The original address was 5527 Lakeshore Road.
In the 1806 Plan of Nelson Township, Con 4 SDS Lot 1 is owned by the Stafford family. In the 1858 Tremaine Map, Con BF, Part Lot 1 is shown as owned by ” C. S.” In the 1877 map of Nelson Township in the Historical Atlas of Halton County, this part of Lot 1, Con 4 SDS is shown as owned by C. E. Thompson. Hughes Cleaver bought the property for the Inn from C. Thompson, a farmer (see Murray Fisher, “Farewell to the Garden of Canada”, 1984).
Hughes Cleaver was a lawyer and developer. Among his development plans were Plan 134, Crescent Survey, 1911, which included the Emerald Street Boulevard, a prototype of Rossmore Boulevard in his later Roseland development. His other business ventures included the Bluebird Bus Line (its office building still stands at 2015 Lakeshore Road); a fox farm on Caroline Street; and a cure-all remedy called “radium water”, which is said to have ended one patient’s troubles altogether. The 1929 crash left him financially embarrassed, and he was disbarred by the Law Society for misuse of his clients’ funds. At the federal Liberal nomination meeting in 1935, he spoke effectively, saying that since his disbarment he had no other way of making a living. Having been nominated and elected, he paid back his creditors and was reinstated by the Law Society in 1952. He then gave up his seat in Parliament to return to law practice.
In 1929 Cleaver became associated with a company called English Inns Ltd, which planned to build four inns in the English Tudor Revival Style, with imitation thatched roofs – The Red Dragon in Grimsby, the Black Horse in Niagara Falls, The Pig and Whistle in Burlington, and another in Oakville, which was never built. On opening day in 1929, two Scots bagpipers piped in front of the Inn and there was a Tudor- Style menu: roast suckling pig. Annie Curtis, who lived at the northeast corner of Burloak and Lakeshore, prepared and cooked one of the pigs in her kitchen.
The Inn was intended for summertime use only: it was to be open from May to September. The 1929 stock market crash forced the Inn to close for one season, and it was put up for sale.
Alex Brown purchased the Inn, perhaps in 1937, and revived its fortunes. During the 1940s the tourist cabins became an attractive place to stay. In 1948 or 1949 the Calgary Stampeders stayed here for the Grey Cup game in Toronto. In the 1950s, during a housing shortage, the cabins were rented by the month. In the early 1950s the property was purchased by Peter Boszok and a Mr Levinsky. Levinsky sold his share to a Mr McDermid, who sold in 1958 to John Kawun and Paul Drozd. In 1960 Boszok sold to Peter Kupiak and Andrew Dutko. In 1961, an additional four acres were purchased; part of this property was sold in 1970. Big dance bands were brought in on Fridays and Saturdays from the 1950s to 1962.
In 1970 the original garage was demolished. In 1976 the new dining room opened and a full liquor licences was obtained (previously wine & beer licence only). The cabins were demolished in 1977 and replaced with motel units in 1978. (The Red Dragon in Grimsby still has the original cabin units.) In 1988 the property was bought by the Penachetti family, Primo, Patrick and Paul. They removed the carpet in the dining room to discover the original oak floor. They cleaned up the stainless steel bar, which was formerly in the Brant Inn.
