Description of Historic Place

35-43 Duke Street, is known as Sandyford Place, and is situated at the corner of Duke and McNab Streets, in the City of Hamilton. The four, three-storey limestone townhouses are each three-bays wide. The property was designed in the Renaissance Revival style and constructed between 1856-58.

The exterior of the property and scenic and aesthetic character of the building are protected by an Ontario Heritage Trust conservation easement (1979). The building was designated a National Historic Site of Canada in 1975. The property is also designated by the City of Hamilton under Part IV of the Ontario Heritage Act (By-law 75-237).

Heritage Value

Located at the corner of Duke Street and McNab Street in downtown Hamilton, Sandyford Place benefits from its context in one of the city's oldest areas. Situated within blocks of notable historic buildings in Hamilton such as Whitehern, Church of the Ascension, St. Paul's Presbyterian Church and the Bank of Montreal building, Sandyford Place evokes the scale and aesthetic qualities of pre-confederation Hamilton. Now located in a mixed area of high-rise apartments, office buildings and detached Victorian houses, Sandyford Place maintains a strong presence on Duke Street surrounded by mature trees, a small rear garden and parking area.

Sandyford Place is associated with Peter Hunter, an early resident of Hamilton, the city's early economic development, Scottish stonemasons and noted local builder Donald Nicholson. The property was originally part of a farm owned, since 1824, by Peter Hunter Hamilton, the younger half-brother of City founder George Hamilton. Peter Hunter Hamilton first surveyed the property for development in the 1840s, but did not develop it until the 1850s, when the quickly expanding city encroached upon his land. In the 1850s, the City of Hamilton experienced great economic prosperity, with the population rising from 6,800 to 27,500 between 1846 and 1858.

Sandyford Place's style and building material reflect the many Scottish stonemasons working in Hamilton at that time. At one time the area around Sandyford Place had many other examples of terraced houses constructed in a similar style, including Burlington Terrace, built in 1856. Local builder and architect Donald Nicholson built Sandyford Place to cater to the growing mercantile class of the city. However, as the economy of the city failed in the 1860s, Sandyford Place had difficulty attracting wealthy tenants. It wasn't until the 1870s that economic recovery brought a lawyer, manufacturer, wholesale grocer and merchant to live at Sandyford Place. The houses remained as single units until 1908, when 39 Duke Street was divided vertically into three apartments. The other houses were divided into apartments in 1924, 1931 and 1934 respectively. They remained rental apartments until they were developed into 12 condominiums shortly after 1979.

Sandyford Place is an example of the Renaissance Revival style used in the form of urban terraced houses. The architectural style, quality of the masonry, attention to detail and proportioning, make this building unique. The three-storey limestone building is based on the Palazzo Renaissance form, set on a high basement with slightly projecting side wings, each comprising one row-house set on a foundation of rough-faced ashlar. The building has tall chimneys, a shallow roof and two bay-window roof dormers. The main façade is characterized by limestone ashlar, rusticated quoins, pick-faced stone dressing, a bracketed cornice and square and segmental pedimented double-hung six over six windows. Consoles surround each window and sidelights and transoms surround each of the four front doors, access to which is gained through separate stone stairways. The facade is ashlar giving the building a Georgian appearance, however, details and decorations are influenced by Italian Renaissance Revival architecture. One specific Italian Renaissance element is the Piano Nobile proportions, which distinguishes the main floor by large, high windows elevated off the ground by a raised foundation. At the rear of unit 43 there is a Queen Anne style two-storey bay window of red brick, capped with a third-floor dormer with a Palladian window, added in c. 1900. This addition contrasts the rest of the building, making the rear elevation more stylistically eclectic. The conversion into condominiums added balconies, along the length of the rear elevation, and an enclosed stairwell was added at the rear linking the balconies.

Source: OHT Easement Files.

Character-Defining Elements

Character defining elements that contribute to the heritage value of the Sandyford Place include its:
- Renaissance Revival architectural style features
- Piano Nobile proportions
- pavilion plan
- tall chimneys
- shallow-pitched roof
- attic-storey dormers
- raised basement
- stone stairs leading to the front entrances
- projecting end wings
- rusticated quoins
- pick-faced stone dressing
- bracketed cornice
- square and segmental pedimented windows
- double-hung six over six sash windows
- consoles over the façade windows
- Queen Anne style two-storey bay-window at the rear
- ashlar façade
- location in one of Hamilton's oldest neighbourhoods
- location within blocks of notable historic buildings such as Whitehearn, Church of the Ascension, St. Paul's Presbyterian Church and the Bank of Montreal building
- proximity to mature trees and a small garden