The building that was the first home to Walkerville boat club was originally located in Detroit along the river. In the 1880’s the owners of the club in Detorit fell into the debt of Hiram Walker, and the club eventually folded. As part of the debt owed, Hiram Walker took possession of the building and loaded it on barges and moved it across the river, locating it just beside the ferry dock. That club was know as the “Tecumseh Boat Club”.
That build was eventually replaced by the one above in 1909 and oddly enough the new clubhouse was built in East Windsor along the waterfront, and the club renamed the Walkerville Boat Club. The Border Cities Star January 7, 1933 edition references the clubhouse above having been recently sold to an “industrial concern”. I’m not sure when the building came down and when the club ceased to exist. I wonder exactly where it was located… Being built in 1909 it couldn’t have been too far from Walkerville…
Have a good weekend everyone, see you back here Monday.
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Would have made quite a venue with those two large balconies. Gorgeous.
I've wondered too, but I'll hazard a guess on the location. Opposite Belleview Ave in East Windsor/Ford City. The reasons are a) it 'looks' like one of the few plausible places and b) Vernon's 1919 city directory has the Boat Club at 184 Sandwich and the Belleview to Pratt block (south side) as 179-195 Sandwich. The locale is some kind of reservoir or waste pond now.
The cover page of the Friday, September 10. 1926 edition of "The Essex Free Press" contains an entertaining recounting (as far a literary style goes) of a hold-up at the Walkerville Boat Club site involvning a pistol shoot out.
Link to the article (middle bottom of page -- entitled "Hi-jackers rob dock"):
http://ink.ourontario.ca/efp/reel12/00569-x4416-y8832-z1-r0-0-0?query=walkerville%20boat%20club&p=1
Unfortunately, the article doesn't provide any clues as to the exact location of the club building.
This is more akin to what a Rowing club would be today...The Detroit Boat Club started out much like this and is still around today with it rowing bays and viewing decks...
Would this be where the old Ford City Bathing Beach/park was located?
Dave, the Ford City Bathing Beach was further east, at the foot of George.
I wonder if this was located near the Alexander park area near strabane the backgound area in the photo sort of looks like it
According to the Windsor Public Library/CONTENTdm Collection, the boat club was located at the east end of the Ford Power Plant dock site , across from the former Ford Public School/East Windsor Hospital/Riverview Hospital. There is a photo ca 1923.
Another photo of this structure can be found in the 1912 County Council sponsored promotional brochure:
http://archive.org/stream/essexcountysunpa00esse#page/14/mode/2up