Description of Historic Place

The Downs House is located at 36 William Street, on the west side of William Street, south of Waterloo Street, in the City of Brantford. The two storey residence with a stucco exterior was constructed in 1860.

The property was designated, by the City of Brantford in 1991, for its cultural heritage value, under Part IV of the Ontario Heritage Act, By-law 128-91.

Heritage Value

The Downs House is associated with a prominent local citizen, John W. Downs. Downs contributed to the development of the motto on the present town seal for the City of Brantford reading: “Industria and perseverantia” (Industry and Perseverance). The political career of Downs included; elected Councillor of Brantford's first Town Council; elected Reeve of the Town, in 1852; and appointed magistrate of the County of Brant, in 1864.

The Downs House is an example of Italianate style of architecture but with extensive alterations. Typical of this style is the three-bay facade with the centre bay as a single entrance with a segmented transom. The entrance is flanked by bay windows, consisting of three double-hung windows with segmented window surrounds at the head. A large portion of the wall surfaces are stucco however, the original surfaces are of brick masonry. The residence has undergone many exterior alterations.

Source: City of Brantford By-law 128-91.

Character-Defining Elements

Character defining elements that contribute to the heritage value of the Downs House include its:
- two storey stucco exterior with original brick masonry beneath
- three-bay facade
- classical revival era portico with two Doric columns
- metal parapets above the bay windows
- aluminum soffit and fascia with wooden brackets
- verge board
- centre gable with wood brackets and a wood frieze