The building, located at 53 Park St. and referred to locally as the bishop’s residence, was built in the summer of 1892.
Levi Wyman purchased the lot at the corner of Cliff and Park Street from Margaret Jane Corning for $2,112 in 1891.
He operated a grocery store on Main Street from 1875 till the 1900s. In 1913 he sold the house to Seymour Baker, the son of MP Loran Baker.
Baker converted the house into two apartments and interior renovations were made at that time.
A Mrs. Killam and her daughter lived here for a time and later two sea captains: William Martin and M. L. Moir.
In 1954 Baker sold the house to James Kenney who turned it over to the Roman Catholic Church, which had just formed the new diocese in Yarmouth.
A chapel and a vault were added to the building, the latter for church records, not currency.
It became the chancery (business) office for the diocese, with all parishes reporting through it. Over the years the bishop and visiting clergy resided here.
In 2003 all of the offices were moved back to the Saint Ambrose rectory and Father John MacPherson (2003) and Father Henry Smolenaars (in 2010) took up residence in the large Queen Anne revival home.
Father MacPherson recalls a few humorous episodes involving tourists over his eight years in residence. During the summer he was a common sight mowing the lawns of the large property.
“I’ve taken them (tourists) through the house and people have mistaken me for the caretaker or the owner, which I kind of play around with,” he said.
Keeping up the grounds was important to him.
“It was, and is, an important building for the town and I’ve tried to keep the outside looking nice… it is on the walking tour.”
Church functions were held on the property and parish councils have met there for meals. An annual barbecue was held for adults initiated into the church at Easter.
As for its history, Father MacPherson, who has played with the Flying Fathers hockey team, associates the building date with another. He says with a smile, “it was the same year that Lord Stanley donated the Stanley Cup.”
He says the house has a warm atmosphere and has many windows.
“It would be a great place for a bed and breakfast or a place for receptions or office parties,” he said.
Features that make the building stand out include a palladian-shaped stair window trimmed with an elaborate owl design of wood. The round corner tower is offset with a finial emerging from the tower’s peak. The upper floor window is trimmed with a gable and queen’s post truss at the front.
Scalloped woodwork separates the first and second floors and the eaves are trimmed with fanciful dressing.
References in the 1890s Yarmouth Light newspaper referred to it “as being the finest piece of architecture of this class to be found in the Maritime Provinces.”
Stained glass windows and extensive oak woodwork, including carved details by James Doane, can be found throughout the home.
A description from the early 1900s describes the top of the tower as a cozy den, “which might be used as an observatory, so grand a view of sky, land, and sea does it command.”
There are seven bedrooms and five baths in the home, which is listed for sale for $429,000.
