Description of Historic Place

The Powell House is a two-and-a-half storey late Victorian style house with a hipped roof, located at 70 Water Street East, Carbonear, Newfoundland. The designation includes the building and surrounding garden.

Heritage Value

The Powell house has been designated as a heritage building because of its architectural and historic value.

Architecturally, the Powell House reflects the builders, Phillip Saunders, outport interpretations of the late Victorian style. This house is one of the few remaining examples of this building style in Carbonear. All of the original building materials of the house is largely intact both inside and out, with the exception of a few tastefully constructed additions to the back and sides. The interior wood wall covering was inspired by Powell's travel to England, a commonly seen element in the houses built by Saunders & Howell.

Historically, the house is also important because of its associations with a prominent business man in Carbonear, J.P Powell. Powell was one of Carbonear's leading citizens and well known throughout Newfoundland. He was involved in the Reid Newfoundland Company and, at the turn of the century, built some of the earliest hydro plants in Newfoundland. He was famous for designing the Trinity loop, a stretch of the Bonavista branch railway line that is unique in North America because it circles a small pond to obtain a decrease in elevation. Powell also was associated with Saunders and Howell, a major construction and building-supply company.

Source: Heritage Foundation of Newfoundland and Labrador unnumbered property designation file, 1 Springdale Street, St. John's, NL, A1C 5V5

Character-Defining Elements

All original features which relate to the age and style of the home including:
- Steeply pitched gable roof.
- Gabled dormers
- Original uniform windows openings on front facade.
- Double pile bay windows on front facade
- Original windows and doors throughout.
- Narrow clapboard.
- Simple trim on doors and windows.
- Simple decoration on house.
- Placement of chimneys.
- All existing interior features which reflect the age and style of the building.
- Character of surrounding garden.
- Location