Description of Historic Place

Laurel Rebekah Lodge is a white two-storey hall of wood-frame construction set into a hill on Route 316 in Goldboro, Nova Scotia. The building has an addition on the west side nearly as large as the central section. The municipal designation covers the building and surrounding land.

Heritage Value

The Rebekah Lodge in Goldboro, Nova Scotia, was built in 1927, and is reminiscent of the days when the village was a vibrant community with a growing population. The Rebekah Lodge is valued as a reminder of the importance of fraternal organizations in the region’s history. At one time the adjoining communities of Goldboro and Isaac’s Harbour supported eight separate lodges, only two of which remain today.

The large wood-frame building is built in a style common to fraternal lodges in the Atlantic region. It has a somewhat plain exterior in shingle cladding. Moulded window hoods on the front and west elevations are the only decorative features. At two storeys with a large addition, it is intended to accommodate large groups.

Although a simple design, Laurel Rebekah Lodge is an excellent intact example of a building type once very common in small Nova Scotia communities. The hall is still in use today.

Source: Municipality of the District of Guysborough Heritage Property files, number 1445

Character-Defining Elements

The character-defining elements of this property relating to its age and role as a fraternal organization hall include:
- the original wood clapboard siding;
- original, symmetrically-placed sash windows on the west elevation;
- the original wood hood moulding over some of the windows;
- the peephole in the entrance door to the main hall for inspection of visitors before allowing them to enter.