41 Cedar Lane - Bulkley Division
Cedar Croft is designated a Local Historic Place for its architecture and for its association with past occupants.
Cedar Croft is a two-and-a-half storey American Shingle summer cottage. It was the fourth summer cottage built in St. Andrews.
Cedar Croft is recognized for its original American Shingle styling, which after numerous renovations, now resembles an American Foursquare design. The house maintains a gabled window bay and dormer, a hipped roof, and a veranda that wraps around the building. The house is located on a hill, giving its residents a great view of the bay.
Cedar Croft is acknowledged for its association with past occupants. Cedar Croft was built in 1898 by the Reverend and Mrs. Alexander Bowser, who hired Robert Stevenson, a local contractor known for some spectacular work around town, including the Algonquin Hotel and Sir William Van Horne’s mansion. Alexander Bowser was born in Sackville in 1848. After graduating from Harvard in 1877, he and his wife, Adelaide, settled in Massachusetts and had two sons, Robert and Henry. The family spent many summers in St. Andrews, with the Reverend preaching from time to time at the local Methodist Church. Both Robert and Henry continued to return to St. Andrews as they grew older, often with their wives and families. The Reverend and Mrs. Bowser both passed away in 1933, he two months after his wife, in Concord Massachusetts.
In 1944 Cedar Croft was sold to Charles T. Ballantyne, a lawyer from Montreal. Mr. Ballantyne’s had spent summers as a kid at the Algonquin Hotel. After marrying Rosalie Brittain, from Winnipeg, the Ballantynes turned their attention to Cedar Croft, undertaking major renovations in order to make it livable year-round. The home, renamed Bellenden in 1944, housed the Ballantynes full-time. Rosalie Brittain’s mother, Mrs. Ethel Brittain, moved in with them as well.
The Ballantynes played important roles in Charlotte County. Mr. Ballantyne was chairman of the Charlotte County Hospital Board from1954 to 1965, while Mrs. Ballantyne was a member of the All Saints Church and was an early member of the Charlotte County Hospital Auxiliary, and worked there for more than 25 years. Mrs. Ballantyne was also an avid gardener, and Bellenden was renowned for having one of the best gardens in St. Andrews. Mr. Ballantyne passed away in 1966, and later Mrs. Ethel Brittain in 1971.
Insisting that the house was now too big for her, Mrs. Ballantyne moved into the coach house with her friend Mrs. Christie Hope. Mrs. Ballantyne later moved to Bermuda in search of warmer weather. She passed away there in 1982. She, along with her husband and mother, is buried at the St. John the Baptist Anglican Chapel of Ease Cemetery in Chamcook.
Bellenden was sold to Bostonians Mr. and Mrs. Howard B. Hodgson in 1980, while the coach house was sold by Mrs. Hope to Mr. and Mrs. Rowland Frazee of Montreal in 1981, at the time when Mr. Frazee was the President of the Royal Bank of Canada.
The character-defining elements of this residence include:
Other Names: Bellenden
Source: Charlotte County Archives - Old Gaol, St. Andrews, New Brunswick
Cedar Croft is a two-and-a-half storey American Shingle summer cottage. It was the fourth summer cottage built in St. Andrews.
Cedar Croft is recognized for its original American Shingle styling, which after numerous renovations, now resembles an American Foursquare design. The house maintains a gabled window bay and dormer, a hipped roof, and a veranda that wraps around the building. The house is located on a hill, giving its residents a great view of the bay.
Cedar Croft is acknowledged for its association with past occupants. Cedar Croft was built in 1898 by the Reverend and Mrs. Alexander Bowser, who hired Robert Stevenson, a local contractor known for some spectacular work around town, including the Algonquin Hotel and Sir William Van Horne’s mansion. Alexander Bowser was born in Sackville in 1848. After graduating from Harvard in 1877, he and his wife, Adelaide, settled in Massachusetts and had two sons, Robert and Henry. The family spent many summers in St. Andrews, with the Reverend preaching from time to time at the local Methodist Church. Both Robert and Henry continued to return to St. Andrews as they grew older, often with their wives and families. The Reverend and Mrs. Bowser both passed away in 1933, he two months after his wife, in Concord Massachusetts.
In 1944 Cedar Croft was sold to Charles T. Ballantyne, a lawyer from Montreal. Mr. Ballantyne’s had spent summers as a kid at the Algonquin Hotel. After marrying Rosalie Brittain, from Winnipeg, the Ballantynes turned their attention to Cedar Croft, undertaking major renovations in order to make it livable year-round. The home, renamed Bellenden in 1944, housed the Ballantynes full-time. Rosalie Brittain’s mother, Mrs. Ethel Brittain, moved in with them as well.
The Ballantynes played important roles in Charlotte County. Mr. Ballantyne was chairman of the Charlotte County Hospital Board from1954 to 1965, while Mrs. Ballantyne was a member of the All Saints Church and was an early member of the Charlotte County Hospital Auxiliary, and worked there for more than 25 years. Mrs. Ballantyne was also an avid gardener, and Bellenden was renowned for having one of the best gardens in St. Andrews. Mr. Ballantyne passed away in 1966, and later Mrs. Ethel Brittain in 1971.
Insisting that the house was now too big for her, Mrs. Ballantyne moved into the coach house with her friend Mrs. Christie Hope. Mrs. Ballantyne later moved to Bermuda in search of warmer weather. She passed away there in 1982. She, along with her husband and mother, is buried at the St. John the Baptist Anglican Chapel of Ease Cemetery in Chamcook.
Bellenden was sold to Bostonians Mr. and Mrs. Howard B. Hodgson in 1980, while the coach house was sold by Mrs. Hope to Mr. and Mrs. Rowland Frazee of Montreal in 1981, at the time when Mr. Frazee was the President of the Royal Bank of Canada.
The character-defining elements of this residence include:
- bay window in second story with gabled roof
- 16 pane diamond shaped window, amid fancy scallop shingling, underneath the apex
- exposed rafters under the roofline
- hipped roof
- verandah
- wood shingle cladding
Other Names: Bellenden
Source: Charlotte County Archives - Old Gaol, St. Andrews, New Brunswick
