Province House National Historic Site - Conservation Project – Phase Three and Phase Four

Province House National Historic Site, the birthplace of Confederation and the seat of Prince Edward Island's provincial legislature, stands as a national treasure. It was commemorated as a national historic site due to its significance as the first meeting place of the Fathers of Confederation: the Charlottetown Conference of 1864. This conference, along with the Quebec Conference of 1864, ultimately led to Canadian Confederation in 1867.

Province House is an example of neo-classical revival architecture and was constructed between 1843 and 1847 to house Prince Edward Island’s provincial legislature and Supreme Court, as well as to serve as a depository of public documents for Prince Edward Island.

The Government of Canada has an agreement with the Province of Prince Edward Island to preserve and administer Province House as a national historic site and share its story with Canadians. Province House is currently closed for conservation work. Until the site closed, it was occupied by both Parks Canada and the Legislative Assembly. Parks Canada operated Province House as a national historic site and provided guided tours for the public. At the same time, the Legislative Assembly of PEI met in Province House and various Assembly offices were also located at the site, including the Speaker and Clerk. Province House is an important landmark in the city of Charlottetown and a major attraction for visitors to the Island.

Further information is available on Parks Canada’s Province House NHS Conservation Project page.

Province House National Historic Site Conservation Project Timeline

• Public Service and Procurement Canada (PSPC) is managing this nationally-important project, as Canada’s centre of expertise for conserving built heritage, on behalf of Parks Canada.

• Phase one of the project involved extensive work to protect and stabilize the building. This included the protection and, in some cases, the temporary removal of the historic features that form part of the character-defining elements. Outside the building, a steel exoskeleton was constructed and the foundation of the building was excavated.

• Phase two of the conservation project began in May 2018 and will continue to December 2021. This phase focuses on the building envelope, essentially the structural parts of the building, including the conservation of the exterior walls, and work related to the foundation, structural interior walls, porticos floors, and roof. A contract for construction management services for phase two and phase three of the project was awarded in October 2017 to PCL Constructors Ltd.

• As part of phase two, in situ masonry work is currently underway with contractor RJW Stonemasons. An in situ approach means that, where possible, the damaged walls are being repaired in place, rather than complete removal and reassembly. This approach is less invasive, protects more of the heritage fabric of the building, and is more cost-efficient. In some cases, where the stone is noted to be in particularly poor condition, the dismantle/reassemble approach is being used. It is projected that more than 1,500 of the exterior stones will be replaced and, because they are new stones, there will be a slight difference in colouration between them and the older stones. Over time, the stone will weather through a process called oxidation and blend in with the original stone. This combined approach appropriately addresses Province House’s conservation needs, and is supported by best practices in the conservation of heritage buildings. Locally-sourced structural PEI sandstone is being used for the building’s structural inner walls.

• Conservation work on the north and south porticos is now complete. These porticos are temple-like porches that shelter the central entrances on both sides of the building. The contractors on-site braced the porticos and used a hydraulic jacking system to lift each individual column up in order to replace the foundation. The eight columns were lifted individually. The north and south porticos were worked on simultaneously throughout 2019. Work was completed in early January 2020.

• Phase three will begin in winter 2020 and occur simultaneously with the end of phase two. Upgrades will be carried out on fire and safety systems, information technology, audio visual, plumbing, and electrical systems, as well as heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems. There will also be numerous improvements to universal accessibility at Province House, including exterior building access, universally-accessible washrooms, and improvements to lighting and signage to assist the visually impaired. For phase three, the first step is to complete the design work, which is currently underway and will be completed in winter 2020, followed by construction planned to begin in fall 2020.

• As the stone walls are completed, the interior finishes will begin to be re-instated. This will include plaster, moldings, trim, windows, doors and flooring. Protective coverings will be removed from the stairs and other elements which remained in the building throughout the project. As an example, the elements that were removed from the Confederation Chamber in phase one, such as stoves, period carpeting, chandeliers and light fixtures, plaster medallion and coat of arms, will be carefully re-instated. Once these more permanent elements are back in place, furniture, curtains and other artifacts will also be returned to the building.

• Phase four will be the final portion of the project and will involve developing Parks Canada’s new visitor experience offer for Province House National Historic Site and the design, development and installation of new interpretive materials. A visitor experience plan for the site will be developed in consultation with stakeholders in early 2020.

• Province House is scheduled to be open to the public again in 2022.

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