Foundations

Dec 21

Exploring the Commercial Landscape of Waterloo

While the majority of municipally listed and designated properties in Waterloo feature residential buildings, our city has fine examples of commercial buildings as well, many of which are located on King Street. In her book Waterloo Township through Two Centuries, Elizabeth Bloomfield noted King Street was the “axis of early settlement and economic activity”. Linking John Erb’s mills in Preston to Abraham Erb’s mills in Waterloo, King had been known as the Great Road and is now part of the commercial core in Uptown Waterloo. Read more

Oct 22

What makes up the Waterloo Vernacular residential architectural style?

Inspired by the City of Waterloo Museum’s fantastic exhibit on our different residential architectural styles in Waterloo, this next Foundations post will examine our very own vernacular architecture. But first, what does “vernacular” mean? Read more

Sep 28

The Hidden Gems of Waterloo: Our Residential Architecture

The City of Waterloo Museum’s current exhibit, At Home: Residential Architecture in Waterloo, highlights the neighbourhoods and architectural styles that are found in our city. Featured styles include Victory housing, Edwardian, Colonial Revival and Mid-Century Modern. Visitors to the Museum can interact with “please touch” materials that have been used in the construction of residential dwellings over time.

Oct 6

Beer, bathtubs and bricks: how craft beer lived, died and was eventually reborn in uptown Waterloo

Reflections about Waterloo's century old tradition of brewing (and quaffing). Part one of a two part series on Waterloo's ever changing local brewing industry.

Apr 5

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A View to the Past: Views of the Seagram Lofts over time

An short history of the Seagram Lofts and how they came to form a focal point at the end of Willis Way in Uptown Waterloo

Feb 17

Present & Future Heritage: The Quantum-Nano Centre

Contemporary heritage: Five years after its construction, the University of Waterloo's intriguing nano-technology building continues to both inspire and reflect the cutting edge research within.

Jan 3

The Topsy-Turvy Streetscapes of Michele Braniff

Michele Braniff, Waterloo's artist in residence in 2016, captures the chaotic beauty of historic places, locally and worldwide. Read about her artwork and what inspires her.

Dec 8

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History in the Making: CIGI Campus

The first in a series about contemporary heritage: Take a tour of the CIGI building at 67 Erb Street West to learn why we think it deserves special recognition for both its architectural design and its sensitivity to its historic setting.

Jun 1

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160 Years of Change at the Corner of King and Erb

A retrospective look at the corner of King and Erb, one of the City’s most photographed intersections. Our journey starts in the 1850s when King Street was known as “the Great Road”, Erb Street was called “Erb’s Road”, and both were little more than dirt tracks carved out of the landscape.

Nov 5

Abraham Erb’s Grist Mill

Throughout the City of Waterloo there are monuments, plaques and installations that pay homage to the citizens and industry that helped make Waterloo what it is today. One of these is the replica of Abraham Erb’s Grist Mill, which was constructed in 1997 as a tribute to the City’s first industry.