Description of Historic Place

9 Brittain Road is a two-storey Maritime Vernacular residence located at the end of a long, private driveway. The house is set back far from the main road with open fields on all sides. The historic place designation includes the building and the land behind.

Heritage Value

9 Brittain Road was designated a Local Historic Place for its association with early transportation in the Grand Bay-Westfield area. 9 Brittain Road was a stopping place for travelers in the days before the railroad came through Grand Bay-Westfield. The home, also referred to by local residents as the “Old Stagecoach House” after the purpose it once served, was built in the mid-1800s by James Reid, who purchased 1000 acres of land from John Coffin in 1817. The long driveway leading to the home is a section of the former Post Road. The Post Road was the main route through the village until 1869 when the railway was established. Over time, portions of the road were abandoned to accommodate the railway and newer road routes. The residence still maintains some of its original elements, limited largely to its form and massing.

Adding to the historical significance of the Local Historic Place is the role the field immediately behind the home played in an unusual event in the history of the community. James Mollison, the Scottish pilot of the first westward trans-Atlantic flight, made an emergency landing with his Puss Moth plane in the field in August 1932. The flight was scheduled to land in Pennfield, however, weather or mechanical problems forced Mollison down before reaching his destination. After spending the night with local residents, he took off for Pennfield and completed his flight. It is interesting to note that the account of the journey in The Evening Times-Globe does not record the emergency stop.

Source: Grand Bay-Westfield Historic Places Files: 9 Brittain Road

Character-Defining Elements

The character-defining elements of the building include:
- location along the former Post Road;
- proximity to the railroad tracks;
- the fields surrounding the home (site of Mollison’s emergency landing);
- simple two-storey rectangular massing;
- very low-pitched lateral gable roof with nearly flush eaves;
- balanced window placement;
- slight window entablatures;
- projecting square frontispiece with double windows.