THUNDER BAY – A historic building in Thunder Bay's south end is turning 125 years old this year.
The Coo House, located at 135 Archibald Street North and currently the home of the Tilted Turret Pinball Pub, has had a variety of owners over the years.
The building was constructed in 1898. The architect is unknown but is believed to be George Coo. He and his family lived there until 1952.
On Oct.14, 1981, the Coo House was designated a heritage site by the City of Thunder Bay.
Linda Schutte, the house's former owner, said that she and her husband bought the house in 1983 and operated it as Coo's Fine Gifts.
"I had always been a fan of Christmas decorating," Schutte added. "My parents always decorated for Christmas with Santa and reindeer on our roof. Purchasing would begin in January of that year and we would spend all year pricing goods and planning displays."
Schutte said that the building had to be totally gutted when they purchased it.
"People wanted to start a restaurant, but at the time [they] were not allowed to install a dumb waiter, which ruined their plans at the time," Schutte added.
Schutte said that owning the building was wonderful and that people would tell stories about how they met George and Sarah Coo.
Her goal with Coo’s was to create a real Christmas atmosphere in the house. Staff in red aprons serve hot apple cider. Christmas music and roasted chestnuts on the wood fireplace just very friendly and comforting.
An icon of the turret is Santa, who continues to sit in the turret every Christmas to this day.
“We ran the store for 17 years and it was quite rewarding,” Schutte said.
In 2010, the building was renovated again and added a kitchen. ExCuria gastropub opened on Aug. 20, 2015 and closed in December 2019.
The building sat vacant until the fall of 2021, when Steve Vares and Andrew Young purchased it and launched the Tilted Turret.
“We have ran into people that lived here when it was apartments," Vares said. "We really didn’t have to change the building much when we purchased it.
"The previous tenants had already retrofitted the building to be a restaurant – we just had to add the pinball machines”.
Vares says they are committed to preserving the Coo House for years to come.
