Queens Park entrance


This is the decorative entrance from Parkview Drive to Upper Queens Park, named in honour of Queen Victoria in 1882. These gates were commissioned by the City of Stratford parks board and built by John Piehl of Tavistock in 1930. The cast-iron dogs acting as guardians on either side of the entrance were not added until 1961. The two resting canines, known as The Robertson Dogs, were originally at the top and on either side of the front steps that welcomed visitors to the home at 55 Albert St., which belonged to Dr. James Robertson and his son, Dr. Lorne Robertson. The house was built in 1899 (see Albert Street). After the house was demolished in 1958 to create a parking lot, the city stored the five-foot, 200-pound cast-iron dogs in the city's paint shop building on St. Patrick Street until their future could be determined. Individuals wanted to buy the dogs, but the city chose to give them to the parks board for display somewhere in the park system. In July 1961, the dogs were mounted on cement pedestals, one on each side of the Parkview Drive entrance to Upper Queens Park. On the pedestals are engraved the words CAVE CANEM (beware of the dog). See Flashback, Dr. Robertson and his dogs 

In 1913, the entrance to Queens Park was at the corner of Queen and Cobourg streets, a block west and south of the present-day entrance from Parkview Drive. That changed as more land in the area was severed to accommodate residential development. As the photo below, from about 1910, the park entrance was angled.

The land was originally part of the 100-acre Grange, property owned by William McCullough (see Water Street). Purchased, with water rights, from the Canada Company, it straddled the Avon River. While Queens Park was named in honour of a queen, in 1882 it was looking anything but noble and royal. That year, there were about 300 sheep grazing on the land when picnickers showed up for a day in the park. The sheep belonged to a drover from Avonton. Fearing it had paid too much for the land, the city opted to recoup some of its outlay by selling a old barn on the property and renting grazing rights. The arrangement was not long lasting; the sheep were gone by 1884. The park quickly gained in popularity with residents in and around Stratford. In time there was an "open-kitchen" pavilion (see photo below) that afforded visitors some protection when the clouds brought rain. That pavilion was destroyed by fire in the early 1920s. Its weather-proof replacement enhanced the reputation of the park, which then was able to host dances, receptions and concerts. Through the years the new pavilion was enlarged and refurbished. Among the musicians who played that venue for teen dances in the late 1950s and early '60s were The Revols (see Richard Monette Way). In the mid-1980s, the Stratford Kiwanis Club added a covered stage to the south face of the pavilion. The same club now sponsors weekly concerts from the stage during the summer months (see Richard Monette Way).

Entrance to Queens Park, 1913.  Stratford-Perth Archives

Harry Strudley Sratford-Perth Archives

Henry William (Harry) Strudley

The style of the house at 73 Parkview Dr. is American Four Square, an American house style popular from the mid-1890s to the late 1930s.  This one was built by Henry William (Harry) Strudley, one of Stratford’s most prominent businessmen, 

He was born in Detroit, Mich., on Dec. 10, 1870. As of 1900, he had started the Wolverine Reed Co., which initially fared well. But stiff competition forced him to close the factory. He  took all the machinery, stock and 20 employees to relocate in the former Walkerville Match Co. building in Walkerville, Ont. He renamed his new venture Imperial Rattan Company Ltd.

Hearing about the potential of Stratford as a burgeoning furniture manufacturing centre, Harry bought the Borland Carriage Co. building at the corner of Albert and King streets in 1910, and moved his factory yet again, but for the last time. He soon began purchasing nearby land and on it building houses for his employees. His acquisitions included the newly expanded King Street (now Parkview Drive) from Ontario Street to Queens Park.

Harry and his family first settled at 151 Douglas St., then moved to 118 Norman St. and eventually to the large house at 186 Mornington St., which he remodelled extensively in 1939. His remake included the addition of four large columns, which have remained as dominant feature on the front of the house which remains today. 


