June 2015 Volume 40 No. 2 ISSN 0384 7335 The Griffin A Quarterly Publication of Heritage Trust of Nova Scotia 3 ARTIST Emma FitzGerald 4 HERITAGE STRUCTURE Ottawa House by the Sea Museum and Archives C onrad Byers 6 HERITAGE STRUCTURE Clifton: the ‘Country Retreat’ of Judge and Mrs Thomas Chandler Haliburton Allen Penney 10 LECTURE The Lost Churches of Halifax G lenn Taylor 12 AWARDS Moidart: the Stone House of Creignish Lorrie MacKinnon 14 HERITAGE CONSERVATION The Old Post Office, Annapolis Royal R yan Scranton 16 AWARDS Preserving HMCS Sackville, Canada’s Naval Memorial Len Canfield 18 PAINTED ROOMS Did A.J. Downing Influence Lewis Bailey? Joe Ballard June 2015 1 REPORT The Griffin President’s Report A quarterly newsletter foundation repairs for Uniacke Union published by Church, a Georgian meeting house in Heritage Trust of Mount Uniacke. About seven years ago, Nova Scotia the Trust made a loan of $25,000 to the Gardiner’s Mill Dam Homeowners’ Unless otherwise indicated, Association (www.htns.ca/projects/proj_ the opinions expressed gard_mill.html). The final payment has in these pages are those of the now been received. Congratulations to contributors and do not the Homeowners and to former Board necessarily reflect the views of Heritage Trust of members, Michael Tavares and Dan Nova Scotia. Earle, for their hard work towards the reconstruction and provincial designa- Editorial Committee tion of the dam. Donald Forbes, Dulcie Conrad, The Nominations Committee helps Peter Delefes, Donna McInnis, I mages from the Board’s annual out- shape the Board. Peter Delefes has Janet Morris, Nancy O’Brien of-town meeting in Truro are fresh in my chaired this committee, among several mind: high-tech window screens that others, for three years; his success is Contributors to this issue form part of a re-design of the Colches- evident in our regional Board members. Joe Ballard, Conrad Byers, ter Historeum; Walker’s Hardware store, Appointed a year ago to help The Trust Len Canfield, Emma FitzGerald, repurposed for commercial and resi- form better connections with outlying Lorrie MacKinnon, Allen Penney, dential use after a fire; and architectural areas of the province, our five regional Ryan Scranton, Glenn Taylor detail left in the mostly gutted, former reps have demonstrated high levels of Layout: Douglas Porter Printers: etc. Press Ltd Provincial Normal College. Regional rep, activity in the heritage field — person- Joe Ballard, arranged for us to tour the ally as volunteers, professionally, and We welcome submissions but future Colchester Library. Leo Rovers on behalf of The Trust. While some reserve the right to edit for and his son Chris, the project manager, belonged to heritage networks before, publication. All accepted proudly showed off their contributions others have had to establish relation- contributions appear in both the to the ‘new’ building, from basement ships with groups and individuals in print and web editions. to attic. Happily, an addition will allow their regions. All have brought built Deadline for the next issue: children to see close-up the College’s heritage issues to the Board’s attention; July 15, 2015 decorative exterior brickwork high for example, buildings at risk (Amherst above ground level. Margaret Attwood’s train station) or homeowners’ insurance Please send your mother reportedly slid down the long, concerns (for a brochure about insur- submissions to Heritage Trust of Nova Scotia gently-shaped banister, which may re- ance, see www.halifax.ca/planning/doc- PO Box 111 appear elsewhere. uments/insuringoldhomes.pdf). They Spring Garden RPO Early in May, we hosted geotour- have provided news about buildings Halifax NS B3J 3S9 ism and historic preservation students being repurposed (Brown School in New [email protected] from East Michigan University. Study Glasgow, the Post Office in Annapolis website: www.htns.ca tour leader, Dr. Kim Kozak, a Dalhousie Royal) and local groups taking steps to Tel: 902 423-4807 graduate, wanted to introduce students safeguard their buildings (East Hants to Lunenburg and Halifax. Professional Museum in Lower Selma). Whether lead- Heritage Trust of Nova Scotia guide, Blair Beed, led a walking tour of ing cemetery walks, designing plaques is a charitable organization. the Brunswick Street area and Jeffrey to mark heritage features, writing or giv- All donations are tax creditable. Reed, a heritage consultant, spoke at St ing advice at the Board table, they have George’s Round Church. You can read proven to be valuable members of the more at www.htns.ca/press-releases. Nova Scotian heritage community. html. This is my last Griffin report as Presi- The Buildings-at-Risk Committee dent. I have enjoyed much of the past Cover image: On Agricola Street, Halifax, has recommended allocating $3680 to three years, I have learned a great deal, by Emma FitzGerald (courtesy of the artist) repair of the steeple of Avondale United and now I look forward to selecting a Church and recently, $3560 towards few activities on which to focus. 