KENNETH M. JOHNSTON HOUSE
Firm: William G. Milne
Address: 5303 Elbow Drive SW
Date of final plans: 1957
Status: standings as built
Ken Johnston was the epitome of an Upper Canadian establishment figure. His Ulster Scots ancesters came to Ontario in the early 19th century and participated in the Rebellions of 1837. Ken, meanwhile, grew up in Deer Park, was educated at St Andrew's College, served as a naval officer, and worked for the investment brokerage Wood, Gundy & Company.
The Johnston House was the reconstruction of an existing house formerly owned by Otto S. Odland (1906–1981). The Johnstons only lived in the house until around 1963, when Kenneth retired from Wood Gundy. The property is currently for sale and it is almost certain the house will be demolished.
THE CLIENT
Kenneth Marsden Johnston (1922–1987) was born in Toronto on 4 January 1922 to Kenneth Irwin McKenzie Johnston (1879–1930) and Clara Augusta Leeker (1888–1970). In Toronto, the Johnstons lived at 47 Oriole Parkway and ran the Johnston Lumber Company Limited, which had been established in 1910. Kenneth Marsden graduated from St Andrew's College (Aurora) in 1941. During the war, Johnston served as an officer in the RCNVR and was aboard HMCS Bellechasse. He joined Wood Gundy & Company sometime in the 1940s in Toronto. In 1950 he moved to their Edmonton office, and in July 1951 set up and became manager of a new office in Calgary. In the late '50s and early '60s he was a director of Husky Oil. He retired at the end of 1963.
On 21 September 1946, Johnston married Margaret Lillian Ballentine (1923–1983) at the Bishop Strachan School chapel in Toronto. They had three children: Lynn, Pamela, and Robert. He died on 25 November 1987 in Toronto.