Description of Historic Place

11 St. Margaret’s Bay Road is an elegant two-storey wooden Arts and Crafts style building situated on St. Margaret’s Bay Road in the Armdale area of Halifax, Nova Scotia. Facing St. Margaret’s Bay Road, the house is located atop a very steep hill on an estate-like property with several mature trees and sweeping views of the Northwest Arm. From the base of St. Margaret’s Bay Road, steep stone steps with a wrought iron gate lead up to the front entrance. Both the house and the land are included in the municipal heritage registration.

Heritage Value

11 St. Margaret’s Bay Road is valued for its association with Margaret MacDonald, Daniel Scouler and for its mix of Arts and Crafts and Cottage style architecture.

In 1908 Margaret MacDonald purchased two lots of land located on the St. Margaret's Bay Road in an area known as North West Arm. She had the house constructed in 1908 and resided there until her death in 1938. At the time of her death, Margaret owned several properties in the area, which she left to her nephew Michael Fobin. In her will she also left money to several local charities and institutions, including the Halifax Infants Home, the Halifax School for the Blind and the Halifax Infirmary.

Fobin sold Craigmore in 1938 to Victoria Scouler. Victoria was married to Daniel Scouler, a well known member of Halifax’s shipping community who worked as superintendent of the Halifax Shipyards for 39 years. Victoria resided in the building until her death in 1967, and Daniel remained in the building until his death in 1972.

The name Craigmore is carved into a bronze plaque on the iron gate at the foot of the stone stairs leading up to the house from St. Margaret’s Bay Road; the word Craigmore is translated from Gaelic into English meaning “solid rock,” though it is not known which owner began calling the house this name.

Architecturally, the house showcases the Arts and Crafts/Cottage style with features including varied massing, a hipped gable roof with dormers sweeping down over a wide front verandah, clapboard and wood shingle cladding, mullioned windows and a glazed front door.

Source: HRM Community Development Department, Heritage Property Program, 11 St. Margaret’s Bay Road file.

Character-Defining Elements

The character-defining elements of 11 St. Margaret’s Bay Road relate to its Arts and Crafts style and include:

- hipped gable roof with returned eaves;
- asymmetrical three-bay façade;
- wood shingle cladding with plain corners and frieze boards and simple window surrounds;
- two brick chimneys;
- projecting second-storey hipped gable dormers on front façade;
- projecting rear hipped shed roofed dormer;
- wide front verandah with cornice, moulded frieze, plain Tuscan style columns thickened at the base, and balustrade;
- mullioned windows, some with bevelled glass;
- large single pane glazed wooden front door with side lights;
- sloping, estate-like property with mature trees and gardens.