Halifax must protect historic clinic of first Black physician in N.S., group says

An unassuming building on North Street has a history that community advocates say is worth protecting: it once housed the clinic of Halifax's first Black physician, Dr. Clement Ligoure, who treated hundreds of patients in the wake of the Halifax Explosion in 1917. 

Though the privately-owned building is not slated for demolition, some community members are concerned the historic house will be levelled in favour of multi-storey apartment buildings.

Friends of the Halifax Common say the building is important to Halifax's social and architectural history, and it should be protected before it's too late.

They put forward a heritage registration application to the Halifax Regional Municipality in May 2022 to protect the North Street building.

The group's co-founder, Peggy Cameron, spoke to Portia Clark, host of CBC's Information Morning Halifax, Thursday.

"Unfortunately, many buildings in Halifax are going to be lost as an outcome of the approval of the Centre Plan that up-zoned or increased the height in many areas, especially the peninsula," Cameron said. "That really incentivizes developers to demolish existing buildings to build taller buildings."

The Halifax Regional Municipality's Centre Plan has been in effect since November 2021. It ushered in zoning changes, including how tall buildings are allowed to be in certain areas of the centre region. 

Long history

Constructed in a Queen Anne Revival style typical of that era, the house features upper and lower floor bay windows, and turrets with ornamental features above the front doors.

Apart from the structure and features of the building, Cameron said the story behind it is worth heritage designation due to the prominence of Ligoure.

"He's significant in more than one way," she said. 

Ligoure came to Canada from Trinidad and Tobago via New York and studied at Queen's University's medical school in Ontario. He graduated in 1916, just two years before the school banned Black students.

He then moved to Halifax in hopes of joining the war effort, but was refused entry to the armed forces.

The Halifax Explosion happened one year after Ligoure arrived in the city. In its wake, he treated hundreds of patients for free in his private clinic on North Street, which he named the Amanda Hospital after his mother.

He worked around the clock as injured patients filled the rooms. In the three weeks following the explosion, his team treated nearly 200 people each day.

Ligoure also recruited members for Nova Scotia's No. 2 Construction Battalion, Canada's only all-Black battalion, and was a publisher of Nova Scotia's first Black newspaper, the Atlantic Advocate, which was incorporated on June 8, 1916.

Community support needed

Cameron said her group has reached out to a number of community members to get them on board. She said others have written letters outlining the need for the building to be preserved or saved. 

Cameron said the building ought to be protected in its entirety. "Not just a plaque or not just a facade," she said. 

"I would say it's a dicey situation because developers in the city are able to get a demolition permit at any time," she said. "As long as they can get rid of their tenants, then they can do whatever they want as far as demolishing the building."

Cameron and others are asking people to sign a petition to stop demolitions until the provincial government creates regulations to address their concerns.

"This is a very critical matter and we're really sleepwalking through a period of amnesia," she said. "We'll look around in ten years and say, what happened to our city? For the ones who are able to still live there."

For more stories about the experiences of Black Canadians — from anti-Black racism to success stories within the Black community — check out Being Black in Canada, a CBC project Black Canadians can be proud of. You can read more stories here.