Saint Andrews Heritage Handbook | Fundy Bay Real Estate Group Inc.

Saint Andrews Heritage Handbook on Building Conservation
Designed to Provide Guidance Based on the External Character-Defining Elements of Historic Buildings in Saint Andrews, New Brunswick.

Brief History of Saint Andrews

The Passamaquoddy indigenous peoples called the current Saint Andrews location ‘Qua-nos-cumcook’.5 Later ‘legend’ has it that a priest from a passing French ship erected the cross of Saint André on the shore, thereby sowing the seeds for the present name. As New France expanded throughout North America in the 17th century, settlements came and went, but French explorers and traders did set foot at Campobello and Deer Island and at Dochet’s Island in the St. Croix River Estuary.5 These included Samuel de Champlain in 1604 when he and his sailors first experienced the beauty of the region, but also witnessed the hardships of settling on the land. After moving on to Port Royal in 1605, the French often returned to the St. Croix River to establish trading contacts with the Passamaquoddy who would migrate annually to the protected shores at Qua-nos-cumcook to fish and dig clams.

The onset of the American Revolution led to both challenges and opportunities for the forefathers of Saint Andrews. In October, 1783, a group of United Empire Loyalists arrived to settle what was to be known as Saint Andrews. Having left their homes in New York and Massachusetts, they initially journeyed to become pioneering families to an area now known as Castine in Maine, where they could remain loyal to British values and set up the locally responsible government in the British parliamentary tradition. However, on learning that the new international boundary was to be at the St. Croix River, they renewed their determination and with their families towed their recently built homes to Saint Andrews. While many pioneering towns have a central core, radiating outward in an irregular manner, Saint Andrews, like many British sponsored settlements of the time, was laid out on a rectangular grid. Sixty square blocks were created, bounded by streets named after members of the British Royal Family. Other irregular blocks were established along the harbour front (now Water Street) that served to support the growth of economic activity as Saint Andrews grew to be a major seaport in the 19th century. Within five years, 600 buildings were built and 3,000 people had made it their home.

With the passage of time, nearby Saint John grew and prospered, while Saint Andrews entered a period of economic decline. By 1911, only 1,000 citizens remained. However, Saint Andrews did not fade away. Blessed with quiet beauty, it became a summer-time destination of many well-to-do Americans and Canadians. Free of ragweed and near the sea, the area led Sir William Van Horne, builder of the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) and its President, Lord Shaughnessy, to cultivate Saint Andrews as a resort destination.6 In turn, summer ‘cottages’ were built and a style of summer life sprung up around the Algonquin Hotel. To advertise its natural setting, the Railway promoted the destination as Saint Andrews-by-the-Sea. 7 Since the 1920s, the population of Saint Andrews has remained stable, and with its friendly character and natural beauty, summer visitors have come to enjoy its streetscapes and shops every summer.

4 To read further on this shift in emphasis, please consult: Standards and Guidelines for conservation of historic places in Canada. Canada’s Historic Places. Available at www.historicplaces.ca or www.lieuxpatrimomiaux.ca

5 Reference: Chapter 1. In: The Diverting History of a Loyalist Town. G.H. Mowat. Charlotte County Cottage Craft. 1937.

6 For further reading on the Resort History of Saint Andrews-by-the-Sea, please see: Willa Walker. No Hay Fever and a Railway. Summers in St. Andrews. Canada’s First Seaside Resort. Goose Lane Editions. 1989.

7 Readers might enjoy reading: Ronald Rees’s Images of the Past. Historic St. Andrews. Nimbus Press. 2001; 2007.

The Origins of Prominent Architectural Styles in Saint Andrews

There were three distinct periods of change and prosperity that characterize the Town’s evolution over the past two hundred and fifty years. These periods define the drivers of Saint Andrews’ architectural development. 8 The arrival of the Loyalists; the evolution of Saint Andrews as a prosperous seaport in the 1800s; and the rebirth of the Town as a resort (helped in no small manner, by the promotion of the location by the Canadian Pacific Railway). Subject to each surge of development, distinct and temporarily defined architectural styles arose. These three phases of development tell a story of what and when, as one walks the town.

The Loyalists brought New England style buildings – in some case literally – by boat and then reassembling their deconstructed homes. In the next phase, an export economy provided the financial means for the merchants and business leaders of a prosperous seaport to express their new success in the architectural style of their homes. Following the downturn in its fortune in the 1880s, the town remained attractive given its surroundings. The economic outlook changed with the coming of summer visitors of considerable wealth at the turn of the 20th century. Families sought relief from the heat of Canadian cities like Montreal and Ottawa and Philadelphia, New York and Washington along the American eastern seaboard (before air conditioning). The cooler weather, the absence of hay fever, and the area’s natural beauty led to a new period of architectural development. Wealthy people sought the advice and design of well-known architects in Canada and the USA. Notably, the impact of the Maxwell brothers’ designs is everywhere, from the Saint Andrews peninsula over to

Minister’s Island and out into the county.9 To appreciate the variety of treasures left, one only has to walk the Town’s Streetscapes, as beautifully described by Leroux and Holownia. They note that the Town has been left with ‘a profound legacy’.

Most heritage buildings in Saint Andrews can be easily reached by walking. One can begin by touring the Water Street Streetscape, end to end, starting at the Blockhouse. This streetscape features buildings from the 18th and 19th centuries. Note that many buildings have their ‘gable ends’ facing the Street.10 Also easily reached on foot are buildings along Queen Street, and up the hill on both King Street and Frederick Street. A walking tour map, available on-line, or at hotels and shops in town, can guide visitors to many more of these treasures (including Maxwell designs) on Prince of Wales Street.

