Landmark Building
BAKER RESIDENCE
6274 Ada Boulevard, Edmonton
Built in 1927
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Herbert Baker was born in Yorkshire, England on December 10, 1866. He came to Canada in 1882 and worked for the Massey Manufacturing Co., later Massey-Harris, in Toronto. After a stint in Winnipeg, he moved in Edmonton as Northern Alberta Manager in 1910. Baker retired in 1925, and served as a City alderman from 1927 to 1933.
Baker was a leading proponent of the Highlands Scenic Drive. Thought by many to be of limited use, and unsafe due to the instability of the slope, “Baker’s Folly” remained controversial for many years. It ran through the river valley from 82 Street and Jasper Avenue to Ada Boulevard just west of 69 Street. Completed in the late 1930s, much of the work was done by hand by city construction gangs of unemployed men, or “relief workers,” during the Great Depression. Later, erosion caused the road to close.
An early and consistent investor in The Highlands, Herbert Baker owned three homes in the subdivision, built a house at 6329-111 Avenue, and probably owned other Highlands property as well.
In 1913, this Ada Boulevard lot cost Baker $2,000. It stood empty until this $6,000 house was constructed in 1927. Since then, the Baker Residence has been much altered. The main entry now faces south, but the west side was possibly the original front of the house. From that vantage point, the low-pitched gable roof and even lower-pitched extension (possibly a verandah) can still be seen. The centre gable, a few brackets below the eaves, some original windows, and two clinker brick chimneys hint that this was once a Craftsman Bungalow Style house.
The Landmark Buildings and Places Database draws on the series of walking and/or driving tour booklets produced by Alberta Culture (now Alberta Culture and Community Spirit). The Heritage Community Foundation gratefully acknowledges the support of the Ministry through permission to reprint these materials online. Extracted from Historical Walking Tours of Downtown, 2004, Centennial edition of the brochure. Planning and Development Department, City of Edmonton, and Alberta Community Development., 2004, with permission from Alberta Culture and Community Spirit. Visit the Alberta Culture and Community Spirit for more information.