Belfountain General Store gets heritage designation

July 15, 2016 · 0 Comments

By Bill Rea
There is a lot of history surrounding the general store in Belfountain, and that has been recognized by the Town.
It had its heritage designation conferred upon it at a brief ceremony at Town Hall.
Mayor Allan Thompson pointed out the property at 758 Bush St. contains a two-storey commercial building that was likely built in 1888. It was on the site of an earlier inn that had been destroyed by fire.
“It’s been definitely a landmark in Belfountain for a good many years,” Thompson observed.
Thompson said it was built for Charles Overland as a hotel, and his family owned the property until 1909. It was operated as a general store for most of that time, and was intermittently the village post office.
The style, form and brick detailing of the building are typical of commercial structures built in the second half of the 19th century in smaller urban centres.
“The facades of this building have evolved through minor remodeling, but the overall structure retains its heritage integrity and authenticity,” Thompson commented.
The property is currently owned by Garth Turner who was Caledon’s MP from 1988 until 1993. He later returned to Parliament from 2006 to 2008, representing Halton.

A number of dignitaries were on hand to see Mayor Allan Thompson present the heritage plaque to Belfountain General Store Assistant Manager Lorna Ekdahl, including Councillors Gord McClure, Johanna Downey and Nick deBoer; Heritage Resource Officer Sally Drummond, Councillors Barb Shaughnessy and Doug Beffort, Heritage Caledon Chair Joanne Crease and Barbara McKenzie of Heritage Caledon.
Photo by Bill Rea