2 Hatt Street

2 Hatt Street. Plan 1443 Lot 19

In 1804, Richard Hatt purchased a portion of the mill built by Edward Peer alongside the creek near Governor’s Road and Main Street. In 1808 he purchased the remainder of it. He called it Dundas Mills, after the name of the road it was on.

In 1805, he built a stone store to the east of the property, what is known today as 2 Hatt Street.  Despite the alterations made to the stone structure, it is likely the oldest surviving building from the early days of the settlement at Dundas Mills. During its early years it was the centre of community life in Dundas. A general store was built on the property. The store was also used as a general post office, becoming that officially in 1814.

The building then housed a blacksmith shop for 125 years, became a residence in 1943, and was converted to a lighting store in 1961. It has remained empty since 2004. In its conversion to a store in 1961, most of the east wall and part of the north wall were demolished and replaced by display windows. The basement remains, with a stone foundation, and used for storage.

As of January 2020, the structure is still undesignated by the City of Hamilton as a historic building, but it is in the city’s inventory of architectural, and/or historical interest.

Sources:

Woodhouse Family History Collection; Dundas LACAC records; Dundas Star-News