KAWARTHA LAKES-The City of Kawartha Lakes council recently passed a resolution of intent to designate the Pattie House building in Coboconk under Section 29 of the Ontario Heritage Act, R.S.O. 1990, c.18, as a property of cultural heritage value or interest:
6673 Highway 35 has design and physical value as an intact and surviving example of a late nineteenth century rural hotel in Coboconk according to the City. Constructed in 1877 to replace an older building on the same site, the building has housed a hotel and tavern since that time and its architectural reflects that use, as many rural and small-town hotels tended towards the use of vernacular architectural forms that more closely resembled domestic Georgian architecture as opposed to Italianate, which was the preferred style for the majority of commercial architecture at this time. This can be seen in the architectural features in the building which include a rectangular side gable plan on the main portion of the building with a centre-hall plan layout, a symmetrical façade, and a near total lack of ornamental features.
6673 Highway 35 has historical and associative value as the location of the Pattie House, one of Kawartha Lakes’ oldest continuously operating businesses. The business was established as the Keys Hotel on this location in 1873, changing its name to the Pattie House Hotel in the early 1880s although it remained under the same ownership. The Keys-Pattie family continued to operate the hotel until 1937 but, after its sale, the businesses continued to be operated by a variety of proprietors as the Pattie House up until the present day. In its longstanding role as a hotel and restaurant, the property yields information regarding the hospitality industry in Coboconk beginning in the 1870s and, more generally, information regarding Coboconk’s economic growth in the last quarter of the nineteenth century.
Further information respecting the proposed designation is available at the City’s Economic Development Department. Any objection to this designation must be filed within 30 days of June 29, 2026. Objections should be directed to: Cathie Richie, Clerk, City of Kawartha Lakes, P.O. Box 9000, 26 Francis Street, Lindsay, ON K9V 5R8. Objections may be filed electronically at clerks@kawarthalakes.ca.
For more information regarding the property, please refer to its Heritage Evaluation Report.
