Special to the Sydenham Current
Family and friends are remembering Joseph W. Storey this month, on what would be his 100th birthday.
Born in Windsor, Ontario on July 5, 1923, as a child Storey moved to Chatham with his father Wilf, mother Bea and younger brother David.
Joe raised his own family in Chatham (many of his extended family still live in CK), launched his architecture office in the city and spent almost three decades making Chatham-Kent a centre of mid-century modern excellence.
As part of Joe’s 100th birthday year his family and friends are launching several projects to raise awareness about Joe’s achievements and promoting Chatham-Kent as a major centre for mid-century modern architecture.
Initiatives launching in the coming year include the re-issuing of a self-guided architectural tour brochure, a social media video series, website, walking tours of various neighbourhoods across Chatham-Kent and more.
Storey demonstrated an early aptitude for the arts as a child, especially in drawing and photography.
The home he designed for his family at 210 Victoria Ave in Chatham included building a dark room in the basement.
His architectural skill was evident almost immediately after graduating with an architecture degree from the University of Toronto, winning a national award from the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation in the “Canadian Small Homes Competition”.
With this impressive start to his career, Joe moved back to Chatham and opened the office of J.W. Storey, Architect in 1947.
Benefitting from the incredible post-war growth in Chatham-Kent of the 1950s and early 1960s, young business owners with growing families sought out Joe’s office to design their new homes, their new offices, shops and industrial plants, for their places of worship and schools for their children.
The office of J.W. Storey designed all of these building types and more for not only Chatham and the former Kent County, but across southern Ontario and was even contracted by clients in South America and Europe.
“Joe’s designs epitomized the beauty of both simple and modern forms, as you can see in his many elegant built projects across Chatham-Kent”, says Cathy Nasmith, an award-winning and internationally recognized architect based in Toronto and Past President of the Architectural Conservancy of Ontario. “
Whether it was a single-family home or a large public institution, he always looked to new and creative ways of designing buildings that were not only beautiful but functional as well. Joe could have made a name for himself anywhere – Chatham, a city that has been blessed with generations of great architects – was very lucky to have his contributions.”
Joe and his team brought a level of design and technical excellence to Chatham-Kent that can be seen in many notable buildings, including the Chatham-Kent Civic Centre on King Street West in Chatham, the former Kent County Building-now Courthouse/Municipal Building on Grand Avenue West in Chatham, Union Gas headquarters (now Enbridge) on Keil Drive in Chatham, the Pines Chapel as part of the larger Ursuline Sisters complex on Grand Avenue West in Chatham, and the Federal Building on Wellington Street in Chatham, just to name a few.
He also designed countless single family homes across the region.
His emphasis was always on clean lines, light and space and refreshing simplicity.
Talented architects and draughtsmen in his office included Jim Jorden, Wally Stewart, Roger Duchene, and Doug Brown.
Joe was also deeply committed to his community outside the office. He was an active member and President of the Rotary Club of Chatham, Commodore of the Rondeau Yacht Club and a member of Chatham City Council from 1956 – 1958.
He also brought the Planning Act to Chatham and instituted the first-ever Chatham Area Planning Board.
He represented the St. Clair Region on the Ontario Association of Architects Council for many years as well.
Tragically, Joe passed away at age 52 in 1975, his career cut short in an industry where architects often continue successful careers into their 80s and 90s.
“To design over 1000 buildings over the course of his relatively short career was a remarkable number,” says Kim Storey, daughter of Joe and an award-winning architect herself with Brown+Storey Architects, in Toronto.
“He lived in a time where optimism, innovation and creativity were the norm, not the exception. Chatham-Kent is incredibly blessed to have so many buildings designed by him and his office still in use today. The architectural legacy that Joe left in Chatham-Kent is something to be celebrated – this year and always.”
As part of the celebration of Storey’s 100th birthday year, family and friends are reissuing a self-guided architectural tour brochure, highlighting works from the office of J.W. Storey.
These pamphlets are available at the Art & Heirloom Shoppe, 137 King Street West, Chatham.
