Description of Historic Place

This property, a two-storey wooden building and now a museum, is located in the New Town area of Lunenburg, NS. It is built close to the streetline, with a small yard to the front and either side and a parking area in the rear. Designation extends to both the house and surrounding property.

Heritage Value

This house is valued as the former home of Captain Angus Walters who became famous across Nova Scotia, Canada, and the world in the 1920s and 1930s as the captain of the schooner "Bluenose." Walters' name became synonymous with the iconic schooner; he led the vessel and crew to numerous national and international race wins and as one of the most successful ships to fish in the North Atlantic.

The house was built in 1915, and remained in Walters' family for many decades. It is now a museum that depicts highlights of Angus Walters life and local culture in Lunenburg in the first part of the twentieth century, which has often been refered to as the 'golden era' for the fishery and shipbuilding industries. The Angus Walters House is typical of homes of its era in Lunenburg; it is fairly simple in design, and many of its original architectural features are intact.

Souce: Heritage Designation File 66400-40-56, Town of Lunenburg.

Character-Defining Elements

Key character-defining elements of the Captain Angus Walters House relate to its early twentieth century architecture, including:

- location of the property in New Town, which was a fashionable and growing area of settlement at the time of construction;
- projecting pedimented bay window on the northwest side and a central bay entrance way, with sidelight window;
- wide veranda facing the street and connecting the ell and bay features and a second floor balcony following the shape of the veranda below;
- ornamental features such as the cornerboard brackets and decorative shinglework;
- hip roof with an ell on one side and a central gable dormer.