Our Little Town

Less than four weeks to go before I retire from corporate life. And, a few weeks after that, we will be leaving our little town of Kingston, Ontario.

I don’t think we will be coming back. Our plans will likely see us settle elsewhere in Ontario, a bit closer to our grandkids.

I love this town particularly the old part of Kingston where we live. We are right by the water amidst homes that were built in the 1800s and early 1900s.

Being Canada, there is no rationale with the prices of houses. True even in Kingston where the population is only about 130,000 people.

This townhouse on the left-hand side, semi-detached, is listing for almost two million dollars. Not sure if it will come with the flowers.

Still, there is an undeniable charm to living in an area which has so much history, at least from a North American perspective.

We live in the top story of a massive, oversized mansion. Across the street are homes that belonged to people from a long time ago. Like Dr. Kilborn’s house.

Gold letters spell out his name above the doors at 244 King Street. Kilborn lived here from 1896 until he passed away in 1916. The Kilborn’s have long since vacated the property although the sign remains.

The street on which we live is like stepping back in time.

The architecture ranges from Victorian to, well, old world castles.

A few blocks from where we live is McIntosh Castle. The front entrance:

And a more complete shot of the castle:

Many people that live in Kingston are unaware of the McIntosh Castle. And there it is, right in the heart of the downtown.

The McIntosh Castle was designed and built for the McIntosh family, during 1849 and into the 1850’s.

The story behind this building is that McIntosh promised his family that moving to Canada from Great Britain would be an incredible experience and that the family would live in a castle overlooking Lake Ontario if they would agree to move to the new world.

Perhaps back then, the castle did have a view of the Lake. It doesn’t now.

There are so many beautiful heritage homes in our neighbourhood. When we take our golden retriever for walks, I will often take my camera along to capture these wonderful homes. I’m sure that each one has its own bit of history.

Tourist season is now upon us and most visitors fail to walk a few blocks from the main tourist area to see these heritage properties.

I’ll have fond memories of our years in Kingston. Wonderful place to live and work.