Postcard Memories is a series of historic views, stories, and photos of Bradford and the area, a trip down memory lane on a Saturday morning.
The building that in its later years was known as the Convent was an unmistakable sight in late 19th and 20th century Bradford, the most recognizable and arguably most historic building in town.
It was built in 1876 as the home of John MacLean Stevenson, Clerk of the Simcoe County Court for three decades. The late 1870s through to the 1890s coincided with Bradford’s growth as a commercial centre. Many of the homes built at this time reflected this prosperity, and Stevenson’s was no different. The ‘Italianate style’ two-storey brick home was built on a grand scale, with impressive high-ceilinged rooms and a tall, centrally located “campanile” (or bell tower). Its location on a rise of land overlooking Bradford and the broad Holland Marsh below gave it a decided dominance.
Stevenson sold the home a year later to Robert Bingham, a local hotelier who we met in an earlier column. Because of the stunning vistas visible from the upper windows, Bingham named it “Fairview”.
When Bingham died in 1892, “Fairview” passed to his daughter Emily and her husband James Boddy. James was a well-to-do merchant who would later (in 1896) become Warden of Simcoe County.
In 1903 the home was sold to noted writer Reverend Egerton R. Young, who re-christened it “Algonquin Lodge.” When Young died in 1909, Algonquin Lodge was purchased by miller Samuel Lukes.
After 70 decades as a private residence, in 1949 the manor was sold to a Catholic order of nuns known as the Ursuline Order. Under their direction, it became an all-girls school noted locally for academic excellence. Two generations of Bradford’s young ladies were educated here.
By 1969 the school had closed. Bradford resident John Moniz purchased the building for conversion into rental apartments. Sadly, the years would not kind to the majestic building. By 1994, when it was assumed by the Town of Bradford-West Gwillimbury, the building was weary with age.
Many were pained when the landmark was torn down.