In a recent Spectator article, it was suggested by Mr. Fred Napoli, a member of the Friends of Auchmar, that the beautiful Auchmar House and grounds be utilized as a museum site, reflecting Hamilton’s industrial and agricultural past.
The article suggests there is a huge collection of artifacts presently collecting dust in attics and barns that could be used as the startup pieces, to tell the story of Hamilton in its infancy.
We have heard many suggestions for the future use of this gothic treasure on the west Mountain, which have inspired our city councillors to take a second look at the aging beauty.
Passing by this elegant fragment of Victoriana, I was delighted to see that the roof repairs have been done and the magnificent horde of chimneys are nearing restoration. Her medium grey, plastered walls are now becoming well-defined under that dark brown roof and it struck home to me that this most unique of architectural gems must be allowed a sophisticated rebirth.
Like that fiery phoenix bird of paradise rising from the ashes, Colonel Buchanan’s country home will fly once again in the eyes and minds of a caring, loving citizenry.
Meaning no disrespect to Mr. Napoli, I humbly submit as I have done since 1999 in Dusty Corners, that Auchmar House and its sprawling grounds must, and I repeat must, be returned to its former appearance of the mid 1850s in order for it to qualify as a truly historic site.
As a former museum administrator/curator and researcher, I cannot emphasize enough the importance of protecting ancient artifacts in an in-situ state or as close to that state as is possible.
You may disagree with me and if you do, don’t hesitate to send a letter to the editor of the Mountain News.
Mr. Napoli’s vision, though admirably presented, of a catchall collection of our past, denigrates the elegance of the estate and that of its owner, Lt. Col. the Honourable Mr. Isaac Buchanan MP. Esq.
Isaac was truly a man of vision in his time. Isaac got Hamilton’s commercial ball rolling through his many daring investments.
He and Sir Allan MacNab teamed up to convince the Great Western Railroad to lay track through the downtown core as opposed to skirting the city entirely. Industrial Hamilton exploded with unparalleled growth. As a young man, Isaac was an ensign in the Queen’s Rangers and assisted in the pursuit of William Lyon MacKenzie in 1837. He rode across this very Mountain leading a posse attempting to end MacKenzie’s panicked flight to the border.
Middle-aged, Isaac raised, mostly at his own expense, the famous city regiment the XIIIth Battalion of Royal Canadian Militia, now our proud Royal Hamilton Light Infantry.
A man of quick wit, daring, humour and adventure, Isaac Buchanan’s memory is better served today in the form of a classy, restored country home refitted for visitors, tourists, conventions, retreats, marriages and, of course, well-designed visual segments of his glorious past presented in immaculate form in a portion of the estate.
All said and done, Isaac Buchanan was never a farmer!
Mountain historian Colwyn Beynon can be reached at crsw389@sympatico.ca.