Henrietta Esther (Waller) Bierdemann Macara: Widow, Moneylender, and Philanthropist
In front of the Garrison Graveyard in Annapolis Royal is an imposing black cast iron fence that gleams in the summer sun and stands out against the winter snow. Residents go about their daily business with this fence in the background. They walk around it and through it to get to the graveyard and fort grounds, drive by it on their way to work, and park beside it when grabbing a coffee. The fence is always there, and when it wasn't a few years ago while being restored, it's return was eagerly anticipated. What most people won't know about, is the woman who gave us this fence which has become a cherished part of our town's landscape. She was a native daughter of Annapolis Royal who married well and wanted to leave a legacy in memory of her parents and first husband.
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| Cast Iron Fence at the Garrison Graveyard |
Henrietta Esther Waller was born about 1785 in Annapolis Royal. She was probably the Hester Weller baptised at St. Luke's Anglican Church on the 24th of February 1787. Her parentage is uncertain, however, she was more than likely the daughter of Joseph Waller, a lieutenant in the 5th battalion of New Jersey Volunteers. He was among the Loyalists mustered in Annapolis Royal in 1784, and he was listed in the 1794 Poll Tax of Annapolis Township. He also appears in two Annapolis County Land Records and is recorded as a Gentlemen and a Carpenter.
In about 1806, Henrietta was married to widower Andrew Gottlieb Bierdemann who was over thirty years her senior. He was a prominent citizen in Annapolis Royal, and in records was described as a baker (he was a supplier to the garrison), merchant, and yeoman.
Andrew made his last will and testament on the 2nd of April 1812. His will is short and to the point. He directed that his servants were to be provided with a suite of full mourning and if they remained in Henrietta's service six months after his death, then they were to be provided with a suite of half mourning. He named Henrietta as his sole executor and left her his entire estate, which was by accounts a large one. Andrew died seven years later and his headstone gives us a precise time of death, "munday the 6th of Sep. at eight minutes before eight in the evening in the year of our Lord 1819." He was in his 67th year. Henrietta was left a widow aged about 34 years.
The next time we see Henrietta is in 1821, when she was remarried. The following announcement was published in the Halifax newspaper the Acadian Recorder, "At Annapolis, on the 22nd instant, by the Rev. Mr. [Millidge], Doctor William Macara, of this town, to Mrs. Beardman, widow of the late Mr. [A] Beardman of that place." Her second husband, Dr. William Macara, was about four years her junior and was a native of Scotland. He was a successful druggist in Halifax and lived on Gottingen Street near Admiralty House, the mansion that served as the residence of the Commander-in-Chief of the Royal Navy’s North American Station. With this marriage, Henrietta left Annapolis Royal for Halifax.
Not long after their marriage, Henrietta and William lost a child. On the 20th of November 1822, David Macara, a relative of William's, died in Halifax aged 20 years. He was buried in the Old Burying Ground in Halifax and on the bottom of his headstone is inscribed, "ALSO the Infant Child of William & Henrietta Macara." It is probable that they lost their child around the same time that David died. The couple had no surviving children.
William was prominent in Halifax as a druggist and opened a shop on Granville Street in 1822. In about 1825, he had a four story building built to house his business. This building would become known as the Macara-Barnstead building, the façade of which still stands, albeit altered, however, the bulk of the building was allowed to be demolished. William also served as a health warden. In 1835, he was listed as the health warden for the County Court House Ward. He was also a moneylender and provided many mortgages to Annapolis County residents. In 1832, he was one of the shareholders of the newly founded Bank of Nova Scotia, which was incorporated by the Legislative Assembly of Nova Scotia on the 30th of March 1832.
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| Advertisement from the Morning Chronicle showing that Henrietta still owned the building in 1864. |
On the 31st of December 1835, Henrietta's husband William died at the age of 46 years. The following was published in the death announcements in the Acadian Recorder, "Wednesday morning, Mr. W. Macara, Druggist, aged 46 years, a native of Scotland, an old and respected inhabitant of this town – funeral will take place from his late residence near Admiral's House, to-morrow, precisely at 1 o'clock, where his friends and acquaintances are respectfully requested to attend." William was buried in the Old Burying Ground in Halifax. His final resting place is marked by a recumbent stone with the following inscription, "Sacred / To the Memory of / the Late / WILLIAM MACARA / third Son of / the Rev'd John Macara / of Perth Stride Hill / who departed this life / 31st Dec'r 1835 / in the / 46th Year of his Age."
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| Gottingen Street, with the gate for Admiralty House. Nova Scotia Archives |
We know that Henrietta remained in Halifax and continued to live on Gottingen Street. She is listed in several Halifax city directories as being a widow and living in a house on Gottingen near the Wellington Barracks. She seem to have taken over her husband's money lending, as in 1851, Henrietta was advertising in the Acadian Recorder as lending money on the security of real estate. She was providing mortgages in Annapolis County as many of the 58 times she is mentioned in Annapolis County land records, it has to do with a mortgage. For example, in 1858, she released a lot of land back to John and James Hardwick that was being used as security for a mortgage that they had paid in full. Sometimes, however, the person was not able to pay back the mortgage, for example, in 1850, Richard Ruggles conveyed lands in Clements Township to Henrietta after he could not pay.
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| Acadian Recorder, 9 August 1851. |
Henrietta made her will in 1859, and in a codicil dated the 28th of September of that year, she bequeathed the sum of £200 for the purpose of having a new fence erected around the Garrison Graveyard in Annapolis Royal. She made this bequest as the graveyard was the final resting place of her parents and her first husband. She directed her executor, John Macara Walker (son of her husband's sister) to ensure that the work was to be done in the "handsomest and best manner." Henrietta made donations to the Institution for the Deaf and Dumb in Halifax, and also left them $400 in her will. (unfortunately, the year she wrote her will is missing from online records, so I can not readily access her will, but I will update this post when I do get the chance to read it.)
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| The Institution for the Deaf and Dumb as Henrietta would have known it. Nova Scotia Archives |
In the 1871 census, the first federal census, we see Henrietta living on Gottingen Street with her two servants, Ellen Marten (35) and Mary Burns (20), who were both of Irish descent and Catholics. Henrietta died on the 19th of August 1873, aged 88 years. Her cause of death was listed as "natural decay". Since the Old Burying Ground was closed to burials in 1844, she could not be buried with her husband, and so was buried in St. John's Cemetery, an Anglican cemetery in Halifax.
After Henrietta's death, her wishes were honoured and the Halifax firm of Munro and O'Neill manufactured the cast iron fence and it was erected on St. George Street in the 1870s. The next time you are walking or driving by the Garrison Graveyard's cast iron fence, think of Henrietta Ether (Waller) Bierdemann Macara and her generosity.
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