THOMSON, James (1870-1951) began his career in Sault Ste. Marie but the majority of his commissions are to be found in the Toronto area. Born in Innisfil Township on 16 July 1870 he attended public school in Simcoe Co. and graduated from Barrie Collegiate in 1890. He had no formal university training, choosing instead to gain practical experience in the Barrie office of Kennedy & Holland from 1893 to 1896. Later that year he opened his own office in Sault Ste. Marie and remained there until 1903 when he opened a branch office in Sudbury, which was under the supervision of Harry Angus, with whom he was to later form a partnership (Sault Star, 29 Jan. 1903, 8). In late 1905 Thomson announced that he would close his Sault Ste. Marie office and move to Toronto (Sault Star, 24 Aug. 1905, 8). There, he established a new office, at first under his own name, then in partnership with Franklin E. Belfry from 1910 to late 1912. It was during this period that he designed many houses in the Avenue Road hill district of Toronto, as well as churches, schools and industrial works elsewhere in the city. He remained active until 1945 and died in Toronto on 11 March 1951 (obit. Globe & Mail [Toronto], 13 March 1951, 5; R.A.I.C. Journal, xxviii, April 1951, 118; inf. Ontario Assoc. of Architects)
J. THOMSON (works in Sault Ste. Marie unless noted)
OPERA HOUSE, Queen Street, 1901 (C.R., xii, 3 July 1901, 2)
BRUCE MINES, ONT., public school, 1901 (C.R., xii, 14 Aug. 1901, 2)
QUEEN STREET, at Spring Street, hotel for Levi Lambert, 1901 (Sault Star, 3 Oct. 1901, 8, descrip.)
QUEEN STREET, a three storey commercial block for Richard H. Carney, 1902 (C.R., xiii, 5 March 1902, 2; Sault Star, 1 May 1902, 8, descrip.; 27 Nov. 1902, 8, descrip.)
ALGOMA BOAT CLUB, a new two storey clubhouse, with boat storage, reading and reception rooms, 1902 (Sault Star, 13 March 1902, 1)
ST. ANDREW'S PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH, 1902 (Sault Star, 17 April 1902, 10; C.R., xiii, 23 April 1902, 3)
QUEEN STREET, store for F. Dalgleish, 1902 (Sault Star, 1 May 1902, 8)
WELLINGTON STREET, near Pim Street, residence for Thomas E. Hawkins, 1902 (Sault Star, 1 May 1902, 8)
HERRICK STREET, residence for Allan Templeton, 1902 (Sault Star, 3 June 1902, 5)
ALBERT STREET, major addition to Central School, 1902 (C.R., xiii, 11 June 1902, 2, t.c.)
CHURCH STREET, residence for George A. Boyd, 1902 (Sault Star, 3 July 1902, 1; C.R., xiii, 9 July 1902, 8)
PIM STREET, residence for William A. Quibell, 1902 (Sault Star, 24 July 1902, 1)
ONTARIO AVENUE, at Great Northern Road, residence for Charles F. Farwell, 1903 (Sault Star, 23 April 1903, 1)
EAST STREET, residence for Chief Downey, 1903 (Sault Star, 21 May 1903, 4)
QUEEN STREET EAST, residence for W.J. Light, 1903 (Sault Star, 28 May 1903, 1)
QUEEN STREET, at Spring Street, commercial block for C.E. Chipley, 1903 (Sault Star, 28 May 1903, 1; and 25 June 1903, 1; C.R., xiv, 3 June 1903, 2, t.c.)
CENTRAL METHODIST CHURCH, Spring Street at Albert Street, a new design for the church, originally prepared by Henry Simpson of Toronto in early 1903, but rejected for budget limitations, and the design by Thomson later built in 1903-04 (Sault Star, 25 June 1903, 1; inf. Chris Tossell, Sault Ste. Marie, Ont.)
QUEEN STREET, near the Boat Club House, residence for Judge Johnston, 1904 (Sault Star, 9 June 1904, 3)
THOMSON & ANGUS
NORTH BAY, ONT., St. Mary's Roman Catholic Church, Klock Avenue at McIntyre Street, 1903-04; Bishop's Palace, c. 1905; St. Mary's Convent, c. 1906 (C.R., xiv, 16 Dec. 1903, 1, t.c.; H. Gard, North Bay: Gateway to Silverland, 1909, 135-6)
NORTH BAY, ONT., Town Hall, Ferguson Street, 1903 (W. Kennedy, North Bay: Past-Present-Prospective, 1961, 35)
VERNER, ONT., St. Jean Baptiste Roman Catholic Church, 1905 (La Presse [Montreal], 1 Aug. 1905, 2; Catholic Record [London], 19 Aug. 1905, 8)
J. THOMSON (works in Toronto unless noted)
HURON STREET, near Dupont Street, two houses for M. Healy, 1906 (Toronto b.p. 5765, 29 Oct. 1906; b.p. 5991, 22 Nov. 1906)
SAULT STE. MARIE, ONT., Technical School, to be built "....on the east side of the present High School", 1906-07 (Sault Star, 25 Jan. 1906, 8; Sault Star, 19 July 1906, 8, and 22 Aug. 1907, 1, descrip.; C.R., xviii, 3 July 1907, 4)
SAULT STE. MARIE, ONT., new Fire Hall, 1907 (Sault Star, 18 April 1907, 1, descrip.; 25 April 1907, 1, descrip.)
