Trafalgar Castle ~ Whitby, Ontario, CANADA - Castles on Waymarking.com

Trafalgar Castle

Built in 1874 the former second home of the Sheriff of Ontario County is now a school located on Byron and Dunlop Street just a block or two down from the centre of Downtown Whitby. Built as a smaller replica of his first home, Trafalgar Castle, this was where ‘Iron’ Reynolds spent his last days, bed ridden after a stroke in 1876. He past away in 1881 when he was 66.
The Honourable John Ross appointed Nelson Gilbert Reynolds to the position of Sheriff of Ontario County. This officer experienced many interesting moments in Canadian history including the William Lyon MacKenzie revolt in Toronto in the chilly month of December 1837. He also chased after American "Patriots" who were apparently planning an invasion. It was almost as if ‘Iron’ Reynolds was Ontario’s version of RCMP Officer Sam Steele or the real Canadian hero.
The tale of spectral visitation behind this renovated school on Byron and Dunlop, which was first converted from a residence to a restaurant in the 1970’s by one Peter Solyom, takes place in 1977. Apparently taken from a newspaper article, Solyom, alone in the building, heard strange voices coming from the building. The voice was later to be known as the deceased 'Sheriff Reynolds' who revealed the history of the house. Several other voices came into the fold, including an old distiller during the prohibition period named 'Harry Hatch'; both spirits were looking for people. According to the spirit of Hatch, one 'Al Capone' had visited the building to purchase the bootlegger’s liquor business.
Trafalgar Castle - The feature in so many major motion pictures, and Whitby’s call to Toronto’s Casa Loma, Trafalgar Castle is quite the epic piece of architectural design. Built by 'Sheriff Nelson G. Reynolds' in 1859, and designed by architect 'Joseph Sheard' in complete Elizabethan style, it is the most well known part of Whitby. According to the school, the receiving hall is some 105 feet long, great for anyone interested in a game of football, if it has a vaulted ceiling of course.
After 'Sheriff Reynolds' sold the land, all 9 acres of it, and the building to the to the Methodist Church they turned it into Ontario Ladies College on August 20, 1874. Nelson Reynolds remained on the Board of Governors at the school until his death in 1881.
This is a school that has gone through so many renovations and has suffered four fires from 1912 to 1975. Another intriguing bit of information is the 'H. A. Massey' donated $10,000 in 1895 to the College and was later elected to a seat on the board.