Description of Historic Place

Gage House at 77 King Street West, is part of Stoney Creek Battlefield Park, and is situated at the south-east corner of Centennial Parkway and King Street West in the City of Hamilton. Gage House is a two-storey Neoclassical style, wood-frame dwelling dating from 1796. Along with Battlefield Monument and Nash-Jackson House, Gage House is one of the focal points of the property.

The exterior of the building, select interior elements and the scenic character of the 15-hectare property are protected by an Ontario Heritage Trust conservation easement. The property is owned by the City of Hamilton and was designated by the former City of Stoney Creek under Part IV of the Ontario Heritage Act (By-law No. 3419-91). Stoney Creek Battlefield Park was designated a National Historic Site in 1960.

Heritage Value

Located at the south-east corner of Centennial Parkway and King Street West the 15-hectare property retains its character of fields and woods, and reflects the partial implementation of a 1920s plan by the prominent landscape firm of Dunington-Grubb. Gage House is a focal point of the property with the Battlefield Monument purposely aligned with the house by means of terraced steps.

Gage House is associated with the Battle of Stoney Creek, one of the key battles of the War of 1812. On June 5, 1813, American Brigadier-Generals Chandler and Winder and about 3000 soldiers established camp on and near the homestead of James Gage (1774-1854), a well-known farmer and store owner. Generals Chandler and Wilder and principal officers occupied the house as their headquarters while the Gage family is said to have been detained in the cellar. While at Burlington Heights, British Lieutenant-Colonel John Harvey learned that American troops had camped at the Gage farm and immediately mounted an attack, which occurred in the early morning hours of June 6. The battle dealt a serious blow to the morale of the American fighters and initiated their continuous retreat. After the battle the Gage house was occupied as a field hospital for both American and British soldiers.

The preservation of Gage House is one of the earliest examples of historic preservation efforts in Canada. Strong British Imperial sentiment in Canada in the 1880s, and the 1884 centennial of the Loyalists arrival to Canada, led to an interest in commemorating the nation's history. Led by Sarah Calder, a Gage family descendant, the Women's Wentworth Historical Society purchased the house and 1.8-hectares of the property, restoring and opening the house as a museum in 1899.

Gage House is a significant example of Neoclassical styled Upper Canadian vernacular architecture. Initially a one-and-a-half-storey structure built about 1796, the original portion of the house is notable for its nog construction of brick infill within a timber frame. Around 1835 the house was expanded to its two-storey height with verandahs and neoclassical elements added. Exterior elements contributing to the neoclassical character of the house include the stucco cladding, window and door casing, return eaves and a dentil trimmed frieze. Originally the upper level of the verandah was embellished with classically-inspired columns. During the initial restoration, neoclassical style mantelpieces from another historic house were installed, reinforcing this characterization. While the wide central hall and low ceilings reflect the home's original construction, the second storey ballroom is a subsequent alteration.

Source: OHT Easement Files

Character-Defining Elements

Character defining elements that contribute to the heritage value of the Gage House include its:
- alignment, on axis, with the Battlefield monument
- 15-hectares of associated property which retains an undeveloped character
- relation to other elements of the 1920s Dunington-Grubb landscape plan such as the terraced, flagstone steps leading to the monument, the elliptical drive on the southern side of the house, the entrance to the park, the informal and pastoral planting arrangement, the Scots pines that border King Street, and the front lawn, the west lawn towards the creek and the east lawn beside the monument
- association with the Battle of Stoney Creek
- role as the headquarters for American Brigadier-Generals Chandler and Winder
- association with James Gage and the Gage family
- association with Sarah Calder and the early preservation movement in Canada
- regular, rectangular, two-storey plan, five-bays in width
- gable roof with wooden shingles, cornice returns, and two internal red-brick chimneys
- dentil trimmed frieze
- nog construction with brick infill between a timber frame for the lower 1½-storeys and timber frame construction above
- exposed fieldstone foundation bonded with lime mortar
- combined stucco and clapboard cladding of the north elevation, the stucco cladding of the entire south elevation and the clapboard siding on remaining elevations
- central doorways with six-panelled doors, and multi-pane sidelights
- neoclassical style casing around the north elevation doorway comprised of pilasters and an entablature
- entablature type window heads (north elevation)
- first and second-storey, half-glass doors leading to the verandah
- regular fenestration with 12 over 12, wooden sash windows
- integral, two-storey verandah (south elevation) with second storey plaster ceiling and first storey tongue-and-groove ceiling
- centre hall plan with straight flight stair
- staircase with straight balusters and polished, walnut rail
- wide floorboards
- stencilled plaster walls of the stair hall
- simple finish of the interior with plaster walls and ceilings and detailing that includes chair rails, wide baseboards, simple window and door casings, and six-panelled doors;
- box locks on the inside of exterior doors;
- built-in dining room cupboard with upper door of multi-pane glazing and panelled lower door;
- fireplaces with Neoclassical mantelpieces influenced by the Adams style with brick hearths and surrounds;
- arched entrance to the second-storey ballroom with its classical casing;
- brick fireplace in the basement;
- unfinished character of the basement which includes fieldstone walls of the basement and ceiling joists.