Description of Historic Place

This small one-storey house at 277 Green Street is white with dark green trim and a clipped gable roof. It is located on the northwest corner of the intersection with Summer Street. It resembles a cottage in scale and has a central front classical style portico with a broken pediment facing Green Street. It is set back on its lot and has an extension to the north and a small deck at the rear entrance. The registration includes the building and its lot.

Heritage Value

The aesthetically pleasing residence at 277 Green Street has historical value as the former residence of Agnes Ramsay, a well-known schoolteacher, who devoted her life to the education of more than one generation of Summerside residents. It has further heritage value as an example of a 1920s cottage style bungalow in an area where the houses of similar vintage are generally larger.

It was constructed in 1927 on one of six lots subdivided from the estate known as Parkside, once owned and occupied by William A. Brennan, a prominent citizen and owner of the Journal Publishing Company. Miss Ramsay's new house, which she occupied with her sister Bertha, was constructed in what the newspaper described as a "semi-bungalow type." The main portion of the dwelling was 28 by 35 feet with a 20 by 10 ell on the north side. The M.F. Schurman Company had the contract and Ambrose MacInnis was the foreman.

Agnes Ramsay was born in 1871, the daughter of John Ramsay, one of Summerside's pioneer shipbuilders. In April 1927, she had this residence erected across the street from the Summerside High School where she was vice-principal, having begun her teaching career sometime before 1891. When she retired in June 1944, she had been principal for five years, bringing a long career to a close. A newspaper editorial claimed, "...her contribution to the case of education here has been a great one and cannot be measured in words."

After Agnes Ramsay died in 1954, Bertha Ramsay remained in the house until 1964 when it was sold to Ivan C. Nicholson, the owner of a local dry cleaning establishment. The house at 277 Green is still in the Nicholson family.

As a unique and well preserved example of a 1920s cottage bungalow, the house continues to contribute to the streetscape.

Source: City of Summerside, Heritage Property Profile

Character-Defining Elements

The heritage value of the house is shown in the following character-defining elements:

- the small one-storey massing of the cottage with clipped gable roof with eave returns and asphalt shingles
- the symmetrical facade
- the extension to the north at the north west corner
- the gable roofed portico with broken pediment supported by paired ionic columns
- the enclosed glazed porch
- the white clapboard cladding
- the single large brick double chimney
- the unique brickwork of the foundation
- the continuing contribution of the house to the streetscape