Old artifacts keep the past alive at Vermont Avenue home

By Mike Mastromatteo

The house at 74 Vermont Ave. in the west Annex looks somewhat newer than its immediate neighbours. Despite its fresh and tidy frontage however, the house is one of the oldest structures on the block.

It was built in the late 1880s with a narrow two-storey bay and gable configuration. The 1891 census suggests that labourer George Roberts was the first resident. Other early owner/occupants came from the large Granner family—brothers Samuel, Alfred, Harry, John and William, some married and some still on the hunt. 

The Granner brothers had an eclectic range of skills. In addition to labourer, one was a baker, another a plasterer, one a “baggageman” and yet another a piano maker.

The eldest brother, Samuel Granner, was also described as “a gold beater,” while brother Alfred (married to Margaret) worked as a “driver” of some kind. The youngest, John Granner, worked as a “shipper.” John was married to Annie, and the couple had a daughter born in 1909, whose name was recorded illegibly on the 1911 census record. 

The Granners must have brought a spirit of energy and enterprise to the home, but sorrow would ensue.   Samuel Granner passed away on Jan. 3, 1916. Further sorrow struck just 10 months later. On Nov. 3, 1917, The Toronto Daily  carried a short obituary for nine-month-old Thomas Granner, son of Alfred and Margaret.

After the Granner ownership, 74 Vermont passed to compositor/printer Benjamin Bugden from 1920-1923, followed by Frederick Stephens, a salesman at EE Wallace Company, a supplier of butter and eggs at 377 Manning Ave.

From 1925 to 1933, the home belonged to Edmond Elliott, identified in municipal records as both an engineer and a mechanic at Ford Motors. Edmond and wife Janet had a son John Archibald, born in 1917, and daughter Mary Lucy, born in 1919. In 1931, they took in a lodger, 32-year-old tool and die maker, John Crawford.

Arthur Shellamore, an inspector at Acme Farmers Dairy located at Walmer Rd. and Macpherson Ave., occupied the home from 1935-37, while a William Moss lived there from 1939 to 1944. 

It appears William Moss’s wife Ellen remained a tenant at 74 Vermont until about 1955. She passed away in the spring of 1967, but by that time, ownership had passed to her son Albert, a truck driver with Loblaws.

Albert Moss and the 74 Vermont home would be immortalized—in a very modest way—via a brief news item from July 12, 1943. That day’s issue of The Globe and Mail mentions “rifleman” Albert Moss of 74 Vermont Avenue as one of several Canadian soldiers who escorted German prisoners of war back to Europe. Curiously enough, the words “… A. Moss, rifleman, 74 Vermont avenue” are the very last words of the entire article.

Between 1970 and 1982, the property was owned (respectively) by Danny Moore, Guiseppe Guzzo, Adelino Vieria and Robert Taylor (not the actor).

As an early indication of the growing value of Annex area homes, The Globe and Mail of March 29, 1980, published a real estate ad listing the house for sale for $59,500.

This brings us to present-day owner Alan Davis who has a keen interest in local history, and in particular, the lives and experiences of those who occupied his home over the last several decades.

In his own research, Davis discovered that the Seaton Village land near his property was once part of a massive 100-acre tract of farmland granted by the Crown. While the village was laid out in the 1850s, it remained largely farmland for several decades. For this reason, Davis suspects some of the earliest occupants of the home were humble orchard workers.

When Davis purchased the property in 1983, the house was covered by wooden clapboard and  “insulbrick,” insulation and tarpaper. While renovating the house, Davis unearthed several mementoes left by previous owners such as a strap-on ice skate hidden in one of the nooks and crannies. Manufactured by the Union Hardware Company of Philadelphia, the skate dates to 1860. In keeping with the theme of this series, we asked Davis what inspired him to explore this very local history.

“People say that Toronto is changing fast, but I like to reflect that the pace of change over the last 130 plus years has been equally fast throughout this entire period. To remember that this neighbourhood was rural in the 1880s is tough to believe and people who have lived here have seen enormous changes,” he said.

“Just think about what we take for granted now. A warm home—for most people anyway—clean water and sanitary living conditions, a safe neighbourhood, much longer and healthier lifespans. People sometimes complain but we need to keep this in perspective. We are lucky to live here.”

READ MORE:

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• IF THESE WALLS COULD TALK: Once upon a time at 27 Follis Ave. (Feb. 2026)
• IF THESE WALLS COULD TALK: So many rich and diverse lives lived in these twin houses (Jan. 2026)
• IF THESE WALLS COULD TALK: Before the Maddy was a pub it was a mansion (Dec. 2025)
• IF THESE WALLS COULD TALK: 351 Palmerston Blvd. (Oct./Nov. 2025)
• HISTORY: If these walls could talk (Sept. 2025)