Description of Historic Place

The Lockmaster’s House faces the Trent-Severn Waterway in a park-like setting at the Sidney Lock Station, in the Trent-Severn Waterway National Historic Site of Canada. The building is a modest, one-and-a-half storey bungalow with a steeply pitched-roof with a long central dormer, a full width verandah and a central doorway. The influence of the Arts and Crafts Movement is seen in the building’s style and use of materials, notably brick, clapboard and shingles. The designation is confined to the footprint of the building.

Heritage Value

The Lockmaster’s House is a Recognized Federal Heritage Building because of its historical associations, and its architectural and environmental value.

Historical Value
The Lockmaster’s House is associated with the history of waterways in Canada, specifically with the development of the Trent-Severn Waterway. Work on the Waterway began in 1833 during the early phase of canal building in Canada. The completed waterway provided, by a series of connected rivers and lakes, a route from Trenton on the Bay of Quinte to Port Severn at the south end of the Georgian Bay. The Lockmaster’s House serviced Lock Number Two, which was constructed to allow passage around a dam. The Sidney Electric Power Company leased the dam to develop electric power. The Sidney Transformer Station (now owned by Ontario Hydro) still provides power to the city of Trenton.

Architectural Value
The Lockmaster’s House is valued for its good aesthetic qualities. Its design was based on a standard plan for residential architecture in this period, and reflects the growing popularity of bungalow-style housing in the 1920s. The good functional design of the building is demonstrated in its interior plan, which accommodated both a residence for the lockmaster and his family, and a lock office. The house also displays good craftsmanship in its brickwork and cladding, and plain, durable materials were used in its construction.

Environmental Value
The Lockmaster’s house was built within sight of the canal to enable the master to see approaching boats and to reach the lock quickly to let them through. The house maintains an unchanged relationship to its site. The house is compatible with the character of its park-like setting at the Lock Station and is a familiar building within the immediate area.

Sources: Shannon Ricketts, Sidney and Campbellford Lock Stations, Trent-Severn Canal, Ontario, Federal Heritage Buildings Review Office, Building Report, 88-082; Lockmaster’s House, Sidney Lockstation, Trent-Severn Waterway, Ontario, Heritage Character Statement, 88-082.

Character-Defining Elements

The character-defining elements of the Lockmaster’s House should be respected.

Its good aesthetic and functional design and good materials and craftsmanship, for example:
- its one-and-a-half storey massing, based on a standard plan, and dominated by a
steep gable roof with a large central dormer and overhanging eaves;
- its three bay façade with a central doorway;
- its brick ground storey, and clapboard gables and shingled roof;
- the full width, wood verandah with wood posts;
- the interior layout and finishes.

The manner in which the Lockmaster’s House maintains an unchanged relationship to its site, is compatible with the character of its park-like setting at the Lock Station and is a familiar, as evidenced by:
- its ongoing relationship to its grassed site and its orientation towards the canal;
- its overall scale, design and materials that complement its park-like surroundings and
maintain a relationship with the lock, the dam, and the lock office;
- its visibility from the canal and its familiarity to those within the immediate area.