Description of Historic Place

Sinclair Inn / Farmer's Hotel National Historic Site of Canada is a two-and-a-half storey wooden building in the commercial area of Annapolis Royal, Nova Scotia. Its rectangular massing and symmetrically organized façade with central pediment and main entry evoke the classical vernacular style of many of its neighbours and belie its earlier origins. Once known as the Farmer's Hotel, this structure evolved with the amalgamation of at least two buildings, one dating from the Acadian era. Stabilized in the 1980s, the building is now operated as a museum. Official recognition refers to the building on its legal lot.

Heritage Value

Sinclair Inn / Farmer's Hotel was designated a national historic site of Canada in 1983 because:
-as an important document in the history of building in Atlantic Canada, the building stands as a rich composite of materials, techniques and styles spanning three centuries.

The heritage value of this site resides in its illustration of building techniques and materials dating from as early as the late 17th century through to the 19th century. A composite of more than one original building, the structure includes very early Acadian building techniques as well as those of the later, newer English vernacular. Operated as an inn for over 150 years, the business closed in 1950. The building retains much of its original material.

Source: Historic Sites and Monument Board of Canada, Minutes, June 1983.

Character-Defining Elements

Key elements contributing to the heritage value of this site include:
- its location in the business core of Annapolis Royal;
- its rectangular, two-and-a-half-storey massing under a front-sloping gable roof;
- its symmetrically organized main façade with central pediment and entry;
- its clapboard cladding on the front and street elevations;
- its variety of construction and finishing techniques including wood frame, stone foundation, wattle-and-daub walls, plank ceilings, lath and plaster finishes, remnants of decorative interior painting, trim and wainscoting;
- evidence of the evolution of the interior layout over time.