An avid horticulturalist, Harry was renowned for his beautiful rose gardens. From its early years, he was also a strong supporter of the Kiwanis Music Festival. He was president of the city's board of trade, a member of the Stratford board of education, president of the Western Conservatory of Music, which operated under the auspices of the University of Western Ontario in London from 1934 to 1997. He was president of the Perth Mutual Fire Insurance Co. and served on the public utilities commission in Stratford. During the two world wars, he headed the Perth County Victory Loan Committee, was an honorary lieut.-colonel of the Perth Regiment, and for years chaired the Stratford General Hospital board. 

 

One of his greatest achievements was overseeing the construction of the new hospital in 1950, and the conversion of the original hospital into the Avon Crest convalescent facility. Another of his lasting accomplishments was his donation of the bridge to Tom Patterson Island (see Lakeside Drive). A design competition was held for that bridge and, ironically, the winning design was submitted by his son, Donald Strudley.

 

Harry Strudley died in Stratford General Hospital, which helped to build, on April 25, 1961, at age 90. Source : Historic Plaque Properties

73 Parkview Dr.

Festival guests enjoyed great meals at Knox Church.  Photo from the book A Star Danced  

Church suppers

 In 1953, Stratford faced a major problem. The city had only two hotels, one motel and few restaurants. How did it ever hope to properly accommodate those drawn to the new Stratford Shakespearean Festival?

Festival founder Tom Patterson took to the CJCS Radio airwaves (see Albert Street) and asked Stratford residents to open their homes to the festival guests.  And the residents responded with open hearts.

Inviting strangers to stay in your house was not common practice in the 1950s, but many stepped up to help. For the guests, the initial cost was about $7 for a double room. The cost was about $7 a night for a double room. For some, it was the beginning of yearly visits and lifelong friendships. There is an unconfirmed story that some locals in that first year had welcomed the visitors as Tom Patterson had asked, given them a room, provided a breakfast, and bid them farewell without asking for a penny. File that under "Stratford hospitality."

But their needed to be more than breakfasts. The churches had the answer. Church suppers.

There had been an opening-night buffet for hundreds at The Armouries (see Waterloo Street), but that didn’t satisfy the appetites of the guests night after night. Actually, they needed to be fed by residents for a few years, until new restaurants were available.

Knox Church (see Ontario Street) led the dining way according to Barbara Reid and Thelma Morrison in the book, A Star Danced, but other churches, such as Parkview (see below) near the tent-theatre had full tables as well.

The idea of mixing world-class theatre with church suppers might seem incongruous today, but there was no alternative as the Festival was putting down roots. The suppers were a roaring success, with their mouth-watering offerings, bountiful portions, and friendly, small-town atmosphere.

Elgiva (Mrs. John F.) Adamson (see Huron Street), who also organized book discussions of Shakespeare’s plays for residents, was a chief organizer at Knox, looking after everything from the purchase of food, the picking up of home-baked goods, the menus and the organization of volunteers for both light lunches and hot dinners. Volunteers set tables, served, cleaned up, washed dishes and prepared for the next sitting of hungry bodies.

By 1958, the church suppers were less in demand because there were more restaurants in the city equipped to cope with the crowds.

Sources: A Star Danced and Stratford Shakespearean Festival of Canada – Parkview United Church 

Parkview United Church

A street named by a church

The area now occupied by Parkview Drive was once owned by Stratford's largest land owner, William McCulloch (see McCulloch Street). It was part of his private estate called The Grange, which extended from Ontario Street to Delamere Avenue and included part of the Avon River. 

When the United Church was created, a building site was purchased for the erection of a church on King Street, extending from Ontario Street to Cobourg Street. Because of its proximity to Queens Park, the name Parkview was approved as the church name.

The name of this portion of the street was later changed by the city to Parkview Drive. Thus, the street was named for Parkview Church. The church that opened in 1926 was really designed as a Sunday school building until the new Parkview United Church was built 35 years later, in 1961.  The name of the street was officially changed to Parkview Drive in about 1928.  By Stanford Dingman