This 2-storey concrete block house is situated at 114 George Street between Smythe and Northumberland Streets.
Heritage Value
The heritage value of this dwelling resides in both the prominence of its ownership and its architectural style/construction material.
In the early 20th century, pressed/textured concrete block was an affordable building material that could cheaply mimic stone masonry, and houses constructed of this material often reflect a response to this locally produced building alternative that was popular between the two World Wars.
Washington Storey Hooper had this concrete block house constructed in 1914, likely at the end of his second and final term as Mayor of Fredericton. His career in local politics began in 1906, with his election to City Council. After representing his ward for six consecutive years, W. S. Hooper ran for Mayor in 1912. Before Hooper established his own insurance firm, which he operated for thirty years, he also worked as an accountant, printer, and manager of the Barker House Hotel.
The Hooper family had resided in Fredericton since the mid-19th Century. Nehemiah Storey Hooper, originally of Durham, Maine, had a wood frame dwelling built on this lot during the 1850s. That house was removed preparatory to building the current concrete block dwelling.
Character-Defining Elements
The character-defining elements associated with the dwelling located at 114 George Street include:
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2-storey pressed concrete block construction with smooth quoins and precast concrete fluted porch columns.
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Nearly symmetrical front façade, influenced by the Georgian Revival;
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low-pitched hip roof with central attic dormers;
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regularly spaced rectangular windows;
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enclosed wraparound porch supported by cast columns;
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triangular pediment surmounting porch entrance.