FAMI LY
The festive season is approaching, and Beaconsfield will be decorated as it would have been in Victorian times for the holiday season.
Beaconsfield Historic House Looking into Our Past
Words by Amanda Lee Photos by Evan Ceretti
W hen Beaconsfield House was first built in 1877, it was Charlottetown’s most elegant and modern residence. It boasted gas lighting, central heating, and a water closet. “It was also the first house built on PEI with running water,” says Harris Ford. All that luxury didn’t come cheap. James Peake, a wealthy shipbuilder and merchant, and his wife, Edith, spared no expense in building their home. “It cost $50,000 to build, which is about $2,000,000 today,” says Ford, the site director at Beaconsfield. “It was reflective of the wealth of the shipbuilding era on the Island at that time.” Named in honour of Benjamin Disraeli, the Earl of Beaconsfield, the residence was designed by a prominent architect, William C. Harris. The home is a blend of Italianate and Mansard styles, with all the fashionable W
features of the era. The grand veranda, elegant furnishings, marble fireplaces, and Chinese porcelain chandeliers were designed to impress. The historic home also played host to some grand parties. Ford says one such event was a reception for the recently appointed Governor General, the Marquis of Lorne, as well as the Duke of Argyle and his wife, the daughter of Queen Victoria. Fate wasn’t kind to the Peakes. “Unfortunately, the Peakes only got to live here for five years,” says Ford. The profitable shipbuilding industry had collapsed. “Obviously, building a $50,000 house didn’t help either,” he adds. Finally, Henry Jones Cundall, a cartographer and land surveyor, purchased the home for just $5,000. He moved in with his two younger sisters and lived here for thirty-five years. When Cundall died in 1916, he
donated his home to the YMCA. Then, in 1931, it became a student nursing residence. “The nurses turned the Carriage House into a basketball court,” says Ford. In 1973, the home was restored and officially opened by the Queen as the headquarters of the Prince Edward Island Museum and Heritage Foundation. Today, Beaconsfield Historic House stands as an impressive example of Victorian architecture. “We love to interpret the site, and show people what life was like in Victorian-era Charlottetown,” says Ford. Knowledgeable guides, often dressed in period costume in the summer, lead visitors through the home. One curio is an 1870s cherry pitter. “The gadget looks like an insect,” says Ford. A Victorian mourning wreath is also on display. “If your grandfather passed away, you’d cut some of his hair, and add it to the wreath,” explains Ford. “It’s a good way to remember your relatives.”
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www.pei-living.ca FALL 2019
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