You’ll need some trust, imagination, or a little of both to see any traces of the original building in the house at 88 Mary St.
The property transferred from Francis Hugh Eccles via Jane Eccles, widow of Henry, to John Lee in 1867. William Lount facilitated the sale to Lee, owner of a large retail furniture store on Bayfield Street.
J. Lee and Son had been in business since the early 1860’s, and offered high quality furniture for parlours and dining rooms. Their work was so fine in fact, that it reportedly won first and second prizes at the Barrie Exhibition.
An advertisement in an 1872 directory read:
John Lee
DEALER IN FURNITURE OF ALL KINDS,
Chamber and Parlour Sets, Upholstery, Mirrors, Pictures and Picture Frames, and, in fact, everything pertaining to a first-class Furniture Store.
A call from intending Purchasers respectfully solicited.
Bayfield Street, Barrie, Ont.
The lowest prices for cash.
By 1892, David Horace ‘Hy’ Ellis was living in the Mary Street home with his family. Hy was a boot and shoe cutter, often travelling for work. The wintry photo of his home was taken in 1904
A few years later, about 1908, William Tribble and his wife, Elizabeth Davey Tribble, occupied the home. Tribble grew up in Innisfil and was still living there with his family until at least 1901, before they moved to Barrie. In 1921,
Tribble’s occupation was listed as machinist and living at 88 Mary Street at that time with he and his wife, were daughters Annie and Eva, sons Gordon and Allan, as well as a grandson, Kenneth. The family also had a lodger in their home, Terry Benjamin. It was a full house!
Tribble worked as a carpenter for 18 years, until 1930, at the nearby Barrie Planing Mill, a very short walk from his home. At the time of his death in 1946, he was residing at 62 Park Street. William and Elizabeth, and much of their family now rest in the cemetery at St. Paul’s.
So yes, the roofline has changed, the gable and chimneys are gone, a balcony door is now a window, but with a little trust and imagination, you can believe that underneath the siding of 88 Mary St., are the remains of a very old house.
