Avon River Heritage Society
  • About
    • Avon River Heritage Society
    • Artifacts & Archives
    • The Avon River
    • Meet the People in our Neighbourhood >
      • Dawn Allen, August 21st, 2020
      • Sara Beanlands, July 22nd, 2021
      • Carolyn Connors, July 30th, 2020
      • Carolyn Connors, July 21st, 2021
      • Louis Countinho, August 13th, 2020
      • Sean Countinho, January 13th, 2021
      • Eva Evans, July 24th, 2020
      • Elizabeth Ferguson, July 27th, 2020
      • Nicholas Hughes, August 6th, 2020
      • Olwynn Hughes, August 11th, 2020
      • Kim Lake, January 18th & 21st, 2021
      • Trudy Lake, March 13th, 2022
      • Raymond Parker, August 12th, 2020
      • Raymond Parker, July 7th, 2021
      • Zacchary Paul, August 21st, 2021
      • Tacha Reed, August 27th, 2020
      • Allen Shaw, January 18th, 2021
      • Carolyn vanGurp, July 16th, 2020
      • Abraham Zebian, August 24th, 2020
    • Avondale Walking Tour
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  • History
    • Natural History >
      • Highest Tides in the World
      • Tidal Bore
      • Avon Peninsula Ecology
      • Birds of the Avon
      • Marine and Freshwater Species of the Avon
      • Karst Environment
      • Gypsum
      • Avon Peninsula Watershed Preservation Society >
        • Avon Peninsula Watershed Preservation Society, Interview with President, Raymond Parker
    • Mi'kmaq >
      • Mi'kmaq Birch Bark Canoes
      • Mi'kmaq of the Avon River >
        • Treaty Truckhouse 2 & Zacchary Paul
    • The Coming of the Europeans
    • The North American Colonies
    • Acadians >
      • Pisiquit
      • Acadians of the Avon River
      • Village Thibodeau (Poplar Grove)
      • Acadian Families After Expulsion
    • New England Planters >
      • New England Planters in Avondale >
        • Genealogy
        • James and Lydia Mosher
    • Loyalists
    • African Nova Scotians
    • Local Home Histories >
      • 28 Chip Hill Road
      • 51 Avondale Road
      • 38 Avondale Road: The Clifford Mosher House
      • 58 Avondale Road
      • 60 Avondale Cross Road
      • 71 Avondale Road: The John A. Harvie House
      • 354 Belmont Road: The Yellow House
      • 603 Belmont Road: Wallace Point
      • 801 Avondale Road
      • The Acadia House
      • The Avondale Church
      • The Avondale Parsonage
      • The Church Farm
      • The Fred Robart House
      • The Henry Lyon House
      • The House Across From The Church
      • The John E.F. Mosher House
      • The Knowles Homestead
      • The Mounce Mansions >
        • Captain George R. Mounce House
        • The Thomas A. Mounce House (Honeymoon House) >
          • Interior of the Honeymoon House
      • The Mrs. Dunham Hotel
      • The Old Newton Mosher House
      • The Old Stone House >
        • The Mystery of the Fieldstone House
      • The Roley Mosher House
      • The W.H. Mosher House
    • The Avondale School
    • Golden Age of Sail >
      • The Rise and Fall of the Golden Age of Sail in Newport
      • The Mosher Shipyards
      • Sailing Ships, Sugar, and Salt
      • Vessels of the Avon River
      • Shipbuilding Process
      • Shipbuilding Tools
      • Ship Directories
      • The Avon Spirit
      • Kings Wharf
      • The Hamburg >
        • Obituary Capt. Andrew B. Coldwell
        • The Hamburg and Alice Coalfleet’s Diary
      • Captain George Richard Mounce Sr
      • Annie Armstrong Mounce Correspondence 1875-1892
      • Captain Daniel William Dexter & The Emma Payzant >
        • Captain Daniel William Dexter and Family, Interview with Debbie Siler, July 21st, 2021
        • Diary of Sarah Dexter, 1892-1893
      • The Rotundus
    • Avondale Wharf & The Landing
    • Community Orchard
    • Edmund McCarthy
  • Arts & Culture
    • The Great Little Art Show >
      • Great Little Art Show 2021 - Artists
      • Great Little Art Show 2021 - Artwork
      • Great Little Art Show 2022 - Artists
      • Great Little Art Show 2022 - Artwork
    • Artists Landing Art Gallery
    • Open Studio at the Museum
    • Full Circle Festival >
      • Sofa Sundays
      • Solstice Market
    • Artisans in Action >
      • Artist in Residence 2022
      • Paint Avondale
    • Avondale Wharf Day
    • Honey Harvest Festival
    • Yoga, Meditation, Free Writing Series
    • Lyrics & Letters Concert/Workshop
  • Events Calendar
  • Planters Sea Chest Gift Shop
  • Lydia & Sally Cafe
  • Rentals
  • Volunteer and Employment Opportunities
  • How to find us!

