William Richards Residence

Williams Richards

William Richards Residence

6166 Route 8, Boiestown

PID# 40089443

Description: The William Richards Residence is a Classic Revival two and a half storey home contracted in 1891. It is situated on the south side of the main thoroughfare leading through the Boiestown region of Rural Community of Upper Miramichi and is located within a grouping of period homes.

Heritage Value: The William Richards Residence is designated a Local Historic Place for its architecture and for its association with its first resident. It is a good example of Classical Revival residential architecture prior to the turn of the 10th century. This style is evident in such Classical details such as the returned eaves, the corner boards with capitals and the window entablatures. It also exhibits a traditional L-shaped plan that is typical to a rural interpretation of this style.

The first resident of this home was William Richards. William was the son of a Welsh immigrant who settled in the Stanley area and became involved in the lumber trade. William, like his brothers, followed suit and he established himself at Burnt Land Brook, buying the former MacMillan mill site within the community in 1891. Prior to this he owned the John Fairley property of the nearby Taxis River and owned lumbering operations on the Nashwaak and lower Miramichi Rivers. He was involved with the inception of the rail system which was put in place in the 1880's that opened up the export of lumber on a year round basis. While situated in Boiestown he built expensive management and company housing within the community and was the largest employer in the area. He also owned the local general store and was the area's largest merchant. Following hiss death in 1903, the Miramichi Lumber Company purchased his holdings and continued operations.

Source: Rural Community of Upper Miramichi, Site File #09-04

Character-defining Elements: The character-defining elements relating to the Classical Revival architecture of the William Richards Residence include: