Charlottetown, PEI

PEI, or Prince Edward Island, was known by the Mi’kmaq as Epekwitk, roughly translated as “land cradled in the waves”. Prince Edward Island is one of the three Maritime Provinces and is the smallest province in both land area and population. It is part of the traditional lands of the Mi’kmaq, became a British colony in the 1700s and was federated into Canada as a province in 1873. Its capital is Charlottetown.

The backbone of the economy is farming; it produces 25% of Canada’s potatoes. The island has several informal names: “Garden of the Gulf,” referring to the pastoral scenery

and lush agricultural lands throughout the province; and “Birthplace of Confederation” or “Cradle of Confederation” referring to the Charlottetown Conference in 1864, although PEI did not join Confederation until 1873, when it became the seventh Canadian province. Historically, PEI is one of Canada’s older settlements and demographically still reflects older immigration to the country, with Celtic, Anglo-Saxon and French surnames being dominant to this day.

Rolling hills, woods, reddish white sand beaches, ocean coves and the famous red soil have given Prince Edward Island a reputation as a province of outstanding natural beauty. We focused on Charlottetown but did see some of the north shore.

The arrival of the Europeans created a tumultuous cultural stew. In 1534, Jacques Cartier was the first European to see the island. In 1604, France claimed the lands of the Maritimes, including Prince Edward Island, establishing the French colony of Acadia. The island was named Île Saint-Jean by the French. The Mi’kmaq never recognized the claim but welcomed the French as trading partners and allies.

Roughly one thousand Acadians lived on the island, many of whom had fled to the island from mainland Nova Scotia during the first wave of the British-ordered expulsion in 1755, reaching a population of 5,000. However, many more were forcibly deported during the second wave of the expulsion after the Siege of Louisbourg (1758).  Many Acadians died in the expulsion en route to France when ships sank at sea. Great Britain claimed the island as part of Nova Scotia in 1763, when France gave up its claim to the island. This was under the terms of the Treaty of Paris which settled the Seven Years’ War. The island was split into a separate colony in 1769.

In September 1864, Prince Edward Island hosted the Charlottetown Conference, which was the first meeting in the process leading to the Quebec Resolutions and the creation of Canada in 1867. Ironically, Prince Edward Island did not find the terms of union favorable and balked at joining in 1867, choosing to remain a colony of the United Kingdom until a few years later. As a result of having hosted the inaugural meeting of Confederation, the Charlottetown Conference, Prince Edward Island presents itself as the “Birthplace of Confederation” and this is commemorated through the Confederation Centre of the Arts Building in Charlottetown.

“The Fathers of Confederation Memorial Building is a tribute to those famous men who founded our Confederation. But it is also dedicated to the fostering of those things that enrich the mind and delight the heart, those intangible but precious things that give meaning to a society and help create from it a civilization and a culture.” — Prime Minister L. B. Pearson, Opening Ceremonies for the Confederation Centre of the Arts, October 6, 1964

The centre has played host to the Charlottetown Festival every summer since 1965, playing Canada’s most popular and longest-running mainstage musical Anne of Green Gables — The Musical. The Confederation Centre theatre is the largest theatre mainstage in Canada east of Montreal.

The centre is one contiguous structure, however at street level it appears as three separate buildings (hosting a theater, art gallery and public library) clustered around “Memorial Hall” which faces east toward Province House, which is being renovated for the 150th anniversary of the confederation.

Architecturally the building presents an anonymous box-like face to the community, suffering, among other things, from a lack of a clear sense of entrance. We had to work at finding our way into the art museum through this very small door;

and the circulation inside the building mystified us, at least initially.  This pleasant courtyard wasn’t easily discoverable.

The spaces themselves were generally large and open.

This works well for large pieces where viewing from a distance can be useful; although it’s impossible to back up gradually without going over the railing. Smaller pieces can often be overwhelmed by all the real estate. The building’s structure had integrated lighting which had similar challenges.  For long distance, broad wash lighting the system worked reasonably well; but focusing on individual works was awkward. The open corner windows, introducing daylight and providing architectural “articulation” from the exterior, were another troublesome element. A number of them had been curtained off in order to keep glare from interfering with the display lighting.

The collection ranged widely and the current show displayed that. In no particular order, here’s a sampling of what we saw.

Portraits by Lionel Stephenson

Arrival of the Sun, 1962 – Kenojuak Ashevak

Pipe Dreams 5, 1975 – Marcel Barbeau

Self-Portrait, c. 1936 – Bobs Cogill Haworth

Woman in a Black Hat, c. 1939 – Franklin Carmichel

Granite, Peggy’s Cove, 1931 – George Pepper

We visited Peggy’s Cove (near Halifax) later in the trip. The granite was impressive.

but, back to the museum –

Standing Nude (Study), undated – Robert Harris

Parade/Float V (Cowgirl), 2002 – Alison Norlen

and, just in case you didn’t pick out the cowgirl,

Parade/Float V (Cowgirl), 2002 – Alison Norlen

I’ll let Clarissa Inglis mop things up

Floor Mops, 1979 – Clarissa Inglis

In a nearby part of the building there was a display of the Charlottetown Conference that would lead to Canadian Confederation. This display will eventually be moved to the Province House building that is currently under renovation. The basic idea is that the table shows how things looked to the delegates during their meetings;

and the participants were “present” as well – Here’s John MacDonald

Outside once again, we passed a war memorial, located in front of the renovation site,

along with some banners explaining the overall effort.

Here’s a look at the work underway.  I’m sorry not to have seen it finished.

In the meantime, the provincial government activities occupy the George Coles building.

It’s an attractive brick structure but definitely less imposing, more of a college campus structure than a provincial headquarters.

On its far side, another war memorial, at a friendlier scale.

The Prince Edward Island Memorial Fountain

A short walk took us back to Hillsborough Square and our Bed and Breakfast.

A collection of styles fronts the square, which is essentially a large lawn with trees, including our B and B, the building at the bottom. As you can see, the fronts of the buildings have been maintained essentially in their historic characters; but, based on the rear of our B and B (lower right), the backs have become more casual and contemporary.

Next time we’ll see some local urban design and another historic neighborhood.