Collection of Scarfe documents paints lasting picture

Scarfe Paints is a significant part of Brantford’s industrial history in the 20th century, and its legacy played an important role in shaping the city’s downtown and Eagle Place.

The company was established in 1877 by William Scarfe, who purchased an interest in a varnish works company in Windsor, Ontario. The following year, he moved the company to Brantford and renamed it Brantford Varnish Works Ltd. Later, the company became known as Scarfe Paints when it expanded its product line to include shellac, enamel, and paints after relocating to Greenwich Street in 1885.

William Scarfe was involved in local politics and served as the mayor of Brantford in 1884 and 1885 before resigning to become the Brant County Sheriff in October 1885. After his death in April 1891, his sons Reginald and Gordon Scarfe took over the management of the company in 1898.

Scarfe Paints remained a family-run business until it was sold to Rinshed Mason Ltd., which managed it for more than 60 years. In the 1960s, Inmont Canada Ltd. acquired the company and changed its name to BASF Imont Canada in the mid-1980s.

During these corporate changes, Scarfe Paints’ name remained the same, but the factory’s location shifted to a newer building, buying the property as lot 19 on the South Side of Victoria (Victoria near Brock). It then moved to the north side of Greenwich Street around 1885 in a building that had once been a curling and skating rink. They eventually expanded taking over the Thornton’s Tannery to the west and later the Dominion Radiator building to the East. There are pictures of the demolition and articles mentioning the plant’s last day in operation as June 1, 1977.

The plant was closed down in June 1, 1977 due to its inability to be profitably productive. Scarfe Paints shared this fate with several other firms in Brantford as the old economy that drove the city’s rise and dominance in Ontario industry declined in the face of change.

Despite the closure, Scarfe Paints left behind an extensive collection of documents that provide a narrative of a company that thrived for more than a century and provided employment for generations of workers. The Brant Historical Society has an impressive collection of Scarfe documents that span several decades, including brochures of Scarfe products, advertisements in newspapers and magazines, records of grievances, management letters, seniority lists, collective agreements between the company and the union, bills, and shipping notices.

In a segment of the video series Archival Discoveries, Nathan Etherington, curator at the Brant Museum and Archives, recounts the Scarfe story. He uses the documents to show the progress of one employee, Nelson Krantz, through his successful career in the company, the work he did, and how he fared. This account is a perfect example of the larger Scarfe story.

Scarfe Paints’ visible legacy is part of a drastically different canvas that now covers the downtown and Eagle Place. The factory that once employed hundreds of workers was demolished, and the property was later transformed into another ultimately unsuccessful venture, ICOMM. Today, it is the site of the Brantford Casino.

Established on May 8, 1908, the Brant Historical Society is an independent registered charity operating two museums uniquely positioned to make a difference in the lives of Brant citizens. Its purpose is to collect, preserve and share the history and heritage of Brantford/Brant County and Six Nations/New Credit.

The historical society can be reached by e-mail at [email protected].