At 65,000 square feet, the Peter Grant Mansion goes by different names – Haileybury House, Peter Grant Mansion or simply “Canada’s Largest Mansion”. It was built along the shores of Lake Temiskaming in Northern Ontario by Peter Grant Junior.
Peter Grant grew up in the New Liskeard area. He started as a plant manager for Elk Planning Mill Limited and became president of the company in 1976. The same year he became president of the Grant Lumber Company Limited. which held partial ownership of the Elk mill until 1995.
Mr. Grant started Grant Forest Products in 1980, making him the 87th richest person in Canada by 2004. His company was North America’s third largest supplier of oriented strand board. Peter built his own private nine hole golf course named Frog’s Breath. He used his money for philanthropy, raising millions for charity through the Frog’s Breath Foundation.
In 1998, he held the first of many annual fundraising events, raising $523,000. In 2005, $500,000 raised was split between the Temiskaming Hospital and the Englehart and Area Community Complex. In 2006 the foundation was able to donate $750,000 towards the Kirkland District Health Centre.
Over a period of 9 years these golf tournaments raised over $12 million dollars with the help of hundreds of volunteers, community supporters and the generosity of Grant Forest Products Incorporated who matched the event proceeds.
By 2007 however the tournament was cancelled, citing the financial downturn in the lumber industry.
Construction of the mansion began in 2005, which was to be used as both Peter’s home and a corporate office. The house was to feature an art gallery, waterfalls, golf course, and squash court. It has two elevators, a boat house big enough for a 40-foot yacht, an indoor pool, a giant hot tub and 30-foot fireplaces in the master bedroom and living room.
By 2009, the American housing market downturn led to the company filing for court protection from creditors, with a roughly $600,000,000 debt. All of the company’s assets, including the mansion, were put up for sale. Construction of the house stopped in 2008.
In 2010 the property was listed for sale at $25,000,000 and sat idle for a few more years until being purchased by a Toronto company. For three years the company failed to pay the taxes on the property and the town of Haileybury put the property up for sale. In the final hours before the sale, the company came forward and paid the taxes owing.
It’s estimated that the property would need $1 million just to complete the construction. The mansion sits in disrepair. The floors are still plywood, electrical wiring hasn’t been completed, the walls were left unfinished and the property has an industrial look to it rather than a home.
The property has been fenced off and No Trespassing signage posted.
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October 2023 Update
CBC news reporter Erik White published an article about how the property has been purchased by a Texas entrepreneur named Chris Fischer.
Canada’s largest house and infamous northern Ontario eyesore set to star in ‘Mansion Impossible’
Erik White · CBC News · Posted: Oct 13, 2023 2:23 PM EDT | Last Updated: October 13
After years of sitting abandoned, things are finally happening at one of northern Ontario’s most infamous eyesores.
The Grant mansion on Lake Temiskaming in Haileybury is said to be the largest house in Canada, but it was never finished.
Now it is set to star in a proposed new reality TV show called Mansion Impossible.
“It’s spooky, scary, destroyed. It’s a mess,” producer Theresa Kowall-Shipp said of the inside of the 65,000 square-foot house.
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Forestry magnate Peter Grant envisioned a sprawling lakefront mansion when his company purchased the land for $110,000 in 2004.
Plans were made for a massive subterranean boathouse, a golf course and a moat on the outside, while the inside would feature waterfalls, an art gallery and only one bedroom.
It was listed for $25 million in 2010, was sold to a numbered Toronto-based company, that has done little on the property other than put up fencing and security cameras, although that has not kept keep vandals and curious visitors from trespassing.
“Folks come into town and they want to know where it is and can they go have a look,” said Temiskaming Shores Mayor Jeff Laferriere.
Kowall-Shipp says a Texas entrepreneur named Chris Fischer, who she describes as an “audacious, irreverent, master of sarcasm,” recently took possession of the house through a private vendor take-back mortgage agreement with the numbered company.
“He’s looking a lot of different possibilities for what this property could turn into, what this house could turn into. That’s a big part of the story we’ll be following,” she said.
Mansion Impossible, which is currently being shopped around to TV networks and streaming services, would also tell the “fish of out water” story of a Texas family that moves to northern Ontario to take on this major renovation project, expected to take several years to complete.
- Foundation celebrates 25 years of donating to northern Ontario charities
- Historic building facing uncertain future in Kirkland Lake
“The plan is that we will be following them into the house in the spring and we will watch and record what happens when they get in there,” said Kowall-Shipp.
“I’m actually staring at the building right now from my office,” said Mayor Laferriere.
“You know, just seeing it rot has been a challenge.”
He says people in Temiskaming Shores are excited to see something finally happening with the house, and “it’s going to be a challenge, but at the same time, what a great idea.”
