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Lynn Pulsifer
Historical homes are artifacts of the past and a visible connection to our history. The Kentville Historical Society has just published a calendar, Historical Homes of Kentville, which offers thirteen old photographs of homes built in the 1800s. Some are now gone, but others found in the calendar still exist.
The cover page depicts a portion of Main Street dated to circa 1895 and looking east, at a location near the existing Kentville Fire Department. Beautiful oak and chestnut trees line the wide street, with several houses visible that were built in the Queen Ann Revival style. The house on the far left of the photo was once the home of Dr. Henry Shaw, and is now the offices of Waterbury and Newton, Barristers. The other two no longer exist.
The twelve houses presented in the calendar were once owned by well-known residents of the town. The houses had names like the Birches, the Botsford House, the Elmsdale House, the Blair House, and the Father Holden House. A painting of the famous Ward mansion, done by local artist Dr. Garth Vaughan, is also featured in the calendar.
The calendar is printed in a black and white format, which presents a unique starkness relating back to the photography of that era, and each month features a different photo, along with a brief historical description of the house. The historical information, and majority of the photos, were provided by Louis Comeau, a local historian from Kentville.
The calendars are available at Chisholm’s and Phinneys in downtown Kentville, and at the Heritage Centre on Station Lane. They can be purchased for $15 locally, or we can mail them out at a cost of $20 to cover handling and postage. This project is a major fundraiser for the Kentville Historical Society. Each of these homes tells a unique story about Kentville and this calendar provides a pictorial link to the historic past of the Town.
Please contact Lynn Pulsifer at lmpulsifer@hotmail.com with any questions.
