Description of Historic Place

96 Queen Street is a three storey, brick Italianate Commercial inspired building located on Queen Street in Charlottetown’s historic business area. Local merchant, Hugh Monaghan conducted business from the building, which would later house merchants, the Prowse Bros. The China Garden restaurant currently resides in the building. The designation encompasses the building’s exterior and parcel; it does not include the building’s interior.

Heritage Value

The heritage value of 96 Queen Street lies in its association with merchant, Hugh Monaghan, its association with the Prowse Brothers, its Italianate Commercial architectural style, and its importance to the Queen Street streetscape.

Hugh Monaghan, a local merchant, constructed 96 Queen Street in 1879. According to Hutchinson’s Prince Edward Island Directory of 1864, Monaghan was operating a grocery business on or near the current 96 Queen Street site. A successful merchant, Monaghan also became involved in the shipbuilding industry.

The Prowse Bros. business eventually took over the property. Hon. Lemuel E. Prowse (1858-1925), merchant and politician, began his dry goods business on Queen Street in the 1880s. His brother, Mayor of Charlottetown and Senator, Hon. Benjamin C. Prowse (1862-1930) became a junior partner. Prowse Bros. sold a variety of items including men's wear, carpets, boots and shoes. The store would later grow and expand to dominate this section of the block until it closed it doors in the 1960s. A report in the 4 October 1960 edition of the Guardian newspaper noted that the Prowse Bros. had sold the Monaghan Building to the Canadian Tire Corporation.

The choice of the Italianate commercial building style was a popular one at the time. It was considered more fireproof than the wooden structures it invariably replaced. The design was also more decorative; its round arched windows and recessed storefronts evocative of the Venetian arcades of the Renaissance period. Today, 96 Queen Street remains a well-preserved example of the style.

96 Queen Street is still commercial in nature, housing a restaurant. The building is located within a line of brick and stone Italianate-commercial buildings on Queen Street, one of the most important and well-preserved historic streets in Charlottetown. An attractive building, 96 Queen Street compliments the other buildings of the Queen Street 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 character-defining elements illustrate the heritage value of 96 Queen Street:
- The overall massing of the building and symmetrical facade
- The size and shape of the brick construction
- The placement and style of the windows, including the large storefront windows of the first floor, as well as the arched second and third floor windows with their arched decorative detailing above
- The placement and style of the recessed door with its arched window
- The storefront with its recessed doorway, large plate glass windows and sign band
- The brick corbelled cornice
- The flat roof
Other character-defining elements include:
- The location of the building in a line of heritage buildings on Queen Street