The Bright Period
At the time of the transfer of the property from the Hamilton family to the Bright family, in the 1930s, the Queenston area was also undergoing a transition. With the advent of the motor car, and the increase in tourism, the Niagara River corridor was becoming a modern tourist destination.
Signs of an emerging tourist industry started to appear in the late 19th Century. Most significant for Queenston was the construction of the Niagara Park and River Railway, an electric railway that allowed tourists coming by steamboat from Toronto to transfer in Queenston and take the train to the falls and on to Chippawa. This led to some revival of commercial activity at the wharfs, and the expansion of tracks through the village and up the escarpment along the line of the old Niagara Portage Road. The extension of the railway line to the old Hamilton landing at Deep Hollow was paid for in part by the Hydro Electric Power Commission of Ontario as part of the spinoffs from its construction of the present Sir Adam Beck Generating Station No. 1. A new suspension bridge increased traffic across the river to Lewiston.
The use of steamboats and electric railways gave way to private automobiles and bus tours in the 1920s and 30s, and most significant for Queenston and Willowbank was the construction of the Niagara Parkway. A depression era make-work project, the Parkway bypassed the village of Queenston by curving the new road to the west. Suddenly Willowbank had two primary entrances, the traditional front entrance from Queenston Street to the east, and a new potential front entrance from the Niagara Parkway to the west.
The Bright’s new entrance façade, facing west rather than east. The first change was the stone entranceway to the lower level with the flanking curved staircases. The second change was the addition of the columned portico on the entrance landing. Shutters were added to the windows.
Perhaps recognizing the significance of the automobile rather than the steamboat as the transportation mode of the future, the Bright family began to re-orient the house to the west. The centre hall plan, with similar east and west entrances complete with decorative transoms and sidelights, made the transition possible with very few exterior alterations. The symmetry of the west façade heightened the formality of this new approach. There was also a more subtle message in turning inland, towards the rich farmland to the west. The Bright family had been associated with early development of the wine industry in the Niagara peninsula, and John Mowat Bright was involved with the development of the canning industry. These associations with vineyards and orchards reflected an important role for the family in the evolution of the local agricultural economy.
The Brights brought the automobile era to Willwobank. Visible in the background is the corner of the six-car garage, an outbuilding northwest of the main house.
The Brights employed architect A.E. Nicholson to modify and modernize the house. His drawings survive, but not everything was carried out according to the plans. The Brights did add a portico and double stair at the west entrance, and modified the internal layout to reflect a more contemporary aesthetic. A large living room was created by combining the Hamilton parlour, dining room, and pantry. Scenic wallpaper, white trim, and an elaborate cornice reflected a 20th Century merging of Classical Revival and Colonial Revival interests, as did removal of the stoves and the insertion of Classically-detailed fireplaces. The main stair was rebuilt closer to the centre hall axis to allow a hidden passage to the front office, which was transformed into a dining room. On the upper floor, several bathrooms were added and the bedroom layout reconfigured. Overall, the house became brighter and more open, with lighter shades of paint and wallpaper.
The Bright kitchen, in the northwest corner of the lower level - the location was unchanged from the Hamilton era.
On the exterior, a new vehicle access was initially opened up off Dee Road. Eventually, a proper curved driveway was created to provide direct access from the Niagara Parkway, leading to a treed allée and circular forecourt. A six-car garage was constructed north of the house, and the lawns were extended to create a generous landscape setting. The east façade, the original entrance façade, was modified by replacing the original upper porch with a smaller balcony, and broadening the narrow Hamilton stairs to provide a more generous connection from the east verandah to the lawn.
Bright modifications to the east elevation: broad stairs have replaced the original narrow stairs, leading to what is now the back lawn, and there is a smaller projecting balcony at the upper bedroom level. The railing details have been modified.
Summer and winter views of the east hill during the Bright period, showing the more open landscape and the gradual disappearance of the winding access road.
The house continued to be an important place for social interaction and for extended family use. Despite the reorientation of the entrance to the west, the east hill provided access down to other Bright residences within the village, and the hill itself served as a toboggan hill for the residents of Queenston. The Classical Revival east façade continued to function as a landmark within the cultural landscape of the village.
Transitional period:
Some of the interventions by J.A. Doyle were discussed with restoration architect Peter John Stokes, but his involvement was somewhat sporadic and informal. The architect of record was Frank Lahey. Significant exterior restoration work was carried out on the east facade, including removal of the Bright era balcony and stairs on the east façade, reinstatement of the original Hamilton balcony and stairs, and replacement of four of the eight massive columns. On the north and south façades, exterior fire stairs were removed and window openings realigned to their 19th Century locations. Reroofing was carried out, and most window and door surround sash were replaced in kind, with storm windows replacing the original shutters. On the interior, a number of the Bright era changes were reversed, returning the house to more of its Hamilton character although without any strict adherence to Hamilton era details or finishes. The work was left only partially complete as potential end uses continued to be elusive. Consideration was given to creating a winery, an inn, a conference centre, and finally a residential subdivision on the western half of the property. Archaeological surveys were done to allow a formal plan of subdivision to be processed and approved, but uncertainties continued and eventually the owner applied for a demolition permit, in 2001, in part to force a decision.
In 1966, Willowbank was sold by the Bright family to the Congregation of Missionary Sisters of Christian Charity. The estate was renamed Holy Trinity Monastery, and the nuns used it as a residence for themselves and for women with mental handicaps who had come into their care. Their work with these women was much admired, and at the end of this period only one sister remained, but with eight women under her care, and only a live-in housekeeper and part-time groundskeeper to assist her.
The nuns do not appear to have made any significant alterations, either interior or exterior, and it still retained something of a residential character despite its institutional identity. The large Bright parlour was used as a chapel, and it is assumed that the upper floor bedrooms continued to serve that function. The estate continued to be a favoured location for weddings and special events, now hosted by the Sisters.
In 1982, the estate changed hands once again, and became the Appleton Boys School. This School had been founded in 1976 to provide special education for boys with learning disabilities. It was initially housed in the Variety Village School in Scarborough, then in the Bolton Outdoor Education Centre, in Bolton. When the Appleton Boys School considered purchasing the Willowbank property in 1982, they assumed that the care and nurturing of these women by the Sisters of Christian Charity would qualify Willowbank as a non-conforming institutional and educational use, even though legally the property was still zoned residential. The Township of Niagara-on-the-Lake agreed with this assessment, and permitted the Boys School to proceed. The school provided residential accommodation on site for many of the students, and used the house as a combination of office and classroom space on the one hand with facilities for room and board on the other.
It appears that the Appleton Boys School adapted their needs to the existing building and landscape conditions of the site, making relatively few changes. A fire escape was added on the south façade, joining the exterior stair on the north façade added during the Bright period. Changes in the lower level were made to accommodate the mess hall, but overall there were very few alterations. The school occupied the site for only three years. In 1985, the estate passed to its third owner in the span of less than twenty years. J. Anthony Doyle was a developer who set out to restore the house to its 19th Century elegance and who pursued a number of potential end uses for the property. When the property passed from the Appleton Boys School to Doyle, it ceased to be an educational institution. One of the problems for the developer was that other uses, such as a convention centre, required more significant rezoning considerations.
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