Lower Doon in Kitchener in Waterloo Region, Ontario — Central Canada (North America)

Doon School of Fine Arts 1948-1966

Photographed by Tim Boyd, April 4, 2025

1. Doon School of Fine Arts 1948-1966 Marker

Inscription.
This sleeping cabin is one of 15 cabins which lined the edge of the property

The first five were built in 1949 by Ross Hamilton others were added until all 15 were complete

Restored by
students and instructors
of the Renovation Carpentry Program, 1997-98
Conestoga College

Topics. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: Arts, Letters, Music. A significant historical year for this entry is 1948.

Location. 43° 23.703′ N, 80° 25.083′ W. Marker is in Kitchener, Ontario, in Waterloo Region. It is in Lower Doon. It can be reached from Old Mill Road 0.1 kilometers west of Mill Park Drive. The cabins and marker are on the grounds of the Homer Watson House and Gallery. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 40 Roos Street, Kitchener ON N2P 1H8, Canada. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in the Huron-Perth-Waterloo-Wellington Area

and in Southwestern Ontario.

It is also in Central Canada.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once a British colony,

the Viceroyalty

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of New France,

the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) Confederacy,

and Rupert’s Land.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 2 kilometers of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Homer Ransford Watson (within shouting distance of this marker); Doon Presbyterian Church (within shouting distance of this marker); Waterloo Pioneer Memorial Tower (approx. 0.6 kilometers away); Waterloo Pioneers / Pionniers de Waterloo (approx. 0.6 kilometers away); Pioneer Tower West (approx. 0.6 kilometers away); Huron Road Crossroads at Bechtel’s Ford (approx. 1.4 kilometers away); Huron Road Bridge (approx. 1.6 kilometers away); The Huron Road (approx. 1.7 kilometers away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Kitchener.

Also see . . . Doon School of Fine Arts | 1948 - 1975 (Homer Watson History & Archives).

The Homer Watson House is widely known as being historically significant due to its connection celebrated landscape artist Homer Watson. However, the site continued to be a home for creatives long after his death with a second life as the Doon School of Fine Arts, a unique community hub for artistic practice. 
Photographed by Tim Boyd, April 4, 2025

2. Doon School of Fine Arts 1948-1966 Marker

Following the death of Homer’s sister, Phoebe Watson, the house was purchased by Ross and Bess Hamilton. The Hamiltons were friends of the Watsons and were keen to preserve the property as a place to embrace and celebrate the arts. They set up the Doon School of Fine Arts in 1948, modelling it after the Banff School of Fine Arts in Alberta.

(Submitted on April 5, 2025, by Tim Boyd of Hamilton, Ontario.)

Homer Watson House and Gallery image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Tim Boyd, April 4, 2025

3. Homer Watson House and Gallery

The cabins are on the east side of the grounds

Students of the Doon School of Fine Arts ca 1948 image. Click for full size.

4. Students of the Doon School of Fine Arts ca 1948

Source: Homer Watson History and Archives

Credits. This page was last revised on April 5, 2025. It was originally submitted on April 5, 2025, by Tim Boyd of Hamilton, Ontario. This page has been viewed 108 times since then and 19 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on April 5, 2025, by Tim Boyd of Hamilton, Ontario. • Andrew Ruppenstein was the editor who published this page.