The Charles Mifflin home is located just off Church Street behind what is traditionally known as ‘Mifflin Row’. This section of Church Street has been occupied by the Mifflin’s for over 150 years. As the Mifflin family expanded, homes such as the Charles’, were built on their farming fields.

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Charles Claud Mifflin (1903-1991), locally know as Charley Mifflin, build this home in 1919 the same year he married his wife Catherine French (1902 -1934) of French Cove, Bay Roberts. Catherine and her sister had been adopted by Arthur Sweetland, a local businessman living at 22 Bland’s Lane.  Charles was a fisherman but to raise enough money to build a house for his bride, he moved to Sydney Nova Scotia. There he worked in the fishing trade for several years before returning home to Bonavista.

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Charles and Catherine had 5 children. Their oldest, Reginald Sweetland Mifflin (1920-1942) was killed in action during the Second World War at the early age of 22. His son, Arthur Edward, occupied the home with his wife Dorothy Little during the 1950’s and 1960’s. Dorothy operated the Bonavista Telephone switchboard from a small back porch in the home from 1955 to 1959.

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The home has vinyl windows, wide siding and roofing shingles, all from a more modern period. During the restoration process these will be replaced with two over two windows, spruce clapboard, and cedar shakes. The two dormers on the house are not in an original state instead they have a shed style roof which was certainly not used on dormers in the 1919 period. The original dormers would likely have been a Strathie double peak style or hipped dormer style, both common throughout Bonavista in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

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White paling fences were a traditional feature for the Church Street neighbourhood. Once the Mifflin home is fully restored, a white paling fence will surround the property.