http://www.fepl.ca/localhistory/files/original/3e1ba79ec87973f0506ae4d9b7cc2605.pdf ac4ae693486b3f906819f0b4509dcfb5 PDF Text Text • THE MONI'ILIDN COTTAGE:::*@% GA..tmISON RD. S. SIDE. • From the history of the Montillon family the cottage l 1893. -1900. by son Eugenne it is evident that built on the Garrison Rd. was on the south side of the road, opposite the east property line of the Cruickshank. lands. a full discription is given of the property and the house, barns , orcgards etc. Although slightly altered through the years it is without doubt their cottage beofre moving to the Niagara River rd. He mentions the land being purchsed from Wally s illisler and indeed his home stood just west on ' the south east er. of s,· uis ler Rd. now called Kraft. On the s.west er. stood a two story house owned at that date by the Spear family. Eugene mentions the family living there for seven years_ 1900. Abbie finally decided it was time to have one place THE COTTAGE IN T~E year round. GARRISON ROAD - 1893 - 1900 bJ'hlfl-/{/c no#r/,<,~u.sl .I The cottage on~he Gar r ison Road was built in the spring of 1893 . The property is on the southerly side of the road about two miles from the Village of Fort Erie, about five acres of almost level farm land . The Garri~on Road, then a dirt road, was dusty in the summer and hub deep in mud in the spring. • The property was the southeast corner of a one hundred acre farm bel~ng­ ing to Wally Schisler whose house and barns were several hundred feet to thewest on the same side of the road, at the corner of a cross road named the Schisler Road. The p rope~ty was opposite the easterly end of the Cruickshank farm, Mr , Cruickshank, my mother's f ri end where we had previouslY' spent summers_ The land was open except for several large old apple trees, the . remnant of an orchard in about the middle of the tract . The house was built just back of these trees, about one hundred fifty feet back from the road. This gave a very large degree of seclusion . The barn was built still further back on the property . There was an old farm rail fence and a ~rowth of trees alo~g the easterly boundry . Father had a wire fence built ·along the othPr three sides . A driveway was built some seventy-five feet in from the westerly boundary; it entered the property through a gate in the fence. My, ·mother was the architect for the house; I remember her studying the design of the house and supervising its construction . The ho.use was one story and a~ attic in height. There was a small vegetable cellar under the southwest corner of the house. Otherwise the building was supported on stone piers; t~e space under the house was unexcavated . The build i ng was of frame construction, the exterior wall material was shingles while the exterior walls were covered with sheatfng and buildin~ paper. The shingles we r e stained red. • There was a large firepJace in the living room but no heating system in the house . This was a summer residence, but the building so constructed that it could be converted for all year use . There was no plumbing in the house; water supply was a well and cisterns . There was a privy near the barn. �Father planted trees along the westerly boundary and along the banks of a small creek which flowed through the Cruickshank property, crossed the Garrison Road and ran easterly through our land a short distance in from the road , Back of the house, to the east of the drive to the barn, father planted a vineyard and to the west of the drive a vegetable garden . A flower garden for mother was laid out at the east side of the house. About a half acre of land around the house was in lawn. The land, not otherwise used, was sown to timothy and a crop of hay harvested each year. The farmer next door, Wally Schisler, from whom father had bought the property, cut the hay . Weather permitting, the hay was cut on the fourth of July . This being an American holiday, father was at home . ·some years there was a second cutting in September . The hay which we didn't · need for our own hor's e, Wally Schisler bought or sold as father's agent. Built for u~ kids was~ playhouse, west of the drive in front of the vegetable garden . The building was a single room about 8 x 10 feet in dimension With a . narrow veranda . The outside was vertical boarding and battens. It was stained the same red as the main house .. . The door opened from t~~ veranda. In this wall, the wall opposite and one end wall were windows. The south wall toward the vegetable garden was blank. On center out from this wall, with stove pipe through the roof, stood the small three legged cast iron, wood purning stove, which had been in the original log cabin 6n the Seib farm in the Town of Tonawanda which father remembered as · a boy . Cozy Corner was another favorite play area.. Cozy Corner was a v shaped recess in the old rail fence along the east boundary, under a big tree. A path-was kept cut through the hay field from the house lawn area to Cozy Corner. Fa~her must have carried out the development of the property completely shortly after the house was built . My recollection is of a finished' and mature oroperty. A unique character, Dutch Frank, worked for father much of the time. Dutch Frank was of very indefinite age, neither young nor old. He had a wooden right leg . Dutch Frank lived alone in a shack on the next crossroad to the west, the Schisler Road ., His "house" was on the west side of the road a few hundred feet south of the Garrison Road . He had a garden for vegetables and a few flowers . Very hbnest and reliable, he worked hard all week. On Saturday he would walk the two miles to Fort Erie for his next week s provisions and a few drinks . When the neighbors saw him coming up the road on Sunday morning wi th a hemp sack containi~g his provisions over his shoulder, they knew that the Fort Erie Village Police had been very willing to let him sleep it off Saturday night in the Village Jail. During the summer months at the cottage, each business day morning, father and mother drove to the fe r ry landing in Fort Er ie .. Mother drove back there to get father at the end of tbe day . On the American side father used the New York Central commuter trains stopping at Ferry Street and the Terrace Station in Downtown Buffalo or he could use the Niagara Stree~ trolley cars . This was travel of about eight miles a day, good exercise for the horse . We had the cottage on the Garrison Road only seven years. I was tenf years old when it was built in 1893 and seventeen in 1900 when it was sold. Fathe~ and mother decided that they would no longer have a winter and summer re~1de~ce, that they would live year rou1~d out of the city. It was at this time that the property at 96 Niagara Boulevard in Fort Erie was purchased. ~- � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Louis McDermott Collection Subject The topic of the resource Local history, Fort Erie and surrounding area. Description An account of the resource A collection of historical documents, photos, news clippings, letters, and writings, assembled by local historian, Louis McDermott, and donated to the Fort Erie Public Library. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Louis McDermott Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived FEPL-LH -Louis McDermott Language A language of the resource English Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Included in this collection are writings, historical documents, news clippings, images, maps, and more. They were written and compiled by Louis McDermott into a series of binders. The digital collection has been scanned from these physical copies. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Fort Erie Public Library and Louis McDermott Document A resource containing textual data. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre text. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource The Montillon Cottage II Description An account of the resource Listed here is a document pertinent to the Montillon Cottage. Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Louis McDermott Collection 1900s Fort Erie Louis Mcdermott Collection