I remember a garden friend giving me directions to a plant pop-up stand. She said it is the white house on Fourth Avenue. Driving west on Fourth Avenue out of St. Catharines, one will find dozens off white farm houses. Most of the old houses are white. Only newer houses are brick. Recent new houses are "stone" - the grand mansion type that seems to be the trend on rural roads.
The story of white farmhouses is the story of whitewash which is a lime paint. It prevented mildew, was a disinfectant, odour disguiser and insect repellent. It was an easy material to work with and dried quickly. No expertise was needed to apply - consider Tom Sawyer.
So then why weren't barns white? Why were they red? The answer is that farmers used a cost-effective and readily available mixture of linseed oil with rust added, to protect the wood from decay and weathering. The rust - ferrous oxide - prevented the growth of mould and fungi.
So there were we are with white houses, red barns and, of course, black cars.
I forgot about horses and buggies. Here's one in Niagara-on-the-Lake.
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