Jean Robinson
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Lindsay’s history isn’t just something you read about in a history book; it’s a story that can be told through the artistic expressions of those who call our community home.
Jean Robinson’s walnut picture frames are no exception. Their story begins with the historic 14-room Beall family home, affectionately known as Lindenhurst, which was constructed in 1867 by local jeweller Thomas Beall at 9 Albert St. S. During his time at Lindenhurst, Thomas developed an interest in horticulture and planted a variety of trees on the property, most notably a grove of black walnut trees along the westernmost edge of the estate. By 1977, the Lindenhurst house had been demolished to make way for the Walnut Grove apartment building, which now occupies the site. By then, the surrounding property had long since been divided and sold.
In 1969, Graydon King and his wife purchased a plot of land from the former estate to build a home. Located on Adelaide Street S., the property was situated within the grove of black walnut trees that Mr. Beall had planted more than a century earlier. To make room for their new home, the Kings decided to remove some of the walnut trees.
As fate would have it, Central Senior School teacher Grant MacArthur happened to walk by on his way to work. Seeing the potential in the fallen black walnut trees, MacArthur asked Mr. King if he could take some of the wood home to work with. King agreed, and MacArthur left with a wheelbarrow full of walnut wood.
After bringing the wood home, MacArthur began carving gifts for friends, including leaf-shaped earrings, animals, cufflinks, and brooches. Around the same time, his wife, Frankie, had taken up oil painting and was taking lessons from Group of Seven member Franz Johnston. Working on miniature canvases, Frankie needed small frames to display her paintings. Together, the couple began crafting frames from pieces of the fallen black walnut trees, marking the beginning of the distinctive walnut picture frames that would later become part of Jean Robinson’s collection.
It was through Jean’s mother that the Robinson and MacArthur families first became friends. Frankie gifted Jean her first walnut-framed painting, a depiction of an old barn. Over the years, Frankie created more walnut-framed paintings for Jean, gradually building a visual collection that captures 150 years of Lindsay’s history and preserving the stories of the community through art.
