Description of Historic Place

Easterbrooks House is a two story cottage, with sections of the house dating to the turn of the nineteenth century, with many additions in the Neo-classical style. It is located on Folkins Drive (locally known as Old Back Road) in Middle Sackville.

Heritage Value

Easterbrooks House is designated a Local Historic Place for the architectural features of the house that date parts of the present structure to the period from 1795 to 1820 and for its association with the Easterbrooks family.

Easterbrooks House was designed in the early 1800's. The original part of the house is probably the back section. The basic house structure shows elements of a small house, found in New England States in the Neo-classical style with derivations adapted to the Maritime Vernacular style.

Easterbrooks House is recognized for its association with early British settlement in the Sackville area. By 1760, Imperial plans for replacing the expelled Acadian population with one of British extraction were in the works. The first proclamation issued in 1758 made clear the threat of France had finally been eradicated from the province. The Easterbrooks’ family members were New England grantees of land in the Middle Sackville area as early as 1765, being representative of the many settlers from that area to come to the Chignecto Isthmus. Valentine Easterbrooks was originally from the Warren, Rhode Island area of the New England states. He was first granted land, 1000 acres, in the Sackville area in 1765. By a deed dated to 1821 James Easterbrooks, the son of Valentine granted the property at this site to his son William. In the deed it states that this piece of upland, which William already occupied, included a dwelling house.

The land remained in the Easterbrooks family until 1904. Family stories report that the family ran a road house for some time during the coaching days. An important feature of the early New England settlers was the common adherence to the Baptist policy, which was to provide the basis for both religious and secular leadership among the planter population. The Easterbrooks’ family, along with subsequent owners, Albert P. Snowdon and Harding Ayer and family, were examples of this leadership.

Source: Town of Sackville, Historic Places File Cabinet, Easterbrooks House File.

Character-Defining Elements

The character-defining elements that describe the original part of the back of Easterbrooks House include:
- walk-in fireplace.

The character-defining elements that describe the additions to original Easterbrooks House include:
- the front façade showing a prominent feature or addition often called the cross plan, with prominent front wing only;
- front featuring two prominent inset dormers;
- window openings featuring palladian window and double hung windows;
- prominent front entrance featuring door with sidelights;
- back wing;
- green house windows;
- side addition.