Boyd House: The old stone house at 173 Huntmar Drive (Part 1)

  ](http://ottawastart.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/13-1384702761408.jpg)

The old stone house pictured above is at 173 Huntmar Drive. It’s not even 500 meters from my house, located between Palladium and Maple Grove and just a stone’s throw from Canadian Tire Centre.  I drive by the property every day. I knew there was a house back there but had no idea what it was or that nobody lived there anymore.

[

](http://ottawastart.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/01-20131116_223334.jpg) Last week, the Ottawa Citizen published a story about a request from the current property owner to demolish the home . The house and property are up for sale for $7 million . Thankfully, the owner has agreed to work with the City of Ottawa to preserve the building.  That could mean restoring it at the current site, or moving it somewhere else. That’s a good thing. buildings like this one add a lot of character to our city.  And this one is full of great stories.

_ ** Do you know anything about this house? ** Send us a note at feedback@ottawastart.com , or follow along on Twitter and Instagram using hashtag #173huntmar . _

This morning I took the dog for a walk near the property.  I returned home with mud caked all over my old sneakers and some photos. Can you spot the house in this one?

[

](http://ottawastart.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/12-1384722405047.jpg)

It’s way back there behind the trees. You can’t see it during the spring or summer, only when the leaves have fallen. Let’s zoom in a bit…

[

](http://ottawastart.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/02-20131117_095915.jpg)

Access to the house is down a long path, about 100 meters, lined on both sides with tall trees, and marked by a rusty old mailbox.

[

](http://ottawastart.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/04-20131117_100034.jpg)

A fallen tree blocked the path, and at the end of the path you can see a collapsed barn. This barn was raised circa 1901, and was still standing as recently as a couple of months ago.

[

](http://ottawastart.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/05-20131117_100104.jpg)

(Here’s a view of the collapsed barn from the south side.)

[

](http://ottawastart.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/10-20131117_100928.jpg)

I didn’t actually walk on the property, just around the perimeter.  Bushes and trees have taken over the property.

[

](http://ottawastart.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/06-20131117_100548.jpg)

Here’s the view from the south, along a construction access path. Some day the path will become a north-south arterial road connecting Palladium Drive to Fernbank Road.  And just to the south of this path, right behind where I was standing when I took this photo, is a suburban housing development called Fairwinds .

[

](http://ottawastart.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/07-20131117_100659.jpg)

Zoom in…

[

](http://ottawastart.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/09-20131117_100750.jpg)

The house looks to be in pretty good shape from this vantage point. Is the trim along the roofline original?

[

](http://ottawastart.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/08-20131117_100736.jpg)

It’s hard to get an idea of how big the house is, but trust me, it’s big.  Here’s an aerial shot from Bing maps, probably taken around 2011. It looks like the house has three “wings”, perhaps constructed at different times.

[

](http://ottawastart.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/aerial.jpg)

Here’s what the house looked like, circa 1900.

[

](http://ottawastart.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/19001.jpg)

**

** ** I wonder if that’s Jane Boyd standing on the front porch? ** Jane (nee Bradley) and her husband James built the house in 1887 and raised seven children there. ** Read Part 2: ** All about Jane and James Boyd.

_ **

** _ ** Sources used to research this story include: **

 * 
Ottawa Citizen:
[
 "Demolition of potential heritage home delayed further"
](http://www.ottawacitizen.com/news/Demolition+potential+heritage+home+delayed+further/9167807/story.html)

 * 
Huntley Township Historical Society:
[
 Newsletter No. 280, September 15, 2013
](http://www.huntleyhistory.ca/new/2013-09-15_nl.pdf)

 * 
City of Ottawa Report:
[
 Designation of the Boyd House, October 30, 2014
](http://app05.ottawa.ca/sirepub/cache/2/engwd3zvfkuxaxnq1fxynaw4/8903911172013104816561.PDF)

_ ** Do you know anything about this house or the Boyd family who lived there? ** Send us a note at feedback@ottawastart.com , or follow along on Twitter and Instagram using hashtag #173huntmar . _

**

** ** More in this series: **

 * 
Part 1:
[
 Boyd House as it looks today
](http://ottawastart.com/boyd-house-the-old-stone-house-at-173-huntmar-drive-part-1/)

 * 
Part 2:
[
 Who were James and Jane Boyd?
](http://ottawastart.com/boyd-house-who-were-james-and-jane-boyd-part-2/)

 * 
Part 3:
[
 The house, the barns and the surrounding property
](http://ottawastart.com/boyd-house-the-house-the-barns-and-the-surrounding-property-part-3/)

 * 
Part 4:
[
 A look inside Boyd House
](http://ottawastart.com/boyd-house-a-look-inside-part-4/)

 * 
Part 5:
[
 The seven stone cousins, the man with two graves, and other mysteries
](http://ottawastart.com/boyd-house-the-seven-stone-cousins-the-man-with-two-graves-and-other-mysteries-part-5/)

 * 
Part 6:
[
 Know any entrepeneurs who'd like to open a business in an old stone house?
](http://ottawastart.com/boyd-house-know-any-entrepreneurs-whod-like-to-open-a-business-in-an-old-stone-house-part-6-173huntmar/)

 * 
Follow
[
 #173huntmar
](https://twitter.com/search?q=%23173huntmar&src=hash)
on Twitter and watch for future updates on this blog. You can bookmark
[
 http://ottawastart.com/173huntmar
](http://ottawastart.com/173huntmar)
for the latest news.

**

** ** See also: ** Ottawa History Guide

If you liked this post, you should ** subscribe to etcetera , ** our free email newsletter. Featuring cool Ottawa events, interesting local news and contests and giveaways. Thanks!