Description of Historic Place

Oakwood House is a two-and-a-half storey wood framed building of simple Queen Anne Revival style located on the western shore of Lake Banook in Dartmouth, NS. The heritage designation applies to the building and the parcel of land it occupies.

Heritage Value

Oakwood House is valued for its association with its owners and for its Queen Anne Revival style. Built by lawyer Thomas Notting, it is believed that he built Oakwood House either in 1902, when he bought the first half of the property, or later in 1909 when he bought the remaining half. Thomas Notting died in 1941 and Oakwood was purchased by Louis W. Walker, manager of the People’s Hardware, in 1944. The Walker family in Dartmouth is associated with the grocery business and construction industry in Dartmouth, building many important landmarks in Dartmouth. In 1960, after Walker’s death, the house was purchased by the former City of Dartmouth, now part of Halifax Regional Municipality. It has housed the Victorian Order of Nurses from 1966 to 2000, Oakwood Service Hall Club 1960 to 2001, and the North Star Rowing Club from 1969 to the present.

Oakwood House is a two-and-a-half storey wooden structure of a simple Queen Anne Revival style. It is a large house with a verandah on two sides and four entrances into the house, one on each side. Built overlooking Lake Banook, it complements its mainly residential surroundings.

Source: HRM Heritage File 88A Crichton Avenue, Oakwood House (North Star Rowing Club), found at HRM Planning and Development Services, Heritage Property Program, 6960 Mumford Road, Halifax, Nova Scotia.

Character-Defining Elements

The character-defining elements of Oakwood House relate to its simple Queen Anne Revival style and include:

- two-and-a-half storey wooden structure with wood shingle facade;
- form and massing;
- verandah on two sides;
-four entrances into the house, one on each side;
- small triangular shaped pediment above the back entrance;
- evenly spaced large columns under the sloping roof of the verandah;
- two one-storey three-bay windows on the second storey of the house;
- large two-storey three-bay window projection under the gabled pediment on the façade.