438764 Grey Road 15

The Telford House of Annan is a charming fieldstone farmhouse surrounded by 56.5 acres of
natural beauty, perched on a limestone ridge overlooking Georgian Bay and the Niagara
Escarpment. Built in 1858 by one of the founding Scottish settlers of Annan, it’s a 360 degree
feast for the eyes, from the vast expanse of forests and meadows, views of the Sound and
Bay, to the large landscaped front lawn with a variety of majestic and mature trees like red
maple, blue spruce and black walnut, to five acres of pine and spruce forest along the front of
the property acting as an evergreen buffer between the house and the county road. This home
is a Grey County classic, steeped in history and nature.

The Telford House is 1 1/2 stories built with hand-cut fieldstones and limestone. A large board
and batten addition was built in the mid-century by previous owner, art collector Norah de
Pencier, for her close friend, Group of Seven landscape painter A.Y. Jackson. The roof is steel
tile with a lifetime guarantee. There are 2800 square feet of living space, with large principal
rooms, high paneled ceilings, 10 inch wide plank floors, numerous tall windows with deep sills
and sunlight streaming into each room. In the living room there is a showcase fireplace with a
heritage reproduction mantel built from reclaimed barn board and a Jotul cast-iron insert. There
are two cast-iron air-tight free-standing wood stoves, one in the kitchen, one in the sunroom.
There is an additional original fireplace hearth with stone chimney in the dining room, currently
unused. The west-facing four-season sunroom has an exposed limestone wall and overlooks
miles of the western horizon with stunning sunsets, slivers of shimmering water and dramatic
seasonal postcard pictures. Upstairs are four generous-sized bedrooms, each with their own
fabulous views.

But as much as this property feels like a private sanctuary, it is less than 10 minutes drive to all
of the urban conveniences of Owen Sound, from the Grey-Bruce Regional Hospital to a wide
range of big box and boutique stores, restaurants and services. There are downtown cafes,
antique stores, concert halls, art galleries and a popular farmer’s market.
Around the exterior of the house there are multiple places to sit, meditate and entertain - from
coffee in the morning sun on the front stone patio, to the afternoon sun on the stone terrace that
runs the 70 ft. width along the top of the ridge at the back, and from a large fenced side deck for
outdoor dining to a natural limestone patio for stunning sunsets in the evening.

The property includes a matching two-story fieldstone coachhouse with steel tile roof. It could
easily be converted into a guest cottage, a studio, an office or an Airbnb rental. Its upper
windows look out over a sea of trees, the Sound and the Escarpment. 

Hydro is the only billed utility. The house has 200 amp electrical service, a drilled well totally
refurbished in 2011 with a new pump, a new UV purification system installed in fall of 2023.
Central heating is an electric boiler in the cellar and baseboard radiators connected by
underfloor pipes that run on two circuits throughout the house. The boiler motor was upgraded
in fall of 2023. Appliances included are a double-oven GE convection/induction stove, side by side refrigerator/freezer, a second mini freezer, wine cooler and built-in dishwasher. There is
municipal waste and recycling pick-up at the road.

 
For a break from the perfect tranquility, nearby Owen Sound is rich in the performing arts, with
annual events like the Summerfolk Music Festival, the Sweetwater Music Festival, live theatre at
the Roxy and first class musical acts at the Heartwood Concert Hall. The Telford House is also
minutes from the Historic Leith Church with year-round classical concerts, and it’s a 20 minutes
drive to the port town of Meaford, among it’s many attractions, the excellent Meaford Concert
Hall.

For outdoors types, this area is perfect for wildlife lovers, birders and recreational fishers. The
house itself is only a five minute drive to the quaint and secluded sandy beach of Hibou
Conservation Area on the Sound, and Ainslie Wood Conservation Area - with it’s old growth
forest and stony shore excellent for fossil hunting. It’s also the best kept secret of winter anglers.
Within a half mile radius of the house there are multiple accesses onto the iconic Bruce Trail,
and all the beauty, adventure and recreation of the Bruce Peninsula. Not to mention, it is a mere
40 minutes drive to Sauble Beach and 35 minutes to skiing in the Town of Blue Mountain.