John Brown’s house, later known as Lakeview, has been described as having significant heritage value as an early vernacular hybrid of styles characteristic of Ontario Italianate architecture (1830-1890) combined with earlier Georgian architectural features.

The heritage value of the house lies also in its adjacency to the Thorold Site (AgGt-1), where the historic Neutral Nation had established a significant settlement in the early seventeenth century.

John Brown (1809–1876) left his native Scotland for the United States at the age of 23 and moved to Thorold around 1840. A master stonemason, he built his reputation as a successful and entrepreneurial contractor of large public works projects that were characterized by a high degree of operational efficiency and progressive labour relations. His most notable projects were the six “Imperial” lighthouses around Georgian Bay and Lake Huron (including the Collingwood lighthouse) and his contributions to the construction of the Second and Third Welland Canals that were worth $2,000,000 - more than those of any other contractor. During excavation of the third canal, bones of American soldiers who had died during the War of 1812 were discovered and subsequently interred in a sarcophagus Brown built beneath Thorold’s Battle of Beaver Dams monument.

John Brown’s success allowed him to become an owner, in 1858, of more than 200 acres of prime real estate in the Niagara Region and Essex County. He built his house in two stages, in the 1860s and 1870s, from limestone quarried on site, in emulation of the Hamiltonian industrial elite. The result was a home that was meant to celebrate and broadcast its builder’s success from its prominent position overlooking the Niagara escarpment to Lake Ontario, with a unique view of the Welland Canal’s progress. It is Thorold’s earliest example of such a house. Sadly, John Brown, who died unexpectedly in 1876, did not live at Lakeview but it remained in his family’s possession until 1914.

Repeated efforts to support preservation of the John Brown House were made by ACO chair, Kae Elgie, to the City of Thorold, echoing the Municipal Heritage Committee’s unanimous support for designation. Letters of support also came from Executive Director of the Ontario Historical Society, Rob Leverty, and Chair of ACO St Catharines, Colin Johnston, who wrote: “This house tells a wonderful story – how a Scottish stonecutter could arrive in Thorold in the 1830s and, through the application of hard work and natural ability, become one of the most successful engineer-contractor-entrepreneurs ever seen in southwestern Ontario.”  But, to no avail.

November 20, 2020, the Thorold News announced that Council had agreed to allow demolition. A sad day and ironic for Thorold that was the 2017 recipient of the Prince of Wales Prize for Leadership in Heritage Conservation, for its: “exemplary commitment to the preservation of heritage, identity and sense of place within its boundaries” and recognized by the Prince himself: “I applaud the city of Thorold for its efforts, that may inspire others throughout Canada to recognize the power that heritage has to revitalize and transform communities.” 

March 2021, demolition in progress.