60 King Street East

Thomas Christopher Kells, tanner and currier, purchased this property
in 1827. He played a prominent role in the early development of
the village and township, being instrumental in naming the village
and establishing agricultural fairs that positioned Millbrook as the
township’s market town. This section of King Street was known for
some time as Kells Street.
Thomas C. Kells’ first wife Jane Henry died in 1834, leaving Thomas
with five children. He remarried in 1835 and had another nine
children including Thomas Gillespie Kells.
It was Thomas G. Kells, successful merchant and banker, who built
the current residence after fire destroyed the original frame home in
1875. A row of mature maples sheltered the house from the street,
giving it its name, Maplehurst. A large verandah ran along the west
side of the house, and the property boasted a lawn tennis court.
Thomas G., who never married, lived here with his mother and two
unmarried sisters, Mary Elizabeth and Annie. The house remained in
the Kells family until 1928.