STROUD, ONT., Presbyterian Church, 1908-09 (C.R., xxii, 3 June 1908, 26; Barrie Examiner, 17 March 1910, 5, illus. & descrip., but incorrectly credited to "...Mr. Thompson [sic], architect")
SUDBURY, ONT., Town Hall, Elgin Street at Beech Street, 1910-12 (Sudbury Star, 20 April 1910, 1; 14 June 1913, 5, descrip.)
RUSHOLME ROAD, pair of houses for Arthur C. Biette and Allan G. Biette, 1907 (Toronto b.p. 8891, 23 Aug. 1907)
ORIOLE ROAD, near Heath Street West, house for Mrs. Old, 1908 (Toronto b.p. 10934, 11 May 1908)
INDIAN ROAD, near Howard Park Avenue, residence for Alfred H. Smith, 1909 (Const., ii, April 1909, 79)
LYNWOOD AVENUE, near St. Clair Avenue West, residence for Joseph O. Oliver, 1909 (Const., ii, April 1909, 79)
SIDNEY STREET, near Cottingham Street, residence for George Bryan, 1909 (Const., ii, April 1909, 79)
DUNVEGAN ROAD, near Lonsdale Road, house for Mrs. Old, 1909 (Toronto b.p. 18223, 17 Nov. 1909)
KING GEORGE THEATRE, Bloor Street West near Bathurst Street, theatre, stores and apartments for H.R. Reynolds, 1909 (Toronto b.p. 18365, 24 Nov. 1909)
THOMSON & BELFRY (works in Toronto)
WARREN ROAD, near Heath Street, residence for Lorne M. Sinclair, 1911 (Toronto b.p. 26372, 18 April 1911)
RIVERDALE METHODIST CHURCH, Gerrard Street East at Leslie Street, a Sunday School, 1912; demol. 2018 (Toronto b.p. 34617, 7 June 1912; inf. Ian Mason)
RUSSELL HILL ROAD, near Lonsdale Road, residence for Gordon B. Dunfield, 1912 (Toronto b.p. 35253, 21 June 1912)
RUSSELL HILL ROAD, near Heath Street West, residence for Hugh G.B. Dunfield, 1912 (Toronto b.p. 35819, 5 July 1912)
J. THOMSON (works in Toronto unless noted)
YONGE STREET, near St. Clair Avenue, movie theatre for George L. Thompson, 1913-14; two rows of three stores and dwellings, 1914 (Toronto b.p. 8416, 5 Dec. 1913; b.p. 9139, 10 Feb. 1914; b.p. 9484 & 9485, 9 March 1914)
ROSE PARK DRIVE, residence for M. Healy, 1917 (Const., x, Aug. 1917, 288)
BARRIE, ONT., residence for George Vickers, Owen Street, 1933 (C.R., xlvii, 18 Oct. 1933, 36)
BARRIE, ONT., Hockey & Sports Arena, 1933-34 (Owen Sound Daily Sun-Times, 16 Dec. 1933, 5; Const., xxvii, Oct/Nov. 1934, 136-7, illus.)
OWEN SOUND, ONT., sports arena, 1938 (C.R., li, 30 March 1938, 47)
WATERLOO, ONT., indoor skating arena, Erb Street West, in Memorial Park, 1939 (Kitchener Daily Record, 2 Feb. 1939, 15, and 7 Feb. 1939, 3)
TORONTO, ONT., Sunshine Uniform Supply Ltd., Lighbourne Avenue at Geary Avenue, factory, 1944 (Toronto b.p. 80634, 15 April 1944)
COMPETITIONS
HAMILTON, ONT., Carnegie Library, 1910. Thomson was one of 20 architects from Canada and the United States who submitted a design in this important competition. He was not one of three finalists, and the winners were Stuart Pavey of London, Ont. with Harold E. Shorey and Atwell J. King of Montreal. However, their winning design was rejected because it was mistakenly assumed they were Americans who had submitted their entry from a New York City address. The commission was later awarded to A.W. Peene of Hamilton (inf. Robert Hamilton).