Description of Historic Place

The Hunter House is a Centre Gable style former farmhouse located in the rural community of Huntley, two miles north of the Town of Alberton. It sits on a quiet treed lot with a landscaped lawn and garden. The facade has a pair of square bay windows topped with pediment roofs. The registration includes the house and its lot.

Heritage Value

The house is valued for its association with the Hunter and Gillis families; for its Centre Gable architectural style; and for its contribution to the rural community of Huntley.

James Hunter (1825-1894) emigrated from Argyll in Scotland in 1872 with his wife and three children. The Census for 1881 shows that he was living on a farm near Alberton with his wife, Elizabeth, and four children. He called his residence "Kilmahumaig" after a village in Argyll. It also served as a weather station for the meteorological service and was featured in Meacham's Atlas of PEI in 1880. This home no longer stands.

James Hunter's third son, named James Harry Hunter (1858-1935), was married in 1881 to Isabel Wells. In 1883, they moved to Huntley and built the current house. They operated a mixed farm. After Isabel died in 1887, he married Barbara Forsyth, and after she passed away in 1914, he married Margaret Metherall.

James R. Hunter (1890-1964) inherited the farm from his father. In the 1920s, he began a dairy and creamery business. His wife, Annie Bell (1892-1971), was remembered in the community for her homemade candy and chocolate business, which she sold to stores as far away as Summerside.

In 1928, the farm was purchased by Alfred Gillis. He continued the dairy operation, milking up to eighteen cows, and delivering milk to the Alberton and Northport areas. He also kept a small fox ranch on the property.

By the 1970s, the home was purchased by new owners. Today, it is operated as a bed and breakfast known as the Hunter House Inn.

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Source: Culture and Heritage Division, PEI Department of Communities, Cultural Affairs and Labour, Charlottetown, PE C1A 7N8
File #: 4310-20/A27

Character-Defining Elements

Character-defining elements which reflect the Centre Gable heritage value of the house include:

- the two-storey massing
- the wood shingle cladding
- the centre gable style roof
- the brick chimney
- the paired square bay windows with pediment roofs
- the small verandah with turned posts and decorative brackets
- the rectangular extension at the back of the house with enclosed balcony
- the location of the home on well maintained grounds