Description of Historic Place

The Haley and Smith Residence is a brick two-storey Queen Anne Revival residence. It is located on Orange Street within the Orange Street Preservation Area of the City of Saint John.

Heritage Value

The Haley and Smith Residence is designated a Local Historic Place for its architecture and for its association with its former occupants.

Built in 1911 for Rupert G. Haley, the Haley and Smith Residence is recognized as part of the collection of magnificent Victorian-era residences that form the Orange Street Heritage Preservation Area of Saint John. It is an example of brick Queen Anne Revival residential architecture during this period in Saint John.

The Haley and Smith Residence is also recognized for its association with two prominent citizens of Saint John, Rupert G. Haley and J. Willard Smith. A native of Yarmouth, Nova Scotia, Haley was the proprietor of the prominent planing and moulding mill, Haley Brothers Co. The Saint John business proved to be highly successful and Haley gradually expanded the business to a lumber merchant company as well. He left the business to his two sons, W. Kenneth and Raymond R. Haley after he retired in 1919. It was also at this time that Haley left his Orange Street residence, to be purchased by J. Willard Smith.

In 1874, after gaining experience as a worker in the ship yards of Eatonville, J. Willard Smith became an accountant for the commission merchants of the firm Masters & Paterson located on South Wharf. Three years later, he established his own business as a commission merchant. The business expanded rapidly until Smith’s fleet consisted of forty ships. At the company’s peak, it employed more than 150 individuals. He gained most of his fame, however, as a prominent prohibition advocate in the City and the Province. As a member of the Anti-License League of New Brunswick and the Saint John Prohibition Association, in addition to president of the New Brunswick Temperance Federation and the Saint John Temperance Alliance, Smith made his controversial views known. He acted as the forefront speaker in the plebiscites of 1898, 1920 and 1921 and headed several delegations to the licence commission, the City Council and the Provincial government, seeking further restrictions on liquor traffic. After much effort, he assisted in the drafting of prohibition laws initiated by the New Brunswick government in May of 1917. Severe illness from 1916 onward, however, restricted him from further political involvement. Smith passed away in 1925.

Source: Planning and Development Department - City of Saint John

Character-Defining Elements

The character defining elements that describe Haley and Smith Residence include:
- asymmetrical two-storey massing;
- brick exterior walls;
- projected cornice supported by brackets and ornamented by dentils;
- segmented arch windows with decorative brickwork and pronounced keystones;
- tripartite window with segmented arch, stained-glass fanlight;
- projecting single-storey bay on the east façade;
- projecting circular tower off the northwest corner;
- projecting two-storey square bay on the east side of the front façade;
- Roman arch entrance with enriched archivolt held up by Doric columns;
- Roman arch transom window and sidelights with tracery surrounding single-panel wooden door with brass knocker;
- stone steps.