Description of Historic Place

289 Richmond Street is a wood framed Colonial Revival influenced home. It features a large pedimented gable dormer and a decorative front verandah. The house is located in a residential area with a number of heritage homes. The designation encompasses the building's exterior and parcel; it does not include the building's interior.

Heritage Value

The heritage value of 289 Richmond Street lies in its association with various Charlottetown residents; its Colonial Revival influenced architecture; and its role in supporting the Richmond Street streetscape.

289 Richmond Street was built in 1915 for Provincial Auditor, John Anderson. The contract for building this house, and a very similar home at 157 Weymouth Street, was issued to Major Schurman, a local businessman and member of the prominent Schurman family. The house on Weymouth Street was built for Richard E. Spillett, a partner in the exporting firm of Dillon & Spillett, which dealt in feed and grain. Both homes have survived and have remained well preserved.

An article appeared in 30 April 1915 edition of the Daily Examiner newspaper outlining the plans for 289 Richmond Street. The house was to be 26 by 32 feet with an attached kitchen and a verandah/piazza on the first floor. The exterior would be of clapboard siding and the interior was to be finished in oak and include hardwood floors.

289 Richmond Street was influenced by the Colonial Revival style. The style came to Prince Edward Island as a result of the Island's familial and economic connections with New England, where the Colonial Revival style emerged in the 1880s. The style was based on North American models and was an effort to simplify and adapt the forms of earlier architectural styles to contemporary needs. A popular style in Charlottetown from approximately 1890 until 1940, 289 Richmond Street's Colonial Revival influenced features include the pedimented gable dormer facing the street, the verandah/piazza with columns and dentil detailing at the eaves.

A well maintained home that has been changed little since its construction, it helps support the Richmond 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 contribute to the heritage value of 289 Richmond Street:

- The overall massing of the building
- The wood frame construction with mouldings painted in a contrasting colour, including the cornice, the corner boards, the dentil decoration at the eaves, the window and door surrounds, as well as the columns and the balustrade of the verandah
- The hipped roof with pedimented gable dormer facing the street and the hipped dormer on the west side of the building
- The size and placement of the windows, particularly the paired sash windows near the apex of the gable, the tall, paired sash windows and the small window of the main floor
- The style and off centre placement of the door
- The size and shape of the verandah with columns, cornice and balustrade
- The size and placement of the brick chimneys

Other character-defining elements include:

- The location of the building on Richmond Street and its physical and visual relationship to its streetscape