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Boyer House

98 Princess Street, Saint John, New Brunswick, E2L, Canada

Formally Recognized: 1982/03/18

This photograph is a contextual view of the building on Princess Street, 2005.; City of Saint John
Boyer House - Contextual view
This image provides a view of the two-storey bay window, 2005. ; City of Saint John
Boyer House - Bay window
This image provides a view of the stone and brick cornice with a brick corbel band, 2005.; City of Saint John
Boyer House - Cornice

Other Name(s)

n/a

Links and documents

Construction Date(s)

1879/01/01

Listed on the Canadian Register: 2008/03/25

Statement of Significance

Description of Historic Place

Boyer House is a two-storey wood Italianate building with a brick façade and a two-storey bay window. It is located on Princess Street within the Trinity Royal Preservation Area of the City of Saint John.

Heritage Value

Boyer House is designated a Local Historic Place for its architecture and for its association with the Boyer family.

Boyer House is one of a collection of Italianate buildings that were built between 1877 and 1881 after two thirds of the City of Saint John was destroyed by the fire in 1877. As a vibrant commercial district, Princess Street served as the location for several prominent businesses and industries of Saint John. Built in 1879, Boyer House is a good example of wooden Italianate residential architecture with a brick façade from the rebuilding period in Saint John. The elements and design in this building demonstrate that the city was going to be rebuilt as well or better after the fire.

Boyer House is also recognized for its association with Amelia Boyer and her family. A native of Carlton County, Amelia Shaw married Moses Boyer. After his death, she moved to Saint John and opened a boarding house at this location in 1900. With the help of her daughter, Bertha Boyer, she managed the boarding house for over thirty years. During this time, she took up an extensive interest in the Woman’s Missionary Society of Germain Street Baptist Church. She remained very active within the organization for several years until she fell ill in the late 1920’s. Boyer continued to operate this Princess Street building as a boarding house until her death in 1933. Boarding houses such as this one provided a needed service to the clientele that this district often attracted. Her daughter continued to live in this house until 1945.

Source: Department of Planning and Development - City of Saint John

Character-Defining Elements

The character defining elements that describe the Italianate architecture of Boyer House include:
- rectangular two-storey massing;
- wood construction with brick front façade;
- stone and brick cornice ornamented by brick corbel bands at each corner of the front façade;
- two-storey bay window;
- rectangular vertical sliding wood windows with sandstone lintels and sills;
- sandstone plinth band;
- sandstone lintel over the off-centre entrance.

Recognition

Jurisdiction

New Brunswick

Recognition Authority

Local Governments (NB)

Recognition Statute

Municipal Heritage Preservation Act, s.5(1)

Recognition Type

Municipal Heritage Preservation Act

Recognition Date

1982/03/18

Historical Information

Significant Date(s)

1900/01/01 to 1945/01/01

Theme - Category and Type

Developing Economies
Trade and Commerce
Expressing Intellectual and Cultural Life
Architecture and Design

Function - Category and Type

Current

Historic

Residence
Single Dwelling

Architect / Designer

n/a

Builder

n/a

Additional Information

Location of Supporting Documentation

Planning and Development - City of Saint John

Cross-Reference to Collection

Fed/Prov/Terr Identifier

636

Status

Published

Related Places

n/a

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