Captain Mounce

George Richard Mounce Sr, a well-known captain from Newport, is still remembered by many locals as the grandfather of the late George Mounce Jr.

Mounce lead an interesting life, being born in 1824 to an impoverished family he became quite rich in later years.

Avondale Home Histories
Picture
Growing up in Highfield after the death of his father, George had to cut all the family’s firewood with dull axe at the age of 8, sleep in the attic on a straw bed, and had to help his cruel stepfather make shoes. When he was 16 he ran away from home after being struck by his stepfather to Halifax where he worked with a blacksmith. After the blacksmith’s shop burned down he quickly signed up with a crew on a ship set for England, fearing he would be held responsible for the fire. This experience led to him becoming a sailor. When he returned home several years later he studied navigation at the old school in Avondale.

He married Rebecca Mosher and they had at least three children together. Later he married another woman, named Anne E. Armstrong, with whom he had two children, Thomas and Ralph. A few years later he built a house and brought his mother to Newport away from his stepfather. Soon he began buying into ships and shortly hereafter he started building ships with the help of a British ship chandler named Andrew Gibson.


Around 42 vessels were constructed in total. After Thomas was born, Mounce sailed as captain aboard several of his ships. He had many noteworthy experiences as captain, such as dealing with mutinous sailors, being under fire from the French during the Franco-Prussian war, and surviving the Plague and Yellow Fever. After he reached 50 he retired more or less from seafaring and took a greater role in shipbuilding, where he made himself a fortune. He died at the age of 85 on January 28, 1909. His house still sits on the hill in Newport Landing, just a few minutes walk away from our museum, overlooking the Avon River.


PictureCaptain George's house after renovations, circa 1913
George Richard Mounce Sr, un capitaine bien connu de Newport, se souvient encore par beaucoup d'habitants comme le grand-père de feu George Mounce Jr.
 
Mounce a mené une vie intéressante, étant né en 1824 dans une famille pauvre, il est devenu assez riche des années plus tard.
 
Grandissant dans Highfield après la mort de son père, il a dû couper tous le bois de chauffage de la famille avec une hache émoussée à l'âge de 8, dormir dans le grenier sur un lit de paille, et a dû aider son beau-père cruel faire des chaussures. Quand il avait 16 ans il a s’enfui de la maison après avoir été frappé par son beau-père à Halifax, où il a travaillé avec un forgeron.



Après le magasin du forgeron a brûlé il a rapidement signé avec un équipage sur un navire fixé pour l'Angleterre, craignant qu'il serait tenu responsable de l'incendie. Cette expérience a lui causé de devenir un marin. Quand il rentra chez lui plusieurs années plus tard, il a étudié la navigation à l'ancienne école à Avondale.
 
Il a épousé Rebecca Mosher et ils ont eu au moins trois enfants ensemble. Plus tard, il a épousé une autre femme, nommée Anne E. Armstrong, avec qui il a eu deux enfants, Thomas et Ralph. Quelques années plus tard il a construit une maison et a amené sa mère à Newport loin de son beau-père. Bientôt, il a commencé a acheté les navires et peu de temps plus tard, il a commencé la construction de navires à l'aide d'un shipchandler britannique nommé Andrew Gibson.
 
Environ 42 vaisseaux ont été construits au total. Après Thomas est né, Mounce a navigué comme capitaine à bord de plusieurs de ses navires. Il avait de nombreuses expériences remarquables comme capitaine, tels que le traitement avec les marins mutinés, étant sous le feu des Français pendant la guerre franco-prussienne, et survivant la peste de la fièvre jaune. Après avoir atteint 50 ans, il a pris sa retraite plus ou moins de la navigation et a pris un rôle plus important dans la construction navale, où il a fait lui-même une fortune. Il est mort à l'âge de 85 ans le 28 Janvier 1909. Son maison se trouve encore sur la colline à Newport Landing, à seulement quelques minutes à pied de notre musée, qui surplombe la rivière Avon.

Picture
Captain George R. Mounce's home, constructed 1861
Picture
Captain George R. Mounce inspecting the construction of the Parthena at the Mosher Shipyard. Painting by David MacIntosh.
Avon River Heritage Society Museum, 17 Belmont Road, Avondale/Newport Landing, Hants County, Nova Scotia, B0N 2A0
Email us at infoavonriver@gmail.com
Telephone us, May through October, at (902) 757-1718