Galbraith Residence

A decorative iron fence symbolically separates this one-and-one-half-story brick residence from the street— reflecting the Victorian-era ideal of the home as a sanctuary removed from worldly bustle. Constructed between 1900 and 1908, the residence incorporated other Victorian-era influences as well, including a polygonal bay ornamented with decorative beveled-glass transoms above the bay windows.

Among the home’s early residents were Dr. Archibald and Gertrude Galbraith, who lived here between 1908 and 1913, when Archibald died at age 36 of Bright’s disease. Archibald graduated from the Ontario Dental College in 1901, at the cusp of a new age in dentistry. An emphasis on preventing cavities by promoting oral hygiene, the introduction of Novocain, and new technologies such as high-speed electric drills are just a few of the changes Dr. Galbraith witnessed during his short practice.

Unlike most married women of her generation, Gertrude continued to work as a milliner even after having children. In 1911, she ran her own hat shop on West Broadway, demonstrating a business acumen that would have served her well as a young widow.