Hiscock House (Mountain Ash Villa)

The Hiscock House is designated a Provincial Historic Site because it has aesthetic and historic values. The Hiscock House is aesthetically valuable as it is an example of nineteenth century outport vernacular architecture. Built in 1881 for Richard Hiscock this complex of buildings comprised several structures that were necessary for everyday life at that time, including the house, shop, wood house, cellar, barn, forge and outhouse. Of these, only the house, shop and cellar remain today.

The house has a steeply pitched gable roof with returned eaves, two end chimneys located above the ridge and a central scotch dormer located above the eaves line. This wooden house is constructed with narrow wooden clapboard, wide corner boards and wooden roof shingles. The regular fenestration of the 6/6 wooden windows is further emphasized by the wide, but plain, wooden trim. The front door is recessed and has a wooden pediment.

The associated shop is attached via a corridor addition, which is accessible through the house and there are two separate entrances for the public. The roof slopes steeply forward as a shed roof, but has a flat roof over the top of the building. As is typical for a commercial building, the shop has two large storefront windows and a recessed doorway with two long, narrow windows and a panelled door. This shop mirrors the attached house with narrow wooden clapboard, wide corner boards and plain window and door trim. The cellar remains as it was originally built, located at the back of the property.

The Hiscock House is historically valuable because it is a good surviving example of a typical merchant’s family home. Constructed in 1881, this house was built in anticipation of the marriage of Richard Hiscock and his future wife, Emma. This property remained in the Hiscock family until 1978 when the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador purchased it. Most of the artifacts within the property are original and these buildings are well suited to telling the story of a nineteenth and twentieth century merchant family. The house and shop have been restored as a community museum to highlight the story of the self sufficiency of Emma Hiscock, who became widowed not long after her marriage. Emma was able to support herself and her family, and keep them together, educate them and maintain a position in the community in spite of her circumstances. The Hiscock House has undergone many changes and renovations in its history, as Emma Hiscock used her resourcefulness to operate a post office and a bank from the property. The Hiscock House stands as a reminder of the resilience of an outport woman who was faced with the difficulties of early twentieth century life, and succeeded.