Erik White is a CBC journalist based in Sudbury. He covers a wide range of stories about northern Ontario. Connect with him on Twitter @erikjwhite. Send story ideas to [email protected]
where can i find pictures of this place before it was abandoned? i want to see what it looked like when this guy was still living in it, i cant imagine the type of things he had inside his house
Construction was never completed.
Umm, what?
Did you read the article? It wasn’t finished, never lived in.
i’ll take it it will be a good family home i just gotta fix up a little lol
Does anyone know the a architects who built the house?
Does anyone know who owns it now?
Thanks
Looks like an ideal residentially challenged housing solution to me!
Anyone have any idea who the designer/architect was? Sad to see this 🙁
what is the price now
We’re is Mr Grant’s family? I’m sure they would have wanted to making something out of this to assist people. I will pray that the Lord will see over the financial and use this in his Grace. Amen. Blessings JS
My name’s Brent, I’m a recovering addict. I don’t know how but I feel God gave me vision and purpose a month ago to spare my life. He just confirmed with me seeing your post that this will happen if I listen and follow his will. I’m kinda freaked out! I have nothing except the power of the living God behind me.
I praise his grace. Please add to your prayer to help my relationship get stronger so this can happen soon. Brent
Brett. Not sure what your deal is. Glad you got clean. But god, I assume a Christian god or any god, ain’t real.
Why do aetheists always feel the need to tell others that God doesn’t exist? It annoys people. Keep your beliefs to yourself. You are as bad as theists that always feel the need to push their beliefs on others. Keep it to yourself.
I am not an atheist but it annoys me when Christians tell non-believers to keep their opinions to themselves, when they didn’t.
Non-believers don’t want to see your belief’s spouted all over the place. You want to post it on your socials that’s fine but when you bring it to the masses it’s open for a stranger to condemn.
So, here’s my question since you brought it up. Why would God/Jesus/Lord help with the financial aspects of this house but not the child be abused?
Hi Judy.
It’s to be called heavens gates ministries
It will be for his people. I’m to aquire it for him. I am having a hard time finding out the contact info for the owners. Please call if you have any info
Thanks
Brent
647-289-9604
It should be renovated into a rehabilitation center
That mansion is somwthing i been looking and waiting to go take some.photos!
Any info on how to get there or tips and tricks? I would like to come summer if it is possible.
Any other cool places you can recommend to a fellow photographer 🙂
Check this out in Google maps: Haileybury House
https://maps.app.goo.gl/9AXy44XPFsdHgzP29
I live right near it. There is no real trick to getting in. Just walk through the big open fence. Walk up to the house. Open any door and walk in. Hundreds of people do it on the regular. Kids party in there all the time. People also often come in from the lake wide with their small boats. You can literally drive your boat right into the open boat house and tie off, get out and walk around. It is not much to see these days. Stupid people have vandalized it beyond recognition. If you have a good imagination though you can kind of picture what it could have been. It is still quite impressive.
Who owns this property now ?? Or is it back on the market ?? Or just rotting away
This mansion is completely hated by the town of Haileybury that it sits just out of town. The town is beautiful, I grew up there. It’s an old town with alot of the older town with gorgeous big homes with a lot of brick. They sit facing the lake as well. This mansion is an eyesore, even if it were to be completed. It doesn’t fit in with the towns around. He also built it on a favoured fishing area for the locals, that thought was very unfair. If you have the money to finish it, perhaps minds would change eventually. This person is not doing a job of explaining it. It has a helepad, office areas, set away from the living area. 2 elevators and a huge cement staircase. If it’s something that you could run a business out of, as Peter had envisioned, it would help the economy by employing people. I would move back for a job for sure. Then absolutely thoughts might change. The windows are all shot out. The lake freezes over and people vome from across which is Quebec. In summer lots of boats on the lake, I had one. Gteat fishing. Yhe lake is 5 miles wide and is the head of the Ottawa river, fed by the Montreal river. Getting a spot on the lake front is very favourable. Just thought I would give you a bit of a heads up and a breaf history of how the town feels. Best of luck if you plan on buying it. Would certainly be a beautiful home that you could work out of, with helecopter accessibility. Take care. Pauline.
Hi Pauline.
My name is brent mcrann. I would like to purchase this property for gods people. The lord told me I am to aquire it for him. I was wondering if you had any information on the owners. Please feel free to contact me. 647-289-9604
Thanks
Brent
Lol, is god going to give you the money for it as well? GTFOH.
Interesting
Hi Brent! Beelzebub here.
I, too, have a similar inquiry regarding this property to purchase for my higher power. However, that higher power is the Prince of Darkness. Lucifer, The Antichrist…Satan? Anyway, he isn’t very thrilled with your inquiry so we will be offering significantly more cash for this property once your offer is made. Let me know if you’d like to chit chat as Haileybury might have quite the battle occurring on the lakefront in the coming months.
Toodaloo!!
ELOL