Argyllshire in the British Parliment. Later he became the Duke of Argyll.

The unique squared corner windows of this home are what grabbed my attention originally. Note the stone lintels over the main floor windows at the front of the house. The part of the house to the rear on the right is a more recent addition without the stone lintel over the window, but care was still taken to match the designs to the rest of the house. Note, too, the lions flanking the front entrance stairs.

As mentioned above many of the homes along the ridge had, at one time, stairs leading down to street level and, as seen before, many have fallen into disrepair. In some cases they have been displaced and knocked askew by trees, which include some of the largest old-growth trees in the entire city (as seen below).

The home to the lower right is another grand example

This street is named for Colonel Garnet Joseph Wolseley, who named Prince Arthur's Landing. He led the Red River Expedition of 1870 to capture Louis Riel.

At the corner of Wolseley St. there is a home hidden behind a thick line of trees. The home is stately, sporting a few updates and modernizations. It's chief claim to fame lies in its past. In the late 1960s and 70s this building was home to the Children's Aid Society. It is before that which is most important in the history of Port Arthur. This was the home of C.D. Howe, the Minister of Munitions and Supplies during the Second World War. He measured greatly in Canadian Politics for many years - earning himself the nickname "Minister of Everything."

Along the lower part of Court Street, below the ridge, lay land that was built up by lesser merchants, institutions, and immigrants. It was home to local corner stores but these have now been converted into private residences. As evidenced to the right, the features that easily denote a retail building (the sign, symetrical windows) are in ready evidence. Public sauna

The Ukranian Catholic Church of the Holy Protection is a beautiful example of Eastern Rites inspired architecture. Built to serve the growing number of Ukranian families who desired religious services in their mother tongue, this church has been serving Port Arthur for many decades. It's congregational numbers have dropped significantly in recent years, however, and the Ukranian Catholic Deanery of Thunder Bay has elected to close the church and sell off the property. The Church lies along Court Street, below the ridge which may be an indication of the home of many of its congregation.

Some small flourishes are evident such as the brickwork cross above the windows.

The Parish has been without a priest for a number of years now.

Holy Protection Millenium Home was built by the parish of the Church of the Holy Protection with the assistance of the Lakehead Social Planning Council. The building was built on part of the church's parking lot. Each apartment features unique octagonal windows beside each of the balcony doors. Interestingly none of the apartments actually have balconies, just guard rails infront of each set of doors.

This street owes its name to Sir William Cornelius Van Horne, General Manager of the CPR in 1882, second CPR President 1888-89, and Chairman of the Board of the CPR 1899-1919. It was not unusual to name streets in honour of various "Men of Industry" as an enticement to their egos that they might persue development within the city. Many of the streets that bisect Court Street in this area are named after CPR executives.

High atop the hill at the corner of Van Horne and Court Street lies the house known as Lornehurst. One of the few private homes that are Designated Heritage Properties, Lornehurst was built in 1906 for its original owners, William and Rebecca White, in the Second Empire style. They only lived in the house for a year before they lost it in a lawsuit to a former business partner. The house itself has been long rumoured to be haunted and a murder was also rumoured to have taken place there although none was ever reported and no body was ever found. The building does feature a secret room on the third floor, however, and rumours persits as to it's unlucky nature. The current owner does dispute the claim wholeheartedly.

Lornehurst
1906

Built by Contractor William E. White for his family, Lornehurst is distinguished by its second hempire design elements; a round Queen Anne style turret and a square mansard-roofed tower incorporating peramented dormers and iron cresting. The construction is of locally made of sand-lime brick.

This striking home lies across the street from Lornehurst and is rife with interesting design elements. The square tower on the left with it's unique domed windows. The brickwork lines that run around the tower above each window is also unique. The centre circular window with it's unique keystone surrounds and bay window on the main floor. The deck is a new addition but does not serve to detract from the home's design elements.

This street is named for Ducan McIntyre, executive Vice-President of the CPR (1881-84) and the president of of the Central Canada Railroad.

Angus street is named for a former President of the Bank of Montreal (1910) and Vice President of the CPR (1883) - Richard Bladworth Angus.

As one travels further north along the Court Street Ridge there are a surprising number of newer homes, built in a more modern, ranch-style. The look out of place in comparison to their historic and architecturally impressive neighbours.

Some homes on the ridge have not changed significantly since they were first built. The simple porch steps on the front of this house seem out of place given the home that they lead up to. The house itself is a simple design, functional and not very ornamented.

Named for Jonathan M. Egan, the general superintendant of the CPR's Western Division in the 1880s.

Both of these homes were featured in an advertisment for PASCOL Heated Homes, circa 1940. PASCOL was the Port Arthur Shipbuilding Company, Limited, found on Shipyard Road near the mouth of the Current River.

Once a home stood on this lot but it was tragically lost to a fire in the late 1980s or early 1990s. There was a driveway entrance to the house (unique along the ridge) as evidenced in the lower right of the photograph. The lot has sat undeveloped for some time now but there are plans in place to built a new home on the lot.

Stephens Street is named for the first president of the CPR (1880-89) and President of the Bank of Montreal (1876-81) George Stephens who was knighted in 1891 as Baron Mount Stephen.

Grace Evangelical Church has occupied this building many years. Note that the three windows on the upper most roof have been sealed over. On the left hand side of the bulding was once the church's office.

This street is named for Judge Francis Fitzgerald who was the Judge of the entire Thunder Bay District from 1896 to 1901.

This home on Laurel Court might be the original home at this end of the Court Street Ridge. This home may have been that of a local furrier, Mr. Dawes. The property itself, before it was subdivided and sold off for development was used as a mink farm and later for tourist cabins.

Laurel Court is named for Laurel Conmee Whalen, the daughter of James Conmee and the wife of James Whalen.

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Court Street Ridge