The Adamson Estate, which forms the eastern boundary of the

Port Credit Port Credit is a neighbourhood in the south-central part of the City of Mississauga, Ontario, Canada, located at the mouth of the Credit River on the north shore of Lake Ontario. Its main intersection is Hurontario Street and Lakeshore Road, a ...

neighbourhood of

Mississauga Mississauga is a Canadian city in the province of Ontario. Situated on the north-western shore of Lake Ontario in the Regional Municipality of Peel, it borders Toronto (Etobicoke) to the east, Brampton to the north, Milton to the northwest, ...

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

, was purchased from the family of

Agar Adamson Agar Stewart Allan Masterton Adamson (25 December 1865 – 21 November 1929) was a Canadian soldier who commanded the Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry from 1916 to 1918, during World War I. Born into a well-connected Upper Canadian f ...

by Credit Valley Conservation Authority in 1975 upon the urging of the local ratepayers group known as Project H21 after a proposed real estate development which would have changed the character of the neighbourhood. It is now a public park on the

Waterfront Trail The Great Lakes Waterfront Trail is a signed route of roads and trails in Ontario, Canada, running between Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Sault Ste. Marie and the Quebec border following the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River. The trail connects ov ...

. It was recognized as a

Historic Place A historic site or heritage site is an official location where pieces of political, military, cultural, or social history have been preserved due to their cultural heritage value. Historic sites are usually protected by law, and many have been rec ...

in 1978.

History

The land on which the property is built was acquired by Joseph Cawthra in 1809. The farmland, which came to be known as the Grove Farm, was granted to Agar Adamson and Mabel Cawthra as a wedding gift. Agar Adamson, born on Christmas Day 1865, was the grandson of William Agar Adamson an influential Toronto clergyman. He married into the

Cawthra family The Cawthra family of Toronto was famous for its business, social and cultural contributions to the city. It is one of the oldest families in Toronto, and many descendants of the family's founder, Joseph Cawthra, continue to play significant roles ...

whose legacy in Peel lives on through the Cawthra Estate located near the intersection of the Cawthra Road and the

Queen Elizabeth Way The Queen Elizabeth Way (QEW) is a 400-series highways, 400-series highway in the Canadian province of Ontario linking Toronto with the Niagara Peninsula and Buffalo, New York. The highway begins at the Canada–United States border on the Pea ...

. Their legacy comes from supplying

eastern white pine ''Pinus strobus'', commonly called the eastern white pine, northern white pine, white pine, Weymouth pine (British), and soft pine is a large pine native to eastern North America. It occurs from Newfoundland, Canada, west through the Great Lake ...

logs for ship masts in the British

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...

. He served under General

Arthur Currie General Sir Arthur William Currie, (5 December 187530 November 1933) was a senior officer of the Canadian Army who fought during World War I. He had the unique distinction of starting his military career on the very bottom rung as a pre-war ...

. Insights into his time at war may be seen in the

CBC CBC may refer to: Media * Cadena Baja California or Grupo Cadena, a radio and television broadcaster in Mexico * Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, Canada's radio and television public broadcaster ** CBC Television ** CBC Radio One ** CBC Music ** ...

series ''The Great W

' which features Talbot Papineau, another of the four Canadians featured in the book. Agar Adamson designed and built the Belgian-style mansion on this land in 1919, after returning from the wartime service in France. In 1943, his son Anthony Adamson added a home for himself on the property. The estate was acquired by the

Credit Valley Conservation Credit Valley Conservation (CVC) is one of 36 conservation authorities in Ontario, Canada, responsible for protecting, restoring, and managing natural resources at the watershed level. CVC operates within the Credit River watershed and smaller ...

Authority in 1975.

Architecture

Pet Cemetery-Adamson Estate-Mississauga-Ontario-HPC9996-20220826

The architecture of the main house, often thought to be Spanish is actually Flemish architecture, one of the areas in the European theatre in which Agar fought during the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. One of the treasures of the Adamson Estate are the great

, the provincial tree of Ontario, which remain on the site and are ties to the heritage of the Adamson/Cawthra families and that of the early development of Toronto Township, Peel County, now known largely as Mississauga,

Region of Peel The Regional Municipality of Peel (informally Peel Region or Region of Peel, also formerly Peel County) is a regional municipality in the Greater Toronto Area, Southern Ontario, Canada. It consists of three municipalities to the west and northwest ...

. Another element of interest is the family

pet cemetery A pet cemetery is a cemetery for pets. Although the veneration and burial of beloved pets has been practiced since ancient times, burial grounds reserved specifically for animals were not common until the late 19th century. History Many hum ...

which has been recently surrounded by a wrought iron fence with stone pillars and memorial plaque.

Today

The old mansion of the Adamson Estate is now leased to the City of Mississauga to operate as a public park.

References

{{Coord, 43.562, N, 79.567, W, display=title Buildings and structures in Mississauga Houses in Ontario Houses completed in 1919