Description of Historic Place

The 1845 Philo Hicock House, reflective of the Ontario Regency Cottage Style and the Ontario Vernacular Style, consists of a one-and-a-half-storey rubblestone structure covered in stucco, and is located at 8 King St. in the Village of Delta.

The Township of Bastard and South Burgess recognizes the Philo Hicock House for its heritage values in By-law 591.

Heritage Value

The original owner and namesake, Philo Hicock, was the son of an American who emigrated from Connecticut circa 1800 to the Township of Rear of Leeds and Lansdowne, to be an ensign in the British Army. Philo was born in 1808 and eventually arrived in Delta some time prior to 1840.

The Philo Hicock House is representative of the rapid rise of early settlement in the area stimulated by the presence of the British Army and leading to the early industrial development in the Delta area. Hicock himself, in 1842, purchased a share of the 1830 foundry which was originally located behind the site of what would in 1845 become the Philo Hicock House. By the mid-1840s, he was a successful businessman, serving the needs of the increasing number of farmers who were moving into the area. In his employment were three men at the foundry, two in his blacksmith's shop, and an additional two at the cabinet-making shop. He was a member of the first Township Council of 1851 and served as Reeve for ten years between 1851 and 1872.

The Philo Hicock House is a good example of Ontario vernacular architecture and Ontario Regency Cottage style, complete with a centre gable on the front facade, dormers, and wrap-around verandah.

Sources: Township of Bastard and South Burgess By-law No. 591; Diane Haskins, Heritage Buildings in Bastard and South Burgess Township: My Own Four Walls, Council of Bastard and South Burgess Township (1984).

Character-Defining Elements

Character defining elements that express the heritage value of the Philo Hicock House include the:
- rubble and stucco construction
- centre front gable and original roof lines
- projecting eaves and verges, moulded fascia, plain soffits and frieze
- three gabled dormers with projecting eaves
- large multi-paned casement windows with shutters on the first floor
- sash windows capped with plain wooden lintels with stone lug sills
- multi-paned, semi-circular fanlight in the central dormer
- triangular recess filled with gingerbread and a six-pointed star at each gable end
- front entrance complete with transom and side lights
- three sided verandah