Province House is where the

Prince Edward Island Prince Edward Island (PEI; ) is one of the thirteen Provinces and territories of Canada, provinces and territories of Canada. It is the smallest province in terms of land area and population, but the most densely populated. The island has seve ...

Legislature, known as the

Legislative Assembly of Prince Edward Island The Legislative Assembly of Prince Edward Island (french: Assemblée législative de l'Île-du-Prince-Édouard) is the sole chamber of the General Assembly of Prince Edward Island. The Legislative Assembly meets at Province House, which is locate ...

, has met since 1847. The building is located at the intersection of Richmond and Great George Streets in Charlottetown; it is

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

's second-oldest seat of government.

History

The cornerstone was laid in May 1843 and it commenced operation for the first time in January 1847. The entire structure was built for a cost of £10,000 and was designed by Isaac Smith. Smith was a self-trained architect from Yorkshire, who also designed the residence of the Lieutenant Governor of Prince Edward Island. It was built by Island craftsmen during a time of prosperity for the colony. Its architectural lines include

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

and

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...

influences, common to public buildings in

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...

built during this era. From September 1–7, 1864, Province House had an important role in helping Prince Edward Island host the

Charlottetown Conference The Charlottetown Conference (Canada's Conference) was held in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island for representatives from colonies of British North America to discuss Canadian Confederation. The conference took place between September 1 thro ...

which resulted in

Canadian Confederation Canadian Confederation (french: Confédération canadienne, link=no) was the process by which three British North American provinces, the Province of Canada, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick, were united into one federation called the Canada, Dom ...

. In 1973,

Parks Canada Parks Canada (PC; french: Parcs Canada),Parks Canada is the applied title under the Federal Identity Program; the legal title is Parks Canada Agency (). is the agency of the Government of Canada which manages the country's 48 National Parks, th ...

approached the government of Prince Edward Island with a proposal for joint management and restoration of the structure in recognition of its important role in Canadian history. Under the ensuing agreement, both parties agreed to a 99-year period of joint management. Parks Canada paid for a $3.5 million (CAD) restoration from 1979–1983 which involved part of the building being restored to the 1864 period. The provincial legislature occupies one end of the building, whereas the restored Confederation Chamber displays the room where the

meetings occurred. Confederation Chamber within Province House PEI

On April 20, 1995, a powerful

pipe bomb A pipe bomb is an improvised explosive device which uses a tightly sealed section of pipe (material), pipe filled with an explosive material. The containment provided by the pipe means that simple Explosive material#Low explosives, low explosi ...

exploded beneath a wooden wheelchair ramp on the north side of Province House, destroying glass in windows and causing some minor structural damage. Several passersby were injured and the explosion occurred only five minutes after an entire class of school children on a tour of the building had passed through the area. The bombing occurred only one day after the

Oklahoma City bombing The Oklahoma City bombing was a domestic terrorist truck bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States, on April 19, 1995. Perpetrated by two anti-government extremists, Timothy McVeigh and Terry N ...

and is considered to be a copycat action. Responsibility was claimed by a group calling itself ''Loki 7''; however, a subsequent police investigation and criminal court case blamed a single individual,

Roger Charles Bell Roger Charles Bell is a Canadian former secondary school teacher and convicted criminal from Prince Edward Island. Born in Murray River in 1944, Bell is a graduate of University of Western Ontario and taught high school chemistry at several schools ...

. In 2015, Province House was closed for repairs and conservation work. The legislature moved to the adjacent Hon. George Coles Building, where it is expected to remain for several years. The building is planned to reopen at some point in 2022.

Province House National Historic Site

Province House was designated a

National Historic Site of Canada National Historic Sites of Canada (french: Lieux historiques nationaux du Canada) are places that have been designated by the federal Minister of the Environment An environment minister (sometimes minister of the environment or secretary of t ...

in 1973. It is one of only three provincial legislative buildings, along with Province House in Halifax and the

Saskatchewan Legislative Building The Saskatchewan Legislative Building is located in Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada, and houses the Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan. History The Saskatchewan Legislative Building was built between 1908 and 1912 in the Beaux Arts style to a d ...

in Regina, to be so designated. Province House is also designated under the provincial

Heritage Places Protection Act The ''Heritage Places Protection Act'' is a provincial statute which allows for the recognition and protection of cultural heritage and natural heritage properties in the province of Prince Edward Island, Canada. The Act requires the province' ...

