Description of Historic Place

271-273 Euston Street is a wood framed, Second Empire style double tenement. It is located in a residential area of Charlottetown that historically was home to people who made their living working on the railway or in various factories in the area. The designation encompasses the building's exterior and parcel; it does not include the building's interior.

Heritage Value

The heritage value of 271-273 Euston Street lies in its well preserved Second Empire style elements; its association with early residents of the City; and its contribution to the streetscape.

Constructed in approximately 1878, the property was one of a number of homes in the area built by carpenter, Charles MacGregor. MacGregor built a number of large, elaborate houses throughout Charlottetown, some of which have survived. It is not clear if MacGregor lived in the home or if it was built for someone else. According to the Prince Edward Island Telephone Directory of 1922, C. Alex Brown was then a resident.

271-273 Euston Street is an example of the Second Empire style, which was a popular choice in the 1870s. Its signature mansard roof was named after François Mansart (1598-1666), and popularized by his son, Jules Hardoin Mansart, an architect who worked for France's King Louis XIV around 1700. The mansard roof is almost flat on the top section and has deeply sloping, often curved, lower sections that generally contain dormers. The style was popularized during the Second (French) Empire of Napoleon III (1852-1870) and reached Canada through Britain and the United States. It was used extensively throughout Charlottetown from approximately 1860 until 1880.

A well maintained home, located among a number of heritage homes; 271-273 Euston Street helps support the streetscape.

Sources: Heritage Office, City of Charlottetown Planning Department, PO Box 98, Charlottetown, PE C1A 7K2
#1130

Character-Defining Elements

The following character-defining elements contribute to the heritage value of 271-273 Euston Street:

- The overall square massing of the building
- The wood shingle exterior
- The mouldings painted in a contrasting colour, particularly the door and window surrounds, the bracketed cornice, the corner boards and the hood mouldings over the first floor windows and doors that are held up by decorative scrolled brackets
- The mansard roof with gabled dormers
- The size and symmetrical placement of the sash windows, including the dormer windows, the tall windows that sit on either side of the centrally placed paired doors and the paired windows that have been placed directly above the doors
- The style and centre placement of the paired doors, with transom lights above
- The size and placement of the brick chimneys

Other character-defining elements include:

- The mature trees on the property
- The location of the building on Euston Street and its physical and visual relationship to its streetscape