Description of Historic Place

Hewlett House and Grounds includes a wooden, one and a half storey bungalow with a mid pitch gable roof and surrounding lands. Constructed in 1937 the property is located along Route 380 in Robert’s Arm, NL. The designation includes the house and a parcel of land surrounding it.

Heritage Value

Hewlett House and Grounds has been designated a municipal heritage site by the Town of Robert’s Arm because of its historic, aesthetic and cultural value.

Hewlett House has historical value due to its association with Bowater Newfoundland Limited, the company that took over the operation of the Corner Brook pulp and paper mill in 1938. A few years previous, Bowater had started cutting and exporting pulpwood from the Robert’s Arm area. In 1936 Jack Hewlett, original owner of Hewlett House, secured the contract from Bowater and by 1939 two hundred and fifty men were employed cutting pulpwood in the community. Loads of pulpwood for export were stacked onto ships at nearby Tommy’s Arm. Bowater operations in and around Robert’s Arm continued into the 1970s, with one notable disruption occurring in October of 1937. One of the first loggers’ strikes in Canada was then executed in Robert’s Arm when workers protested pay rates and living conditions at logging camps.

Hewlett House has aesthetic value as a good example of early bungalow construction in the community and the region. It was constructed for pulpwood contractor Jack Hewlett in the summer of 1937 by carpenter Harris Walkins. A modern house for its time and vernacular in execution, Hewlett House incorporates many stylistic elements associated with the bungalow movement, including a mid-pitched roof, street facing gable, one and a half storey elevation, a modest front porch and balanced rather than symmetrical facade.

The property as a whole, including the surrounding land, has further aesthetic value as it is the gateway point to the community’s expansive recreation area. The property is easily seen along Route 380 leading into Robert’s Arm and is surrounded by municipal parklands.

Source: Town Robert’s Arm Regular Council Meeting Motion #06-66 May 30, 2006.

Character-Defining Elements

All those exterior features representative of vernacular bungalow style, including:
- mid-pitched roof;
- number of storeys;- boxed eave returns;
- narrow wooden clapboard;
- eaves trim, corner boards and waterboards;
- balanced facade;
- window size, style, trim and placement;
- location, size and style of single central dormer on right facade;
- size, style, trim and placement of exterior doors;
- location, size and style of porch on front facade, and;
- scale of building.

All those features elements that define the property as a landmark including:
-location on Route 380;
-unobstructed view from Route 380;
-manicured lot bordering municipal parklands; and
-location and orientation of building.