THEN AND NOW: Bradford St. business boasted live lobster

This ongoing series from Barrie Historical Archive curator Deb Exel shows old photos from the collection and one from the present day, as well as the story behind them.

109 Bradford St.

Bradford Street as we know it today runs from Dunlop Street to the Allandale Train Station.

In 1871, it was known as Station Road, but was later renamed Bradford Street, for the town of Bradford.

It may be hard to imagine, but this major city artery with its commercial vibe, was once lined with houses as well. The Agricultural Park, West Ward School (1890), Barrie Collegiate Institute (1919), industry such as the Barrie Carriage Company (1904), Barrie Tanning Company (1900), and General Electric (1945), as well as small businesses mixed with the residences on Bradford Street.

Over time, many of these houses would be converted to commercial use, stores and businesses such as Jennett’s Funeral Home, Lucky’s Flowers and the Midway Diner.

For the house at 109 Bradford St., it was destined for a new purpose.

In 1876, the property where 109 Bradford stands was owned by the Hewson family, descendants of Irishman Francis Hewson, the Innisfil pioneer who came to Canada in 1817, settling in the Big Bay Point area (Hewson’s Point).

Referred to as the “squire of the lake,” Hewson sent for his family in 1820 to join him. In the winter of 1834, the Hewsons moved, literally, across the ice to Barrie, building the first frame house on Dunlop Street.

In 1836, Hewson was appointed magistrate for Vespra, was among the first township commissioners in 1837 and, in 1839, one of the trustees of the Simcoe Academy.

The property was sold to Samuel Caldwell in 1886. Caldwell was also a native of Ireland, born at Newton Stewart, County Tyrone, in 1844. In his teens, Samuel left Ireland, sailing to Australia – a voyage that took 115 days. He worked in Brisbane for some time before moving on to San Francisco, where he remained for several years.

When Caldwell arrived in Barrie in 1871, he worked for J.J. Brown before going into the grain business for himself, first on Collier Street, then relocating to the corner of Dunlop and Mulcaster streets in the Boys Block, until he retired about 1912.

At the time of Samuel Caldwell’s death, he was living in a large residence at 104 Bradford St., now demolished.

In 1896, William Arthur Anderton and his wife, Elizabeth, owned the property at 109 Bradford St. William’s grandfather, William Anderton, founded a family brewing business in the 1850s, and his sons James and Joseph Anderton, both brewers and malt masters, began building their own Fair View Brewery on nearby Victoria Street, in 1861.

The brewery burned about 1918 and the Anderton home, at 11 Victoria St., was demolished in 1986.

In the early 1960s, the home at 109 Bradford became a commercial property like so many of its neighbours. The building is perhaps most well-remembered as Frank Teklenburg’s popular Barrie Seafoods.