One Ontario Street: From General Store in the 1830s to a Modern Bank  

The new building was a radical change for the people of Stratford who had also seen changes from wood to stone and brick during their history but somehow this change was much more difficult for some though admired by others.

The change was a long way from what John Monteith had started with...a small general store built of wood.

John Monteith started the store in 1838 just six years after the beginnings of Stratford in 1832. He was the father of a son, also named John Monteith, who took over the store. Another son, Andrew Monteith worked in the store as well but not for long. Andrew would make his mark in Stratford as City Treasurer, and also through his service to the new country of Canada as an MP. (see Monteith Avenue).

The Monteith general store at the site of One Ontario Street in 1838 was not the first general store in the new settlement but it was one of the first. It was situated above the south bank of the river at the top of a grade that led directly down to the river where the sawmill and grist mill were located.

As mentioned, John’s son, also named John, managed the store and his brother, Andrew Monteith, of political fame helped out. Andrew found the store too confining and began to devote more time to his farm where he later built a large handsome stone home on the St. Mary’s Road later known as Erie Street at the edge of Stratford in Downie Township. He also built one of the first brick business blocks on Ontario Street where the Stratford Herald was published for many years.

Here is a story recounted by Adelaide Leitch in Floodtides of Fortune that concerns the Monteith general store, its location on the hill above the river, which is important to the story, and a young boy, Peter Woods, who would become a judge.

According to Leitch, young Woods was a spirited lad, son of one of the first trustees of the school, and often a sore trial to the schoolmaster, Alexander McGregor (see McGregor Street). He was also a trial to Andrew Monteith, the county treasurer, for the steps of the Monteith store at the site of the present Scotiabank at One Ontario Street, were an irresistible launching pad for a boy's sleigh.

This tobogganing run from the front steps of the general store down to the river which was much to the annoyance of the Monteith family happened long before there was a Court House at the end of Ontario Street built in 1887 (see Huron Street). The First Court House (see William Street) was north of the river between Elizabeth and William Street just west of Hamilton Street but even it would not be built until 1853. Instead, in the days of the Monteith General Store, there was a residence there, owned by the first Mayor of Stratford, John C. W. Daly which would be demolished to make way for the new Court House. There was no public library on St. Andrew Street since it was not built until 1903. However, there was a small wooden school building built by the citizens that opened in 1843 on the apex of what is now the library lawn at the juncture of Church, Ontario and Huron Streets.

And there, on the front lawn at the junction of Church, Ontario and Huron Streets, could be found the town’s water pump and it became a popular meeting place during the early years of settlement as well as the Monteith general store.  

IHuron Street enters the drawing from the right. Church Street exits to the left. St. Andrew Street runs west past the log school and the church to the rear of the drawing. The Monteith store would be situated out of the drawing at the bottom left at the base of Ontario Street at the south east corner of the junction of the three streets.  

It was in the 1850s, that wood buildings started to give way to stone. The first hotel built of wooden frame construction, the Shakespeare Inn, (see Sargint Street), built in 1832, burned down in 1849 and only five years later in 1854, the Albion Hotel (see Ontario Street) built of stone was erected a block further west along the same north side of Ontario Street. James Corcoran erected a store on the Old Shakespeare Inn site that would do business there till 1890.

By 1874, on the same site where the Monteith store had been, the Perth Furniture Warerooms were established at 1, 3 and 5 Ontario Street. The first rebuilding had already taken place. David Campbell and Johnson Abraham were the proprietors who established the business that employed some 14 men with capital assets of $14,000. Sales were reported in the Stratford Directory for 1876 at $22,000. They were still in business in 1881.

By 1896, R. White and Company occupied 1, 3 and 5 Ontario Street. They were sellers of furniture but they also ran an undertaking business.  The two businesses which might seem to be strange bedfellows were common at the time since both employed carpenters and craftsmen using wood. The proprietors were Robert White and William Hepburn. By the 1900-1902 Stratford Directory, the partners had split and White had moved to 60 Ontario Street.

In the Vernon’s Directory for 1900-1902, Hepburn had taken on a new partner in the furniture and undertaking business at 1, 3 and 5 Ontario Street. His name was William Nichols, and as mentioned, he and Hepburn continued as house furnishers and undertakers.

By 1904, the Stratford Wholesale Grocery Company operated from 1 and 3 Ontario Street with A. H. King as manager but 5 Ontario Street was vacant. By 1907, King was in real estate and Stratford Wholesale Grocers were on Downie Street. The location was once again a furniture store. In 1907, Ney, Camp and Company occupied from 1-9 Ontario Street.  They were in the furniture business only. Proprietors were W. W. Camp and W. R. Ney.

By the 1920s, the Public Utilities Commission was on the site and would be for many years, until the sale of the property to the British Mortgage and Trust Company on 1959.   

In 1959, the P.U. C. built at 187 Erie Street and moved there after the sale to British Mortgage.  (see Erie Street).  The original circular two-story building was designed by Gordon Richie and modelled on the Stratford Festival Theatre. The main floor was open and spacious, welcoming residents, and intended for the general public. The second floor was used by employees, for metering and services.  The mostly yellow brick building remained unchanged except for a small addition in the 1990s. 

In 2000, Festival Hydro took over the P.U. C. services to Stratford as a result of changes in government regulations.  In addition to electrical distribution and billing, Festival Hydro is also responsible for water billing and streetlight maintenance.  After a feasibility study in 2017 and 2018, it was determined that modernization of the building would proceed.  Michael Wilson, a Stratford-based architect, designed alterations for the building which began in 2021. In 2024, Wilson received  a bronze medal for his work at the International Design Award. Source: The Beacon Herald, Feb 2, 2024. "It's a historic gem," said Wilson, commenting on the original historic building. 

On the left, immediately below, is a picture from the 1920s courtesy of Nancy Musselman and the Stratford-Perth Archives.

Stratford Public Utilities Commission

The architecture which was similar to other buildings on the street can be plainly seen...as well as the new and used wringer washers available for sale. The sign that cannot be seen above the windows in the picture to the left reads Hydro Shop. Small electrical appliances were repaired there for the public. The same sign can be clearly seen in the accompanying picture on the right courtesy of Bob Meldrum which shows the building at One Ontario Street in the early 1960s before the sale to the British Mortgage. 

The new design by Fairfield in 1962 would raise eyebrows. The view in the photo just above on the right is a view along the south side of Ontario Street looking east just before the transformation in 1962. The Gordon Block pointed tower which resembled that of the Old Post Office (see Ontario Street) can be seen in the background.  Church Street exits the photo on the right. 

British Mortgage and Trust