Very rarely is every house in the neighborhood considered an architectural gem, but Wychwood Park may just be that Toronto neighborhood.

One of my dreams is to write a book about old houses one day when I grow old. For Wychwood Park, sometimes I feel that it would not be just a chapter. The sheer number of old houses is worthy of a book by itself.

Old houses are randomly scattered, free from the grids of urban planning.

Perched on a hill just off Wychwood Park entrance from Davenport Road, The Goodman House is one of the first houses that greet you when you enter the pond gate.

It has the signature characteristics of a Wychwood Park house. The use of colors that blends in with the surrounding nature, a huge lot size with a house that is not overly flashy in design. Some neighborhoods with big houses can often come across as a bit cold and “sanitized”. Wychwood Park houses give the feeling of being at home and you could see yourself living in one of these houses, despite its huge size.

Eden Smith was a popular architect among Wychwood Park house owners at the time. Although this house was not designed by him. It has borrowed design cues from his other Wychwood houses.

The tall and steep gable, with exposed timer décor is reminiscent of an old English cottage. The centered oriel bay window with the mixture of cream-colored stucco and light brown stonework gives it a more traditional look.

2 Wychwood Park, Toronto