8 Leroux, J, Holownia T. A Profound Legacy. In: St. Andrews Architecture 1604-1988. Gaspereau Press and Printing and Publishers. Kentville NS. 2010.

9 The Maxwell brothers were a major architectural firm in Montreal. When the Montreal based CPR promoted St. Andrews-by-the-Sea as a resort destination, many of its very wealthy and often associated business leaders sought Saint Andrews as a summer retreat. They hired Edward Maxwell and his brother William to design their cottages. There are

nine of their designed ‘fun cottages’ that remain in the peninsula and Town (all identified in Leroux and Holownia’s book). There are 4-5 other Maxwell designed buildings on Minister’s Island, designed for Van Horne, builder of the CPR.

10 The ‘gable ends’ facing the street is an architectural feature seen in Bergen, Norway (UNESCO World Heritage Site).

Architectural Styles of Saint Andrews

There is a great contrast between the architectural styles of the late 20th, the late 18th and early 19th centuries. The earlier styles reflect a desire for elegantly balanced proportions and almost austere, though graceful, classical details. Later in the 19th century, there came an appeal for texture in surface design and flowing, organically inspired ornamentation. Roof pitches became steeper and eaves became wider (which tended to be more suitable to the winter conditions of this area). Early dwellings tended to have gabled or hip roofs. Later mansard roofing became stylish, and eventually, around the turn of the 20th century, it was fashionable for houses to have roofs of different styles placed at several different levels. At this period, houses had unbalanced outlines and proportions.

Their facades were broken up by bay windows, porches, verandas and balconies and their sheathing was often composed of a variety of shapes of decorative shingles. In little more than a century, there were tremendous changes in the ideals of architectural beauty. This is clearly reflected in Saint Andrews.

Most buildings in Saint Andrews can be placed in several broad categories of architectural styles and, when renovating, it is useful to have a basic understanding of each style’s features. The characteristic defining elements which distinguish a building are structural design, proportion, construction details, decoration and scale. These can also serve as clues that help determine the age of a house.

The following pages will give a brief description of these general architectural styles. You will find that few buildings in Saint Andrews look exactly like those described. Houses of earlier periods may have been updated by adding brackets and other decorative trim. Nineteenth century houses were also custom-built and reflected the economic status and personal tastes of a variety of individual owners over time. Builders felt free to combine many stylistic details into one house. Alterations after the initial construction often changed the original features and reflected the newer styles of that time period.

Styles were slow to reach Saint Andrews. They first ‘traveled’ from Europe to the United States and then up the coast to Saint Andrews. Many were brought here through pattern books and magazines available to owners and builders. Local carpenters then adapted these according to their skills and the local materials. Thus, their vernacular architecture sometimes adds to the difficulty of identifying the primary architecture.

Bibliography and Sources

Print Sources
1. 1. St. Andrews Heritage Handbook. A Homeowners Guide to Exterior Renovation and Maintenance of Local Buildings. Smith MA, Magee PA, Editors. Blue Heron Publishing Co. St. Stephen NB. 1980.
  2. Guidelines for Restoring Old Buildings. The Old House Journal. New York. 1977.
  3. Leroux J, Holownia T. St. Andrews Architecture 1604-1966. Gaspereau Press Printers & Publishers. Kentville NS. 2010.
  4. Heritage Handbook. A Bicentennial Project of Fredericton Heritage Trust. Fredericton NB Fredericton Heritage Trust, Inc. 1982
  5. Sullivan D. St. Andrews: An Historical Scrapbook. Pendlebury Press Ltd., St. Andrews NB. 2008.
  6. Rees, R. Historic St. Andrews. Images of our Past. Nimbus Publishing Ltd. Halifax, NS. 2007.
  7. Wilbur R. St. Andrews Remembered. Recollections over the Years. St. Andrews Civic Trust. St Andrews NB. 1984.
  8. Mowat, Grace Helen. The Diverting History of a Loyalist Town. Charlotte County Cottage Craft, St. Andrews NB. Second Edition. 1937.
  9. Plaskett B. Understanding Lunenburg’s Architecture. Lunenburg County District Planning Commission. BESTprint. Third Printing. 1989.
  10. The Salem Handbook. A Renovation Guide for Homeowners Anderson, Notter Associates, Inc. Historic Salem, Inc. 1977
  11. Sackville. Heritage Architecture Guide Style. Print from Sackville Web-site (on-line source-#7)
  12. Archibald, Stephen. Heritage Houses of Nova Scotia. 2003.
  13. James, Terry. Buildings of Old Lunenburg. 2011.
  14. Stephen, George. New Life for Old Houses: A Guide to Restoration and Repair. Dover Edition 2002. Mineola, NY. (from Landmark Reprint Series 3, the Preservation Press, Washington DC 1989)
  15. Nash, George. Renovating Old Houses: Bringing New Life to Vintage Homes. Taunton Press. 2003
  16. Michel, Robert. Ontario House Styles: The Distinctive Architecture of the Provinces 18th and 19th Century Homes. 2004.
  17. Blackburn, Roderic H. Old Homes of New England: Historic Houses in Clapboard, Shingle and Stone. 2010.
  18. Longstreth, Richard. The Buildings of Main Street. A Guide to American Commercial Architecture. National Trust for Historic Preservation. 1987.