330 Watson Avenue - John Robertson and Agnes Dingwall Robertson House

The Robertson family owned this home for at least 55 years

John Alexander Robertson was born on 14 October 1855 in Liverpool, England to parents John and Helen Robertson. His father was a joiner (woodworker) at the time. He married Agnes Dingwall in July 1883 and they resided for a time in Liverpool until emigrating to the West Montreal area of Quebec in 1886. Their first child Agnes was born in 1884 in England, while their other two daughters, Eleanor and Ruth, were born in Quebec in 1886 and 1891 respectively.

While in Montreal, John was employed as a clerk in the Fire Insurance business. Sometime after 1909, the family moved to Toronto, first living on Cecil Street and then at 21 Sussex Avenue in the Bloor and Spadina area where John continued in the insurance industry. Sadly, his wife Agnes died in March 1906 of Bright's Disease.

The family remained in Toronto where 6 years later, John married Josephine Lind. In 1922 he purchased the lot at 330 Watson Avenue where the beautiful Arts & Crafts stucco home with its lake stone wall would be built.

John took the train into Toronto each day on the 7:35 or 8:01 and back home on the 4:15, 5:20 or 6:05, not unlike the people of today. Commuters became quite good friends and often played practical jokes on each other. John Robertson played bridge enroute with people such as E. T. Lightbourn, "Doc" Cameron, Hubert Chisholm, Stuart Brown, Ban Taylor and Frank Worrell.

The family resided at 330 Watson for many years. His three daughters remained unmarried. While Agnes and Ruth remained close to home, Eleanor enjoyed herself by travelling back and forth to England.

John lived to the age of 100, passing away in December of 1955. His daughters continued to reside at the house on Watson. It is not known what eventually became of Eleanor. Agnes died in 1969 at the age of 85. Ruth continued living in the house and on her 100th birthday was awarded a certificate from Prime Minister Brian Mulroney. She passed away in 1997 at the age of 106. Longevity certainly prevailed in the Robertson household.