Gingerbread & House Finish of Every Description

This book was written by Barbara R. Robertson and published by Pepper Books ( a  Nova Scotia Museum series presenting a variety of subjects in the material cultural and natural history of Maritime Provinces ).  Nova Scotia Museums, Halifax, NS.  1990.

check out the Shand House website:  http://museum.gov.ns.ca/sh/default.htm

My brother Kerras (www.birchgate.ca/kerras) has a large collection of Gingerbread Patterns and can produce any style you'd like from Eastern White Cedar.  As noted below - he made all the trims for the Bideford Parsonage House.



An old St. Eleanor's House

This old house was located on the west side of South Drive in St. Eleanor's, not far from Route 2 Highway.  This house was demolished near 20 years ago.  I recently came across the photo in my large collection of photos of Island Buildings. 

This house is in the Island-ell style with elaborate running gingerbread gable trim. The detailing reminds me of the following houses - see below.

The Sutherland House, Seaview (photo 2009) - a large restoration has since been undertaken.

http://www.bidefordparsonagemuseum.com/  A local group undertook the restoration of this house and opened it as a museum.  My brother Kerras (www.birchgate.ca/kerras) made all the exterior trimmings for this house using old photos and reminent pieces to accomplish the original look.

http://www.gov.pe.ca/peimhf/index.php3?number=1015695&lang=E

Affairs with Old Houses

This is a great book!  Edited by Pat Lotz and available from the Heritage Trust of Nova Scotia bookstore ( http://www.htns.ca/bookstore.html ) for $19.95.  Many of the drawings in the book are by my friend Greg Munn - check out his blog http://an-abhainn.blogspot.com/

About the book (from their website)...

       Affairs with Old Houses presents heritage from the perspective of a diverse and articulate group of Nova Scotian heritage home owners, who relate how they acquired and restored their old houses. The book moves beyond details of architecture, history and restoration to also reveal the relationship the owner has with the building. Sixteen houses are featured in personal accounts representing a wide range in architectural style, age, historic background and size. Included in the book is a chapter on Richmond Hill Farm, an old house in Windsor, Nova Scotia, bequeathed to Heritage Trust of Nova Scotia by the late Helen Macdonald. The book, which has a charming foreword by His Honour Lt.- Gov. J.James Kinley, is attractively illustrated with line drawings and includes a comprehensive glossary.

Abandoned Front Door

This photo was taken the same day as the house in the previous post.  In its abandoned state, the beautifully detailed front door had been protected for years by the simple board storm door.  Note the detail on the door casing and header.

 



Near Tyne Valley, P.E.I.

I took this photo in the early 1990's up in the Tyne Valley area.  The house is an Island-ell style house with a center gable dormer on the front and a similar smaller gable over the kitchen wing.  I haven't been by this house since - it's likely gone.  Great textures of colours and finishes.



Another favourite photo

I just sent this photo to a friend - a favourite photo of mine.  My brother found it in an auction lot-box. The people are unknown.

Traditional Window and Door Builders

Many people don't realize you can have traditional wood windows made here on Prince Edward Island.  The window below was made to order by R.W. Woodworking, Hunter River - the window was made for the Doucet House Restoration project.  There were 8 windows in total.  The antique-glass for the window was brought in specially by O'Connor Glass in Charlottetown.  Often you can get some old glass if you ask around but we needed enough glass for eight windows so thought it best to order it in.  The workmanship is excellent!

Above.  We applied Thompson's Clear Water Seal to preserve the wood window and board siding to keep a natural look.

This door was made by Borden Myers Woodworking of Charlottetown.   The door was modeled after an old front door found on a Fitzroy Street house.  The owner purchased the coloured glass locally from a stained glass store and had it installed by the door builder.  Again excellent workmanship.

This paired, round-top, single-hung window was also made by Borden Myers Woodworking in a traditional style for this new summer home on the north shore of the Island.

Jeffery Cottage, Isle of Wight, England

The English Cottage below was home to the Jeffery family between 1756-1809 - located in the small village of Brook, Isle of Wight, England.  Stephen Jeffery purchased interest in this cottage and passed it onto his son James.  In 1809 James (and his four children) sold their interest in the cottage in preparation for emigration to Prince Edward Island.
The house is very small, two rooms on the main floor and two on the second with the hall and stairs in the middle - it has only four windows (on the front) and a front door.  Today the house is used a self-catering cottage.   I visited here in 1987 and again in 2005.

I have a bible that belonged to my great-great-great-great-great-grandfather Stephen Jeffery, it was printed in Oxford in 1752, four years before Stephen moved in to this cottage.  In the Bible he recorded the dates and times of the children's births, along with family marriages and deaths.  He left the Bible to his son James, then James' left it to his son Stephen who wrote in the Bible, "I came to this Country, Left England Augt 14, 1810 - Landed Novr 5, 1810 in Charlotte Town"  Stephen left the bible to his nephew and Godson Stephen E. Jeffery where it remained with him in a truck on the family homestead in Alma, the home in which I was raised.  My parents gave the Bible to me in the early 1980's. 
We have confidently traced the Jeffery family back to 1638 with the birth of Richard Jeffery on the Isle of Wight - the Jeffery name appears in the Islands public records as early as 1327.

