Description of Historic Place

The Mackey House is located on a slight rise facing the ocean on Ketch Harbour Road, in Ketch Harbour, Nova Scotia. This small, one-and-a-half storey, wooden house was built circa 1835. The building and property are included in the provincial designation.

Heritage Value

The Mackey House is valued as an early nineteenth-century, vernacular coastal home and for its association with author Kathleen Hill.

The house was likely built in the 1830s and was part of a larger property purchased by Emanuel Mackey in 1840. With the house and land he also purchased a water lot, presumably enabling him to build a wharf for his own use. In 1847 he purchased eight nets and four boats from his father-in-law and operated a small fishing fleet from his wharf. The property remained in the Mackey family until 1969.

In 1969 author Kathleen Hill purchased the property. Born in Halifax in 1917, Hill is the author of several books including a book on Joseph Howe and a collection of the legends of the Wabanaki. Hill also authored several radio productions, a stage play, and television plays. Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, much of Hill's literary work was undertaken in this house. In 1969 she was awarded the Canadian Literary Association’s Book of the Year for children’s literature.

The Mackey House is a simple, one-and-a-half storey wood-frame structure with a gable roof and wood shingle cladding. The house sits on a stone foundation and has a rear kitchen ell. It is an excellent example of the vernacular homes that were once common along Nova Scotia’s coastline.

Source: Provincial Heritage Program property files, no. 236

Character-Defining Elements

Character-defining elements of Mackey House include:

- one-and-a-half storey, wood frame construction;
- gable roof;
- wood shingle cladding;
- six-over-six windows;
- stone foundation;
- rear kitchen ell;
- close proximity and access to the Atlantic Ocean.