Description of Historic Place

Heartz Hall is a Carpenter’s Gothic inspired, wood framed former community hall. Lieutenant Governor Frank Heartz (1871-1955), a prominent businessman and farmer, built the community hall in the 1920s and gave it to the community of East Royalty. The designation includes the building’s exterior and parcel; it does not include the building’s interior.

Heritage Value

The heritage value of Heartz Hall lies in its association with Lieutenant Governor Frank Richard Heartz, its importance to the former community of East Royalty which is now part of the City of Charlottetown since amalgamation in 1995, and its Carpenter Gothic architectural style.

Hon. Frank Richard Heartz built the Heartz Hall in the 1920s for the district of East Royalty. It was built on land that was once part of the large Heartz Family Farm. The Heartz family was a Loyalist family who came to Prince Edward Island from the United States. A descendant of the family, Frank Richard Heartz was a successful banker, business director and rancher. Active politically, he ran unsuccessfully for the district of 1st Kings in 1909. Heartz was appointed Lieutenant Governor 8 September 1924 and served until 29 November 1930.

Heartz’s father, Benjamin was a successful businessman but also an avid farmer, who imported livestock. Among his imported livestock were Percheron horses and what was said to be the first herd of Holstein cattle on the Island. The beautiful farm eventually passed into the hands of Frank Richard Heartz. Unfortunately, the farm was hit hard when one of the barns was destroyed by fire in 1908. Damage was estimated at 20 000 dollars. Whether this financial loss prompted Heartz to offer the farm for sale in 1909 is unclear. The 12 January 1909 edition of the local newspaper the Daily Examiner described the farm as being 72 acres with a stable and a home. An auction sale of Heartz’s Clydesdale horses was advertised in the same newspaper.

The property did not sell in 1909, and it was re-offered for sale a second time in 1915. The Parkman family purchased the land but Heartz carved out a small piece of the property that ran along the St. Peters Road where he constructed a community hall. On the 16 February 1927, Heartz created a trust and gave the building to the District of East Royalty. Later in 1977, the Village Commissioners of East Royalty became the legal trustees of the building via a private act of the Legislative Assembly. Once the City of Charlottetown amalgamated with surrounding areas, including East Royalty, the title of the property automatically became the property of the City of Charlottetown. A beautiful gift to the community, the Heartz Hall is a monument to the generosity of Frank Richard Heartz.

The Heartz Hall was influenced by the Carpenter Gothic style. The style is a Canadian adaptation of the Gothic style in which the buildings are constructed of wood. Very popular in the Maritime Provinces, it was used a great deal for churches. The buildings are generally white with black or blue trim and contain Gothic elements such as the emphasis on vertical proportions, steeply pitched roofs and pointed arched windows. The Heartz Hall is a well preserved example of this style in the City.

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 Carpenter Gothic inspired heritage value of Heartz Hall:

- The wooden construction of the building, with its various types of siding including a pediment of board and batten at the top of the tower
- The style and placement of the windows, including the paired windows with round arches above, as well as the centrally placed window with a pointed arch transom light
- The placement of the door at the south side of the centrally placed porch. The door is a replacement and the sidelight has been filled in with panel, but the scale has been maintained.
- The steep gable roofs
- The tower on the front of the building, with its steeply pitched roof and board and batten siding near the roof
- The addition on the back of the building
- The plain black and white sign on the front of the building that reads “Heartz Hall East Royalty”
Other character-defining elements of Heartz Hall include:
- The location of the building on the St. Peters Road