Description of Historic Place

304 Fitzroy Street is a wood framed, Maritime Vernacular style cottage. It features a symmetrical facade with a central wall dormer which breaks the eave line. the house is located among a variety of heritage homes in the area of the City once inhabited by people who worked on the railway. The designation encompasses the building's exterior and parcel; it does not include the building's interior.

Heritage Value

The heritage value of 304 Fitzroy Street lies in its Maritime Vernacular cottage style architecture; its association with various early residents of the City; and its role in supporting the Fitzroy Street streetscape.

It is not clear when 304 Fitzroy Street was built but in 1850, it is known that Miss Maria Fanning paid the taxes on the property. Maria Fanning was the daughter of Lieutenant Governor Edmund Fanning. By the 1860s, the Episcopal Church was paying the taxes on the home. The first known occupant of 304 Fitzroy Street was carpenter for the railway, Joseph Winchester in 1887-1888. At this point, the home was owned by Henry Cundall, a prominent citizen of Charlottetown. Winchester would purchase the home in 1901, and live there until his death.

304 Fitzroy Street was influenced by the Maritime Vernacular Cottage style of architecture. The style was common in mid 19th Century Charlottetown. A distinctively Maritime style, its features include a rectangular plan, a central doorway and a large, centrally placed wall dormer. The pediments above the second floor windows of the east side of the house are one of the details which appear to be original to the house. Due to its architectural style and historical associations, 304 Fitzroy Street contributes to its streetscape.

Sources: Heritage Office, City of Charlottetown Planning Department, PO Box 98, Charlottetown, PE C1A 7K2
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Character-Defining Elements

The following Maritime Vernacular cottage style character-defining elements contribute to the heritage value of 304 Fitzroy Street:

- The overall massing of the building with its one and one half storeys
- The wood shingle exterior with mouldings painted in a contrasting colour, including the pediments over the second storey east side windows, the window and door surrounds, the corner boards and the cornice
- The symmetrical facade
- The roof, that was at one time a gable roof, but has since been extended with a large sloping extension on the back of the home
- The style and placement of the windows, particularly the paired sash windows on either side of the door of the main floor facade, the window of the second floor gabled dormer and the smaller sash windows of the second floor
- The size and centre placement of the front door

Other character-defining elements include:

- The location of the building on Fitzroy Street and its physical and visual relationship to its streetscape
- The continued use of the house as a residence