In 1972, the Vandoo, Vanier College's paper, described the cabin this way: "The redeeming value [of Hart House] ­ besides the septic tanks ­ is that the house is built of square timbers." Short, but sweet, at least to those who love timber structures.

    While Hart House (sometimes referred to as the Jacob Snider house) is more than 168 years old, it is of little historical value because nothing is known of its origins. "That lessens its historical significance," says Steven Bell, an architectural historian with the North York Culture Branch. "The cabin was moved to its present site from somewhere in King Township during the 1930s."

    A search through York Archives and Special Collections revealed that the house was a summer retreat for one "Mr. Hart" and his wife. After Mr. Hart's death, Mrs. Hart continued to live in the house until York bought it in 1964. Mr. and Mrs. Hart had bought the old Hoover House and farm property from the original settler family in the 1930s.

    A number of York faculty and administrators have lived in the cabin over the years, but it is now used solely for special university functions. Hart House shares its pioneer roots with two other original houses still extant on campus ­ the well-preserved, and still lived in, Hoover House (1848), and Stong House, built in 1859.