Above:  looking at the side of the front entry to the Jeffery Cottage, note the slate roof - also note the garden shed at the left corner of the Cottage.  Below is a close look at the front right corner.

Below: to the left is the rear of the Jeffery Cottage, to the right is Chine Cottage - no windows or openings in the walls.

Below:  The grey house is called Chine Cottage - the Jeffery Cottage is directly behind it.  The road is in front of Chine Cottage, left leading to the highway, to the right leading to the beach.

Below: Brook, Isle of Wight - the Jeffery Cottage is in the middle with the red roof, behind Chine Cottage.  The house to the far right was featured in the book, Family Houses by the Sea.   The beach is to the right.

Below:  the beach at Brook, Isle of Wight.  The white cliffs in the far distance is Tennyson Downs, home of Alfred Lord Tennyson - see below.

Below: Tennyson Downs - the home and property of Alfred Lord Tennyson, Poet Laureate of England. The house, called Farringford, is down the hill behind the trees and today a hotel.  The Tennyson's purchased the property in 1853 and made it their home for the next 40 years.  At the highest point of the cliff is a Celtic cross in memorial to Tennyson.  Brook and Tennyson Downs are located on the southwest side of the Isle of Wight.  This small Island measures 155 square miles in area.  The Island is much like Prince Edward Island in that it's the summer playground and sunshine capital of the British Isles.

 

Below:  On the north side of the Isle of Wight is Osborne House- the summer home of Queen Victoria and her family.  The house was designed by her husband Prince Albert and built in the 1840's - the house is in the Italianate style.  Queen Victoria died here in 1901, shortly afterwards her son King Edward VII donated the property to the people of Great Britain - today it's a museum.



"Contributions to P.E.I. heritage honoured"

"Edouard Blanchard named Volunteer of the Year, one of 22 awards handed out at Heritage Week ceremony at Beaconsfield." 

AWARDS LIST

General Awards -

• George Arsenault and Sally Ross for Acadian Mi-Careme;
• John Brehault for The Life and Times of Daniel J. MacDonald;
• Roy Campbell and Robert Gelineau for Searletown Road farmhouse restoration;
• Lorena Gillis Cardwell for Lorena's Notebook: A Family Memoir;
• Clyde River Women's Institute for Clyde River Historical Homes and Buildings calendar;
• Delores Griffin for A  P.E.I. Mother's Legacy of Love;
• Dr. A.E. Bud Ings for Vet Behind the Ears;
• Heather Irving for writing the book Andy's;
• Wayne MacKinnon for a historical book on Holland College;
• Summerside and Area Historical Society for holding Heritage Circles;
• Summerside Lest We Forget Committee for worn on Gathering Stories from Veterans;
• Stratford for featuring War Veterans on Bus Shelters;
• George Wright for The Surviving Wrights of P.E.I.;
• Wyatt Heritage Properties for its Open Suitcase Education Program;
• Isaac Stewart for his Dedication to Island History.

Special Awards-

• Natural History Activity:  Diane Griffin;
• Volunteer of the Year:  Edouard Blanchard;
• Publication of the Year:  Rusty Bitterman for Sailor's Hope;
• Mary Cornfoot Brehaut: Jean Bernard;
• Irene Rogers Award:  Bonshaw Hall Co-operative for Bonshaw United Church Restoration;
• Wendell Boyle Award:  Rollo Bay Fiddle Festival;
• Award of Honour:  Gilbert Clements.

Congratulations recipients!! 

c.f.  The Guardian Newspaper, Feb. 24, 2011, page A3

Holy Trinity Anglican Church, Georgetown, PEI

This historic church located in Georgetown's town square is under threat of being lost.  This church would be amoung the 10 oldest churches on the Island.  The church has been closed for a number of years, the basement is damp and mouldy and in general, neglected.  However, there's a group of concerned citizens in the community, throughout the Island and within North America who are keen to see this historic building saved - see their facebook page.

Information about the church from H.M.Scott Smith's 1986 book, "The Historic Churches of Prince Edward Island".  page 58.  "Holy Trinity Church, on Kent Square in Georgetown, was completed in 1842.  Its battlemented square tower with corner finials is typical of early Anglican churches in the Maritimes.  The church was enlarged in the 1860's and the nave windows with perpendicular Gothic tracery were added at this time.  In 1982, the exterior was completely repainted a deep ochre but the white trim was retained, a rich and satisfying colour.  Despite a period of decay and disuse, the building was restored and its neat and dignified front elevation is an historic landmark in a town with a fascinating architectural heritage."