This house was built in 1817 by David Merritt, a Loyalist who fled New York state in 1783. One of the few buildings to escape the fire of 1877, the house has a shingled exterior on two sides and clapboard on the other. An expensive material at the time, clapboard was installed on only the north and east sides as weather protection. The plain exterior belies the elegant and spacious Georgian interior with its fine curved staircase and arches between rooms. Upon departure note the solid rock foundations on the Germain Street side. All of Saint John is built on such rock.