Preparing a Conservation Report - The Doucet House

In the Summer of 2001 Arnold Smith and I prepared the conservation report which outlined the findings of an investigation of historical information obtained from consultations with local historians, architectural historians, and archival records.  This information gave direction for the period in which to best interpret the Doucet House.  The Doucet house is an important example of early Acadian vernacular architecture on Prince Edward Island and a record of early Acadians and their re-establishing themselves following the expulsion.  The report was prepared with care to ensure as much information was collected prior to making conclusions.  As the restoration work continued more information was discovered about the structure and the period in which it was built. 

More to come on the restoration...



The Doucet House of Grand Pere Point

This is an aerial view of Doucet House taken sometime in the 1950s.  The house was built by Jean Doucet in the late 1700s of hand-hewn logs.  This house is thought to be one of the oldest house on the Island.

Parks Canada Photos. 1974.  The basement of Doucet House - to the left is the base of the large sandstone fireplace.

Parks Canada Photo 1974.  The wall mantle in the parlour of Doucet House.  Note the photo on the right - Premier Alex Campbell.

Parks Canads Photo 1974.  Under eave storage at Doucet House - note the top of the log wall directly back and the white-wash on the ceiling and walls.

Parks Canada Photo 1974.  The Dresser.  In the absence of a priest in the Rustico area Jean Doucet was given privileges to carry out Mass and other duties by the Bishop of Quebec - tradition has it that this cabinet, or some part of it, was used in the ceremony - unfortunately it was sent to the dump when the house was sold and converted to a summer home in the 1980s.

The Doucet House as it sat empty and ready to be demolished or taken away to make way for a new house.  The Friends of the Farmers Bank decided to take the house and restore it as it held significant historic value to the area.  In the fall of 2000 the house was stablized, thanks to Parks Canada, and moved from Grand Pere Point to sit beside the Farmers Bank of Rustico. 

The Doucet House in February 2003 - shortly before restoration began.  The one-and-a-half storey house is 28'-6"x21'-9" with a 11/12 pitched roof.  The logs of the front wall had to be replaced due to rot.  A dendrochronolgy analysis of the logs was undertaken and determined the logs were most likely cut in 1768. 

February 2003.  Farmers Bank of Rustico in background.

Log corners cut in the dovetailed or military method - note the birch bark.

 The back wall of Doucet House.  Note the brick clay chinking between the logs and the birch bark which had been applied to the logs before the vertical board sheathing was applied and later the cedar shingles.

More to come....



Restoration Success Story. St. John the Baptist Miscouche, Prince Edward Island

Here's St. John the Baptist Catholic Church following restorations.  Father Albin Arsenault oversaw a six-year restoration of this historic church - from the steeple to the altar.  He took the approach of fixing, repairing, restoring one project at a time and step-by-step with the enthusiasm of his parishioners achieved amazing results.  Amoung their greatest achievements - no debt - all paid for as the process continued!! 

Old Photo of St. John the Baptist Church

Note the textures of the exterior building materials.

The original altar which had been removed/demolished in the 1970s

The New Altar, unveiled on June 28, 2009 - a replica of the original.  I prepared the drawings from old photos and with the amazing skills of craftsmen John Richards and Lionel DesRoches the project was a great success.  

 The restored interior, painted by Cathedral Painters of Nova Scotia.  Looking towards the altar.

 The interior colours were based on themes of St. John the Baptist.

Looking towards the rear of the sanctuary to balcony and organ.

Architectural Elements

My brother Kerras Jeffery of Backroad Folkart in Lauretta, PEI is a folkartist and avid collector of old things - he has a large collection of old doors and a variety of architectural elements from cast iron sinks and tubs; tin ceilings; newel posts; old furniture; trunks; etc., etc. - if he doesn't have what you're looking for he'll try to find it for you!

Arnold's House

Arnold did a tremendous job on moving and restoring his great-great-grandparents home!

The garage, porch and sunroom were added on.  The garage is sheathed with Board 'n Batten - the sunroom had its corners angled to match the existing bay window.

The traditional kitchen was restored and features the traditional wood stove, wainscotting, wood floors, stairs to bedroom above the kitchen, etc.

A welcoming entry - the main door was recreated new by Borden Myers Woodworking in Charlottetown to resemble an old door with stained glass he saw at a friends house on Fitzroy St. 

Arnold has style everywhere!

The house is situated on the side of a south facing hill - located much as it was originally on Pleasant Hill Farm

Bagnalls Mills, Hunter River, PEI

BEFORE - photo taken 2006 of Bagnalls Mills - the former Patterson Grist Mill in very poor condition.

AFTER - photo taken January 2011.  In 2007-2008 the mill was renovated and added-to by the Parkmans who did a tremendous job on saving this old building - the cedar shingles were milled onsite.  Note the salvaged lightning rods on the roof.

New Houses in an Old Style

I designed this new house in an old style in 2002 - it's located on the North Shore of PEI. 

Here's another new house I designed, built around the same time as the one above, located in Stratford, PEI

Farm Aerial Views

This is an aerial photograph of the Abram and Mary Jane (Smith) Jeffery homestead.  The 50-acre farm was settled in the early 1880s.  Located on the Centerline Road (Rte. 151) in Lauretta it featured a typical Island-ell house, large barn and a few outbuildings.  At the time of this photo, taken in the mid 1950s, the farm was owned by my grandparents Louis and Annie Jane (Cannon) Jeffery.  My father Wilbert is standing beside his car looking up at the airplane as this photo was being taken.  A neighbour often commented on how tidy the property was always kept.   The low row of spruce trees behind the barn were planted in 1935 by Louis and Wilbert - Dad being 5-years old.  The garage to the left of the photo was turned into a house in the fall of 1961 shortly after i was born - it had a kitchen and a bedroom - a place for Mom and Dad to call their own.  My grandmother was still living in the old house which was abandoned following her move to Alberton in 1964.  The house was sold to Albert MacInnis in the early 1970s and moved to the Dock Road, Elmsdale West.

The Old Barns of Rural PEI

This barn was demolished in 2007 following the restructure of Alma Corner at the intersection of Rte. 2 and Rte. 151.  The old Frank Mountain farmstead had been abandoned some years earlier.  The barn was originally located in Lauretta (Rte. 151) on the Peter O'Brien farmstead and later years traded for land and moved out to Alma Corner.  So often were buildings moved in those days - they were too valuable to be demolished.  In the lower photo Holy Trinity Anglican Church can be observed in the background - having just received a fresh coat of white paint.

A Monument to the Past

Arnold Smith and I visited this site first in 1993 and observed the remains of this central chimney style house - it had all fallen down around the island sandstone fireplace leaving it as if a monument to its past.  The house was built in 1790 by Angus Owen MacDonald.  We returned ten years later in the spring of 2003 and took these photos - the site was much as it was ten years earlier.  The central chimney with double fireplaces measures about 8' square with the largest fireplace opening into the kitchen.  The mortar was mostly all washed away being exposed to the elements for so many years - the original mortar would have been made of brick clay, straw and mussel shells.