Business Directory

Description

The Howard Scratch House is a 2-storey house constructed in 1886 in the Italianate style.  The home’s historical value lies in its association with Howard Scratch, a local tinsmith and bicycle factory owner.  The bicycle business must have been good to him because when it came to building his home, he could afford such exotic materials as cocobolo, a tropical hardwood used for the interior staircase.

Key heritage attributes include:
Asymmetrical design
Brick quoins on corners
Ornamental cross bracing in south facing gables
Roundel windows in each of three large gables
2-storey square bay on the front of the house
1-storey angular bay on the north side of the house
One-over-one double hung wood sash windows
Oak and cocobolo staircase
Cast iron registers throughout home
High baseboards
Pocket door on main floor