Description of Historic Place

The Léonard Barrieau Farm is a hillside property comprising a house with a gable roof and a veranda, an apple orchard, and a horse racetrack, located on Chartersville Road in Dieppe.

Heritage Value

The heritage value of the Léonard Barrieau Farm lies in the age and architecture of the house and also in the agricultural vocation of the site, particularly its use by the Barrieau family for the breeding of harness racing horses and the practice of horse racing.

The heritage value of this site lies first in the age and architecture of the house. The building was probably built around 1870 or perhaps earlier and is thought to be among the oldest residences in the Brûlis-du-Lac (Lakeburn) district of Dieppe. The plank frame with mortise-and-tenon joints, fieldstone foundation, vertical sawn boards, square nails, and shape of the house reflect its age. The National style, typical of the Acadian vernacular architecture of the mid-19th century, was modified by the addition of a veranda and by returned eaves of Greek inspiration (visible in old photos). Despite the numerous modifications, the building retains its traditional appearance.

This house may have been built by Moïse "Borgotte" (c. 1794-1871), the son of Pierre LeBlanc, married to Osithe (Rosée) Thibodeau in 1825, who moved his family from Menoudie, Nova Scotia, to Brûlis-du-Lac around 1842, or by his son Hyacinthe David. The following sons and grandsons probably lived on the farm: Hyacinthe David (1837- ), married to Marie Babin in 1870, and Arthur Hector (1873- ) married to Adèle Collette in 1893. The house was subsequently occupied by the family of Xavier Martin (1894-1985), by the Barrieau family from 1948 to 1967, and by the Gerard and Lynne Lantz family, since 1967. The Lantz family christened the farm "Green Acres" after the name of a popular television program at the time.

Another heritage value of the Léonard Barrieau farm is its association with the Barrieau family, which is well known in harness racing in Canada. After his military service during the First World War, Léonard Barrieau (1895-1986) returned to his native village of Acadieville Centre, Kent County, where he married Léonie Richard (1904-2000). A farmer and businessman, Léonard Barrieau established the Acadia Telephone Company, which he later sold to the New Brunswick Telephone Company, and began breeding trotting horses in Acadieville. In 1948, Léonard and Léonie Barrieau moved their large family to Chartersville Road (now part of the city of Dieppe), where they bought two farms. They had 5 sons and 11 daughters, for a total of 16 children.

Léonard Barrieau was one of the main breeders of harness racing horses in Canada. All of his sons and several of his grandsons became harness racing drivers. His son Rufin (1936-1971), who won races throughout North America, is a member of the Dieppe Hall of Fame, the Moncton Wall of Fame, and the New Brunswick Sports Hall of Fame. Marcel, Rufin’s brother, continues to train harness racing horses in Quebec. Michel, Rufin’s son, participates in harness racing mainly in Saint John, New Brunswick. Gilles Barrieau, Alfred’s son and Léonard’s grandson, holds several Canadian and American records and has been the most prominent harness racing driver in Canada for the past few years. The Barrieau farm is one of four locations in the city of Dieppe known to have been home to a horse racetrack: Amirault Street (Francis Belliveau), Gauvin Road (Brunswick Downs), Dieppe Boulevard (Francis Belliveau), and Chartersville Road (Léonard Barrieau). A fifth track is located just outside the city limits of Dieppe, east of Champlain Street (Roméo Boucher).

Source: City of Dieppe, Historic Places file (2), G1

Character-Defining Elements

The character-defining elements that describe the Léonard Barrieau Farm include:
- location of the house;
- shape and frame of the main section of the house;
- gable roof;
- fieldstone foundation;
- original openings of the doors and windows;
- apple orchard;
- dug well;
- horse racetrack.