2 The Griffin • Heritage Trust of Nova Scotia ARTIST Emma FitzGerald Emma has been drawing houses in Halifax since July 2013, when she began her house portrait business in earnest. She has learned a lot about the city as a result. It has also led her to write her first book Hand Drawn Halifax, which will be in bookstores in September (pre-order at www.formac.ca). The book spans all the way from Seaforth to St. Margaret’s Bay, and has a wide scope, from historic landmarks to the more obscure, and even mundane moments in the city. Emma is pleased when a drawing brings to life a story that might otherwise be lost. Q&A Griffin: Where did you grow up and when did you develop an interest in buildings? EF: I was born in Lesotho to Irish par- ents, but did most of my growing up in Vancouver. … I remember reading Anne of Green Gables and other books by LM Old Burying Ground, Halifax, by Emma FitzGerald (courtesy of the artist) Montgomery as a 9 year old, and really loving how Montgomery infused build- ings with personalities. It was around EF: I studied architecture at Dalhou- and give feedback. That really helped that time that I started drawing house sie University in Halifax, graduating with my drawing skills, and my confidence, floor plans and designing houses. my Masters in 2008. … I worked for which is necessary for sketching in Griffin: Where did you study? How did several architects in Halifax, including public. this influence your art? Anne Sinclair, Kassner Goodspeed, and Griffin: You have supported some Michael Napier. I also taught archi- important causes with your art. Do you see tecture in the Gambia, which was a artistic works as agents of change? wonderful learning experience for me. EF: I think that art can definitely be In architecture I was always very inter- an agent for change; it affects people’s ested in context, and people’s personal emotions, which is necessary to insti- connection to the built environment. gate significant change. I think that translates into my art, both Griffin: What’s next? my house portraiture business and my EF: I am really looking forward to broader art practice. the launch in the fall for my book, Hand In 2004 I completed my BFA in visual Drawn Halifax, at the Central Library. art at UBC, where I focused on draw- There will be a concurrent exhibit at an- ing and print-making. On exchange in other location. If people want to find out Paris at l’École des Beaux-Arts in 2003, I more and keep up-to-date, my website was deeply affected by weekly drawing will have the details. classes. Every Wednesday, we went to a different location and sketched … Emma FitzGerald Art & Design a veterinary school during a horse dis- 902-478-6194 section, the sewers of Paris, the aquar- www.emmafitzgerald.ca ium; not typical Parisian scenes. After www.facebook.com/housportrait West end Buddhist Church, by Emma FitzGerald drawing for 2-3 hours, we would sit in a www.instagram.com/emmafitz_art (courtesy of the artist) café and pass our sketch books around June 2015 3 heritage structure Ottawa House by the Sea Museum and Archives Conrad Byers T he Ottawa House by the Sea Mu- seum, the Partridge Island Heritage Site, and the surrounding area have been both witnesses and important con- tributors to the history of Nova Scotia and Canada. This area was frequented by Mi’kmaq peoples for hundreds of years as a summer camp site. This site also witnessed the colonization of Eastern Canada, being part of a major transportation route and commercial site used by early explorers, Acadians, New England Planters, Loyalists, and African descendants. The Ottawa House is a significant historical structure still standing along what was known as the “Road to Cumberland”, linking Halifax and Windsor to Partridge Island and on Ottawa House (shore out of view to the right) (photo courtesy of the author) to the Chignecto region and thus, inland to Canada (Upper and Lower). Ottawa House holds special sig- vertical hand-hewn timber between the Col. James Ratchford nificance for Canada as the former frames making it both bullet and theft From the late 18th century, the building summer home of one of the Fathers of proof. This proved of value when the set- was owned and lived in by James Ratch- Confederation, our sixth Prime Minister, tlement was raided in 1780 by privateers ford, Esq. He was the leading merchant Sir Charles Tupper. Ottawa House is the from Machias, Maine, in what was called of the region and carried on an exten- oldest building in Cumberland County.