|
Original Bird
House
Fountain & Stone
Walkway
Front of Pansy Patch
with White Steps
Cory Cottage
|
Pansy Patch and Kate Reed Kate Armour Lowrey Reed was born in Cobourg,
Ontario, in 1856, the eldest child of Supreme Court Judge John Douglas Armour
and was educated at Mrs. Stubb’s Ladies’ School in Toronto. She has been described by her niece as “a
very fascinating character, very masculine in energy and executive ability,
and yet wholly feminine in her greatness and her devotion to helping those in
distress”. On September 16, 1880, Kate
married Grosvenor Lowrey, noted patent attorney for such great people as
Thomas Alva Edison. While married to
Mr. Lowrey, she became a great authority on antiques and paintings through
her association with the higher circles of New York society. In March, 1882, Grace Armour Lowrey was
born, a stepsister for Virginia and Julie.
Grosvenor was very much in love with Kate, as is shown in his letters
to her, published in a biography by Jocelyn Pierson Taylor. Grosvenor Lowrey died in 1893. Upon her return to Montreal
after Grosvenor Lowrey’s death, she assisted Sir William Van Horne in putting
together his art collection, one of Canada’s most famous in those days. In 1894, Kate married Hayter Reed, who had
been the Canadian Indian Commissioner.
A few years later, he became the Manager-in-Chief of the CPR
Hotels. Because of her experience in
connection with the Van Horne collection, Kate was asked to redecorate the
CPR Hotels and was sent to Europe to buy antiques, paintings and
furniture. The Chateau Frontenac was
the first hotel of her redecorating challenges. While still in Montreal, she was commissioned by the Canadian
Government to decorate the Royal train coach which was used to carry the Duke
and Duchess of Cornwall across Canada in 1901. This same coach was also later used by King George V and Queen
Mary. Kate also redecorated CPR
Hotels in Banff, Lake Louise, Field, Emerald Lake, Glacier, Sicamous Junction
and Vancouver. When she was finished,
it was said that one could enter any of these hotels and stop, saying, “Kate
Reed did that”. She went on to
decorate the Empress Hotel in Victoria and the Palliser in Calgary. At Chateau Lake Louise, Kate was
responsible for the introduction of the Icelandic Poppy for which that area
is now so famous! But Kate Reed was not just a
businesswoman. She was also a
humanitarian. She helped to care for
some of her poorer prairie cousins by taking them necessary supplies and
giving them money when she could. She
was always there to help the underdog, involving herself in various
organizations to do just that. While
living in Ottawa, she was asked by the Governor-General to be the
founder-director of the Victorian Order of Nurses. In 1911, Hayter and Kate began
the construction of Pansy Patch, whose design had been completed by the
renowned architect Charles Saxe, RCA.
In 1912, they moved in and made it their summer home. The interior of Pansy Patch showed Kate’s
decorating abilities. She had three
huge beams shipped from Montreal, two of which were used as supports in the
living room. The third, they used for
the mantel of the huge fireplace. On
this mantel is carved an excerpt from one of Edward Spencer’s works, and it
reads: “Now faire betyde who here abyde and merrie may they be And faire befalle who in this halle repaire in courtesie. From morne till nighte be it darke or bright we banish droll
and dree. Come sit beside our hearth tis wide for gentle companie.” The living room also held Kate and Hayter’s
collection of ship models, some 29 in total, as well as their valuable
collection of ships-in-bottles and bird cages. The dining room was a
masterpiece in itself. The tiles
around the fireplace are the original delft blues. The window was encased in glass and had glass shelves, holding
an extensive collection of glass bottles of every hue, sparkling in the
sunlight like a rainbow after a summer shower. Another of Kate Reed’s
accomplishments was the fund set up to plant trees along the road to the Golf
Course, which is today knows as Reed Avenue.
Her first donor was Sir William Van Horne, a close personal friend. Sir William, however, did not actually
give Kate the money he pledged.
Instead, he gave her a painting, the last work he completed before his
death in 1913. Mrs. Reed did not
particularly like the painting and would tell him when he visited Pansy Patch
that it was being framed! In 1927, Pansy Patch was
advertised for sale and sold to Mr. And Mrs. Samuel Houston. Kate and Hayter moved to the Andrews
Cottage, now known as Cory Cottage and now a part of Pansy Patch Bed &
Breakfast. They began restoration of
their new home. Kate once again set
about making plans for her gardens. Kate Reed died in London,
England, in 1928, and was buried in Montreal. She was survived by one son, Gordon Reed, and her daughter,
Grace Lowrey. Pansy Patch was owned by the
Houston’s until 1937 when it was sold to Mr. And Mrs. H. D. Burns, Chairman
of the Bank of Nova Scotia, for $5,000.
In 1960, the house was again sold, this time to Mr. And Mrs. John Gale
of Montreal. In 1969, it was sold to
Mr. And Mrs. Allen Balliet of Pennsylvania.
In 1979, Pansy Patch was bought by Michael and Kathleen Lazare and
converted to a bed and breakfast in 1980.
The present owner, Michael O’Connor of Boston, Massachusetts,
purchased the home in 1993, and has continued to operate it as a bed and
breakfast. He has added Gallery New
Brunswick, which contains works of art exclusively crafted by New Brunswick
artists and crafts persons. In
addition, fine dining is also available for the general public, complimenting
the other existing businesses within Pansy Patch. Mr. O’Connor is trying to bring the grounds back to their
original state by using information from Kate’s Garden Journal to replicate
the gardens, their locations and their functionality. Any repairs that have been completed have
been done so with great concern and detail so as to maintain the original
character of Pansy Patch As one enters Pansy Patch
today, the ambiance that was created by Kate Reed so many years ago can still
be felt. As you sit before the warm
hearth fires, relaxing, enjoying friendly conversation, you are aware of her
presence. She was a great woman, then
and now, and her contributions to St. Andrews and Canada will always be
remembered fondly. |
