O'Neail Residence

The O'Neail Residence, located at 899 Keg Lane, is situated on the north side of Keg Lane, east of Ayr Road, in the former Township of South Dumfries, now the County of Brant. The property consists of a one-and-a-half-storey cobblestone building that was constructed in 1861.

The property was designated, by the County of Brant, in 2006, for its historical or architectural interest, under Part IV of the Ontario Heritage Act (By-law 180-06).

The O'Neail Residence was built by Charles O'Neail, whose family emigrated from Ireland to the Brant area. O'Neail, who was the president of the Paris Agricultural Society, married Margaret Urquhart and built this home, in 1861. The O'Neail family was prominent in the community and credited as being instrumental in the construction of the nearby stone Sacred Heart Church, in 1857. They also donated the southwest corner of their property for the building of the Keg Lane School, in 1868.

The O'Neail Residence is a fine example of the Regency Cottage style of architecture, featuring a hip roof, centre door with sidelights and transom, roughly dressed corner quoins and an elongated cobblestone header course, above the windows. Typically, only two or three sides of a house were constructed using cobblestone, due to its high costs, however, the O'Neail Residence magnificently displays cobblestone walls on all four sides of the house, illustrating the prominence of the family in the Town.

Sources: County of Brant, By-law 180-06; Marg, Deans, 899 Ken Lane Road: The Charles and Margaret O'Neail House, 2002.

Character defining elements that contribute to the heritage value of the O'Neail Residence include its:

- four costly exterior cobblestone walls that portray the family's wealth and prominence

- hip roof

- centre door with sidelights and transom

- roughly dressed corner quoins

- elongated cobblestone header course above the windows

- 8 over 8 and dormer windows