Description of Historic Place

222 Pownal Street is a wood framed Georgian influenced home built for Archdeacon John Herbert Read in 1872. The designation encompasses the building's exterior and parcel; it does not include the building's interior.

Heritage Value

The heritage value of 222 Pownal Street lies in its association with various Charlottetown residents, its Georgian influenced architecture; and its importance to the streetscape.

The 16 July 1872 edition of the Island Argus newspaper reported that Archdeacon John Herbert Read's home was one of 16 large projects in downtown Charlottetown that year. The home was referred to as a flat roofed house that was 34 by 24 feet, with a kitchen attached.

The Archdeacon sold the home to Master Mariner Roderick Cameron of the community of Point Prim. Cameron would live in the home until his death in 1894. His will indicated that he left his possessions to his brother Alexander and nephew, Angus McDonald so that the items could be sold and the money be used to support his wife and family.

The Walter Reuel LePage family owned the home for a time. W.R. LePage operated the LePage Shoe Store with his father Bradford William LePage on Grafton Street for many years. The Dorsey family and the Cudmore family were other residents of the home throughout its history. The large home now serves as an apartment building.

222 Pownal Street has had modifications over the years including the addition of a hipped roof and shed dormers. The elements of the original home which remain include the symmetrical windows of the west elevation which have Georgian characteristics. At the time of its construction, the Island Argus' description of the home states that it originally had a flat roof. A well kept and attractive home, it is an asset to the Pownal 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 Georgian style influences of 222 Pownal Street:
- The overall massing of the building
- The mouldings and shutters painted in a contrasting colour
- The hipped roof
- The style and symmetrical placement of the large nine-over-six windows of the first floor and the six-over-six windows of the second floor
- The style and placement of the doors
- The projecting beltcourse
- The stacked bay windows of the south side of the building
- The dormers, particularly the dormer facing the street and the shed dormer facing south
- The placement and size of the brick chimneys
- The location of the home on Pownal Street