There have been 20 owners of the Stone Shop over the last 225 years. The first owner and builder was Allan Nixon. The Stone Shop is presently owned by Brent and Charlotta Saigeon.
Brent, who is a retired Chiropractor, purchased the Stone Shop in 2014. He is an avid history collector with a large collection of War of 1812 items. When he had the opportunity to purchase the Stone Shop from Judy Jordan, he jumped at the chance and has been restoring it to its past glory ever since. He visited the Stone Shop many times as a student when it was the town museum.
Over the years, the Stone Shop has served many purposes. It was first used as a Blacksmith Shop with different Blacksmiths operating it. In 1862, Lawrence Buskirk, who was a soldier from the War of 1812, purchased the Blacksmith Shop and renamed it L.M. Buskirk Blacksmiths. His initials and date are carved in the Stone Shop at the front of the building. In 1880, a second storey was temporarily added to the Stone Shop in order to gain a provincial grant. This second storey only lasted four months, and then it was taken down. It can be seen in one of the old photos of the Stone Shop.
It also served as a carriage and wagon repair shop, the Grimsby Town Hall, a trader outpost, a residence, and the Town Museum between 1963 and 1984 with Florence Martin as the curator. The Stone Shop Museum was opened on August 3, 1963, by the Grimsby Historical Society to house artifacts of Grimsby’s early history. The large white doors in pictures of the Stone Shop Museum came from the old Marlatt Tavern in Grimsby which was open between 1855 and 1873. It was located at the present day Giant Tiger. These doors can be seen at the entrance of the new Grimsby Museum.
Artist, Rick Manners, also had a studio at the Stone Shop from 1996 to 2014.
