History in the future of St Catharines

Five St. Catharines houses will be featured for the 45th annual CFUW House Tour on Sunday, May 5.

The house tours are to celebrate the architecture, history and décor of the old houses. Visitors will learn the unique stories each house carries.

“Why do people come? Because people like to look at people’s houses,” said CFUW House Tour Chair, Susan Middleton.

Middleton adds, “They like to see renovated kitchens and bathrooms, they like to see arts on the wall.”

Historical houses are mostly located downtown, four will be centered near Montebello Park and one in Port Dalhousie.

One of the featured houses featured is in the older sections of St. Catharines, where the Brindle family resides. The family have been renovating their house that was built in the 1850s to make it the house of their dreams.

Thirty years out of 40, the Brindle family have been working on fixing and modernizing their home while keeping the feel of the old Victorian house they bought in the 70s.

What might look like a small old building to some people, the Brindle family saw the ‘magic’ behind the 12-foot walls. The hidden huge garden is what made them sure they wanted to get the house.

Stationed at 18 North Pl., the house sits on the edge of what used to be a lake. That’s shown by the ground drop in the backyard and the basement’s full-sized windows.

On the inside, the family’s creative and artistic side is shown with the different photographs and paintings hung on almost every wall in the house. Art made by one of their three kids or by close friends.

“Mary is a pediatric surgeon but she's also an artist so she did those when she went to Yale, she won the art prize,” says Gill Brindle, Mary’s mother and house resident, adding “It's been a very creative environment and we didn't want to get rid of everything that they've done.”

Even though original brick used in building the house and the original fireplace in the family room remain present, the family as well as the previous owners have made some changes to the house from changing the rooftop, location of rooms and sizes as well as the shape of some rooms in the house to suit their needs.

The family says the satisfaction of seeing the house coming together is worth to them more than how much it costs. However, the cost could easily be half a million dollars says Ian Brindle, father and houseowner.

Every participating house gets an original painting of the house made by Chris Liszak as a thank you for their participation.

Tickets cost $25 each and can be purchased either online or from various retail outlets listed on the event’s website.

Middleton says each year they raise around $25,000. However, it is different every year as last year they raised $18,000.

She says proceeds coming from the event go to high schools, Brock University, Niagara College and will be used to fund Canadian Federation of University Women’s registered charity for scholarships as well as to support local charities that aim to help women and youth in need.

Tours will run from noon to 5 p.m., refreshments will be served at St. Thomas’ Anglican Church, 99 Ontario St.