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April 11, 1997
(Tourism, Culture and Recreation)

Funding Announced for Lester-Garland House

Sandra Kelly, Minister of Tourism, Culture and Recreation, and Doug Oldford, MHA - Trinity North, today announced that the Department of Tourism, Culture and Recreation has contributed $333,000 in funding for the completion of the Garland House reconstruction project in Trinity, Trinity Bay. This funding will complete the province's commitment to the project which was announced last year. The $1.2 million project comprises: $460,000 in provincial financing; $460,000 in federal contributions; and $280,000 from the Trinity Trust.

"John Bingley Garland, the first Speaker of the House of Assembly, lived in the original Garland Mansion," Minister Kelly said. "The reconstruction of the brick house will commemorate the highly important trade that transpired between Newfoundland and England during the 18th and 19th centuries. Trinity was a very important commercial centre during that period and the Garland Mansion specifically, was an integral component of that significant period in our history."

The Lester-Garland House is a large, brick Georgian residence which has been reconstructed and which will be used as a museum and educational centre. The centre will promote and celebrate the strong historical and cultural linkages between Newfoundland and West England, particularly those between Trinity and Dorset. The project has been managed by the Trinity Trust in both England and Canada since 1991. Trinity Trust will continue to own, operate and maintain the building in the future. Reconstruction of the property began in the fall of 1996 and is expected to be completed in the summer of 1997.

"This particular project is a strategic venture, capitalizing on the increasing number of tourists now visiting the Trinity area every year." Mr Oldford said. "This project will not only provide employment, but it also has the potential to strengthen the economic benefits associated with attracting increasing numbers of visitors to the area."

The Lester-Garland House has been reconstructed on the Lester Garland Premises Provincial Historic Site. This is the first time that a non-government organization has initiated a project utilizing a provincial historic site. This inaugural partnership has been forged between the provincial departments of Tourism, Culture and Recreation, and Development and Rural Renewal together with Human Resources Development Canada and the Trinity Trust.

Contact: Laura Cochrane, Communications Director, Department of Tourism, Culture and Recreation, (709) 729-0928 or fax: (709) 729-0870.