9 Lawrence Lane

Leonard Mouland House

Located at the end of Little Joe’s Lane, the Leonard Mouland house is situated within the historic Bonavista neighbourhood of Russelltown. This neighbourhood was likely a permanently settled section of Bonavista by the mid-1700s. Russelltown is now known for its quaint narrow laneways and varying examples of Newfoundland vernacular architecture. Many of the homes in the area can be dated from the 1840s to the 1940s.

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Leonard Mouland sold tailor-made suits. For many years he worked for Mutual Traders Company and James Ryan Ltd. in Bonavista.   In later years he became a travelling salesman selling suits door to door. Leonard had one son, Reginald Myles, from his first marriage to Minnie Power (1917-1939). He also had six other children with his second wife Jesse Cuff (1918 - 1981). They were Barbara Loretta, Alvin Victor, Randolph Lenard, Clarice Christine, Terrance James, and David Lawrence.

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Leonard started construction on the family home in 1941. The home was fully completed before he married his second wife Jesse on March 4, 1942. Most of the lumber used to build the home came from Morley's Siding, a small lumber community located on the Bonavista Peninsula. However, some of the materials such as the wooden support beams appear to be much older than 1942 and it is possible that they were recycled from an older home. Using materials from older dismantled homes was a common practice at that time.

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In the early 1950's Leonard built a small piece on to the home and used it as a grocery store. His wife Jesse ran the store for several years. People in Russelltown could buy canned items and the children from the Methodist School on Coster Street could buy items for their recess. Around 1960 the small store was converted into a bed-sitting room for Leonard's mother Beatrice Mouland. Beatrice lived with the family until she died in 1973.

Leonard's son Clarence, built a second home on the far northeast section of the property where he lived with his wife Bridget Moss and their children. During the 1980s Clarence’s home was destroyed by an electrical fire. The home was never rebuilt and now leaves a large lot full of mature maple and elm trees, both once common species planted at the turn of the century in this upper-middle-class neighbourhood