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155 Euston Street

155 Euston Street, Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, C1A, Canada

Formally Recognized: 1979/10/26

Showing south elevation; City of Charlottetown, Natalie Munn, 2005
155 Euston Street
Showing south east elevation; City of Charlottetown, Natalie Munn, 2005
155 Euston Street
Showing south west elevation; City of Charlottetown, Natalie Munn, 2005
155 Euston Street

Other Name(s)

155 Euston Street
Mitchell House
Suites of Euston

Links and documents

Construction Date(s)

1875/01/01

Listed on the Canadian Register: 2005/08/08

Statement of Significance

Description of Historic Place

155 Euston Street is a Second Empire style, three storey, former town house located near what was traditionally referred to as Gallows Hill. The large building was constructed in 1875 for the manager of the Guardian newspaper and printer, Joseph William Mitchell (1836-1888) and his wife Barbara Rachel Ann Hooper (1847-1934). The designation encompasses the building’s exterior and parcel; it does not include the building’s interior.

Heritage Value

The heritage value of 155 Euston Street lies in its association with Joseph William Mitchell, its attractive Second Empire style architecture and its role in supporting the Euston Street streetscape.

Mitchell was born in England but emigrated to Prince Edward Island. He eventually became part of the printing firm of Laird & Mitchell. The firm published the local newspaper, the Patriot from 1872 until 1876. Mitchell also worked as a manager for the Guardian newspaper in 1887. He is listed as a painter, perhaps printer, in the Hutchinson’s Directory of 1864, which also mentions his house being located on Euston Street near Prince Street. According to land records, the land on which 155 Euston Street stands was purchased three years later in August 1867. Whether he was renting a home on the property, or lived nearby, is not clear.

In 1875, the Mitchells' hired local architect, Richard Weeks to design their home. William Wright was hired as the contractor to build the home that was described in the Semi Weekly Patriot newspaper as a neat, three-storey, brick cottage. The home was constructed in the Second Empire Style. The style, which is identified through its Mansard roof, was named after François Mansart (1598-1666), and popularized by his son, Jules Hardoin Mansart, an architect who worked for France's King Louis XIV around 1700. The Mansard roof is almost flat on the top section and has deeply sloping, often curved, lower sections that generally contain dormers. The Second Empire referred to in the style is that of Napoleon III (1852-1870). The style reached Canada through Britain and the United States and was used extensively throughout Charlottetown from approximately 1860 until 1880. Mitchell’s house is unique and valued, as it is one of few Second Empire style dwellings in Charlottetown constructed of brick.

In 1877, a deed of trust was concluded between Mr. Mitchell and his wife’s relative, David Robert Moore Hooper, in which the property was placed in trust for Mrs. Mitchell. After Joseph William Mitchell’s death in 1888, Mrs. Mitchell continued to live in the home until she sold it to the Wise family in 1911. The home was recently purchased and has been restored for use as an inn called the Suites of Euston. Interestingly, during the restoration, various documents belonging to the former owners were found in the walls and floors. A unique and attractive building, the 155 Euston adds interest to the Euston Street streetscape.

The hill, on which the Suites of Euston is located, is near an area once referred to as Gallows Hill. In the late 1700s and early 1800s, executions by hanging would take place at the crest of the hill. Another interesting story about the area is from Irene Rogers’ book, Charlottetown: The Life in Its Buildings and calls to mind a time when bears roamed the Island. The story, recalled by a member of the Heartz family, describes a time before the 1850s, when parties travelling westward would gather at the base of the hill and journey out together for protection against bears.

Sources: Heritage Office, City of Charlottetown Planning Department, PO Box 98, Charlottetown, PE C1A 7K2
#1568

Character-Defining Elements

The following Second Empire character-defining elements illustrate the heritage value of 155 Euston Street:

- The overall massing of the building
- The symmetrical façade
- The size and shape of the brick exterior
- The Mansard roof with its hooded dormers
- The brick corbelled cornice
- The placement and size of the windows, including the bay windows of the first floor, the arched windows of the second floor with hoodmolds that contain freestone label stops and keystones and the hooded dormer windows of the roof with their interesting moldings
- The placement and style of the arched, twin doors in the eastern section of the facade, with its brick arch and freestone keystone, as well as the decorative scroll work framing the door
- The bay projection of the first floor with its mansard roof and decorative roof brackets
- The ground floor belt course of the facade
- The decorative moldings and trim including the freestone trim
Other character-defining elements of 155 Euston Street include:
- The location of 155 Euston Street near the former Gallows Hill

Recognition

Jurisdiction

Prince Edward Island

Recognition Authority

City of Charlottetown

Recognition Statute

City of Charlottetown Zoning and Development Bylaw

Recognition Type

Heritage Resource

Recognition Date

1979/10/26

Historical Information

Significant Date(s)

n/a

Theme - Category and Type

Expressing Intellectual and Cultural Life
Architecture and Design

Function - Category and Type

Current

Commerce / Commercial Services
Hotel, Motel or Inn

Historic

Residence
Single Dwelling

Architect / Designer

n/a

Builder

n/a

Additional Information

Location of Supporting Documentation

Heritage Office, City of Charlottetown Planning Department, PO Box 98, Charlottetown, PE C1A 7K2 #1568

Cross-Reference to Collection

Fed/Prov/Terr Identifier

1568

Status

Published

Related Places

n/a

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