From the Hillhurst Sunnyside Historical Context paper (pp 19-21). For more on the history of our neighborhood check out https://www.hsca.ca/historical-context-paper

In May 1901, Lawrence William Herchmer (1840-1915) purchased CPR land in the north half of Section 17 north of the river, in the southwest part of today’s Hillhurst, where he built and resided in the ca1901- 1903 ‘old colonial Herchmer House’ (extant, relocated to Broadview Rd) for several years. He had been serving in the South African War from 1899 but in 1900 had been involuntarily retired from his position as Commissioner for the NWMP, a role he had held since 1886 when he was selected by Sir John A Macdonald. He came from a staunch Loyalist family based in Kingston, Ontario, and he and his wife’s families had extensive political connections. His Oxford-educated father was a schoolmate and friend of Sir John A Macdonald. As with all his siblings he was born in England, where he and his brothers were educated. His diverse experience in Canada and abroad with the military, farming, business and Indian agencies led to his selection as Commissioner.

Herchmer is credited with shaping the early NWMP into an efficient organization and effective military operation, improving training and living conditions, and introducing a pension plan and medical examinations. By no means a popular figure, his uneven temperament, political associations and strict enforcement of disciplinary actions attracted enemies and campaigns against him, and led to his early retirement. But he left a legacy of a NWMP with significantly higher morale and reputation, and the wide-brimmed felt hat and the musical rides that he adopted have become widely popular. He and his second wife, Jane Ashworth, developed the land in 1907 as the ‘Westmont’ subdivision of Hillhurst, reserving an acreage for them to live in their colonial home.