. Visitors can tour the 1860s period rooms, which include displays about the Charlottetown Conference, the building and the Provincial Legislative Assembly. An audio-visual presentation about the Conference is available, titled "A Great Dream".

Monuments and memorials

In front of the Legislature on Grafton Street is the

Charlottetown Veterans Memorial Charlottetown is the capital and largest city of the Canadian province of Prince Edward Island, and the county seat of Queens County. Named after Queen Charlotte, Charlottetown was an unincorporated town until it was incorporated as a city in ...

consisting of three soldiers. The bronze memorial by G. W. Hill commemorates the dead from the two World Wars and the

Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...

. A

Boer War The Second Boer War ( af, Tweede Vryheidsoorlog, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, the Anglo–Boer War, or the South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer Republics (the Sou ...

Memorial by

Hamilton MacCarthy Hamilton Thomas Carlton Plantagenet MacCarthy (28 July 1846 – 24 October 1939) was one of the earliest masters of monumental bronze sculpture in Canada. He is known for his historical sculptures, in particular his Pierre Dugua, Sieur de Mons ...

was erected to honour the members of the

Royal Canadian Regiment The Royal Canadian Regiment (RCR) is an infantry regiment of the Canadian Army. The regiment consists of four battalions, three in the Regular Force and one in the primary reserve. The RCR is ranked 1st in the order of precedence amongst Canadian A ...

on the side of legislature. A series of plaques commemorating the province's

Fathers of Confederation The Fathers of Confederation are the 36 people who attended at least one of the Charlottetown Conference of 1864 (23 attendees), the Quebec Conference of 1864 (33 attendees), and the London Conference of 1866 (16 attendees), preceding Canadian ...

are found along the side of the building: * Edward Whelan *

Thomas Heath Haviland Thomas Heath Haviland (13 November 1822 – 11 September 1895) was a Canadian lawyer, politician and father of Canadian Confederation. He was born in, and died in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island. He was appointed to the Senate of Canad ...

Edward Palmer Edward Palmer may refer to: * Edward Palmer (d.1624) (1555–1624), antiquary and projector of a university in Virginia * Edward Palmer (socialist) (1802–1886), American religious socialist * Edward Palmer (Canadian politician) (1809–1889), Pri ...

John Hamilton Gray John Hamilton Gray may refer to two 19th-century Canadian politicians: *John Hamilton Gray (Prince Edward Island politician) (1811–1887), Premier of Prince Edward Island *John Hamilton Gray (New Brunswick politician) John Hamilton Gray, (1 ...

Andrew Archibald Macdonald Andrew Archibald Macdonald, (14 February 1829 – 21 March 1912) served as the fourth Lieutenant Governor of Prince Edward Island from 1 August 1884 to 2 September 1889, and was one of the fathers of Canadian Confederation. Birth and ea ...

William Henry Pope William, Willie, Will or Bill Pope may refer to: * William Pope, 1st Earl of Downe (1573–1631) * William Pope (naturalist) (1811–1903), English-born naturalist and painter * William Burt Pope (1822–1903), English Christian theologian * Willi ...

George Coles George Coles may refer to: * George Coles (Cambridge University cricketer) (1798–1865), English amateur cricketer * George Coles (politician) George Coles (September 20, 1810 – August 21, 1875) was a Canadian politician, being the first ...

A small statue of Eckhart the Mouse from David Weale's children's story The True Meaning of Crumbfest is also found on the grounds of legislature.

References

External links

*
Province House, Charlottetown
at the Canadian Encyclopedia {{coord, 46.234927, -63.126084, region:CA_type:landmark, display=title Buildings and structures in Charlottetown Greek Revival architecture in Canada Legislative buildings in Canada National Historic Sites in Prince Edward Island Museums in Prince Edward Island History museums in Canada General Assembly of Prince Edward Island Terminating vistas in Canada Government buildings completed in 1847 1847 establishments in Prince Edward Island Monuments and memorials in Prince Edward Island