Notice is Hereby Given that the Council of The Corporationof the Town of Newmarket intends to designate as a propertyof cultural heritage value and interest the following propertyin accordance with the Ontario Heritage Act, R.S.O. 1990, c.O.18:
Property Description: 57 Main Street South (Samuel SykesHouse) is located on the east side of Main Street South in theTown of Newmarket. The property consists of a two-storeyItalianate building which was constructed in 1866.
Legal Description: PT LT 78 E/S MAIN ST PL 222NEWMARKET AS IN R648990 SAVE & EXCEPT PTS 2, 3 & 6,65R29437, NEWMARKET ; S/T EASEMENT IN GROSS OVERPT 5, 65R29437 AS IN YR972936. S/T EASE OVER PT 4,65R29437 IN FAVOUR OF PT LT 78 E/S MAIN ST PL 222,PTS 2 & 3, 65R29437
Publication Date: Nov 1, 2024
Last Date for Objection: Dec 1, 2024Any notice of objection to this Notice of Intention to Designate,setting out the reason for objection and all relevant facts, mustbe served upon the Town Clerk within 30 days of the firstpublication of this notice.
Statement of Cultural Heritage Value or Interest:
Physical/ Design Value
57 Main Street South is a representative example of abuilding constructed in the Italianate architectural style. Thegrand two-storey red brick building has a buff brick beltedcourse, window surrounds, and quoins creating a dichromaticbrick design which is common in Italianate buildings. The hiproof with wide overhanging eaves, ornate cornice with paireddecorative wood brackets and an ornamental squarebelvedere with rounded row windows are typical features ofthe Italianate style. The rhythmically placed rectangularwindow openings with decorative buff brick surrounds andstone sills, combined with its recessed and formal double door entrance surrounded by moulded wood panels and toppedby a rectangular transom showcases additional elementsassociated with the Italianate style.
57 Main Street displays a high degree of artistic value. Thesubject property retains all the significant and highlydecorative features associated with Italianate architecturalstyle. The legibility and retention of these original stylizedelements, particularly the intact belvedere, decorative cornice,and moulded entrance surrounds, conveys the elegance,grandeur, and artistic design intent of the building.
Historical and Associative Value
57 Main Street South is directly associated with the historicVillage of Newmarket and Samuel Sykes. The lots lines,layout, and built form of the historic village of Newmarket waswell established in the mid-19th century and evident in a well-established commercial core found along Main Street and thelarge presence of residences located along several side streets. The development of the commercial core andsurrounding residential streetscapes in the mid-19th centuryplayed a significant role in the social and economicdevelopment and growth of the Village of Newmarket. Thebrick used in the construction of the building was likely fromthe Stickwood Brickyard. Local historians indicate that almostall of the brick buildings built in Newmarket between 1860and 1910 were likely constructed with bricks that originatedat the Stickwood Brickyard.
57 Main Street South is directly associated with SamuelSykes, who was a prominent and highly respectedcommunity member. English-born, Sykes trained as amechanical engineer in England and moved to Toronto in 1855where he worked as the mechanical superintendent at theToronto Locomotive Works. Sykes was not only responsible foroverseeing the construction of the first, locomotive engines inToronto but the first 21 locomotive engines built in Canada.Samuel Sykes moved to Newmarket and opened thecommunity's first foundry between1856 and 1858, which waslocated on Davis Drive just east of the Holland River. SamuelSykes was involved in other real estate ventures within theNewmarket, such as purchasing and refurbishing theNewmarket Brewery in the 1870s. As a well-known and aprominent businessman, Sykes was involved in many aspects ofcivic life such as serving on the Public-School Board and as aConservative Councilman. Samuel Sykes died in 1911 and wasburied with family members under a well-known marblemonument in the Newmarket Cemetery.
Contextual Value
57 Main Street South is important in supporting the 19thcentury character of the historic Village of Newmarket. Thesubject property is location along a section of Main Streetwhich was historically residential but in proximity to the historiccommercial core. Many of the early residences we owned bylocal merchants who owned and/or worked within thecommercial core. The buildings in the is area are comprised ofpredominantly one to two-and-a-half storey residences,primarily brick construction most using bricks from Stickwood'sbrickyard, with modest setbacks and include a range ofarchitectural styles from that time period. 57 Main Streetexhibits setback, massing, style, decorative details consistentwith the historic village character.
Additional information, including a full description of therationale for designation is available upon request fromUmar Mahmood, Planner, Committee of Adjustment andCultural Heritage, Planning Services at (905) 895-5193,extension 2458, or at umahmood@newmarket.ca duringregular business hours.