Tilley House National Historic Site of Canada
Gagetown, New Brunswick
General view
(© Parks Canada Agency / Agence Parcs Canada, 1987.)
Address :
69 Front Street, Gagetown, New Brunswick
Recognition Statute:
Historic Sites and Monuments Act (R.S.C., 1985, c. H-4)
Designation Date:
1965-05-17
Dates:
-
1790 to 1810
(Construction)
-
1818 to 1831
(Significant)
Event, Person, Organization:
-
Sir Samuel Leonard Tilley
(Person)
Other Name(s):
-
Tilley House
(Designation Name)
-
Queens County Museum
(Other Name)
Research Report Number:
1965-011, 1965-018, 1966-037, 1966-056, 2005-SDC/CED-044
Plaque(s)
Existing plaque: 66 Front Street, Gagetown, New Brunswick
Sir Samuel Leonard Tilley (1818-1896), Father of Confederation, was born and spent his boyhood in this house which had been bought by his grandfather in 1805. Built in the 1780's by Dr. S. Stickles, the house is representative of many contemporary homes in the Maritimes and owes its hewn timber frame construction to the Loyalist tradition in building. Later alterations were made, probably in the 1870's, when the structure was converted to a hotel; these include the addition of the north half, dormers, and interior changes.
Description of Historic Place
Tilley House National Historic Site of Canada is a one-and-a-half-storey clapboard house located on a spacious lot in the town of Gagetown, New Brunswick. It is believed to be the birthplace of Father of Confederation Sir Samuel Leonard Tilley, who lived in the house until he was thirteen years old. Typical of houses built in the 1780s in the Maritimes, it owes its hewn timber-frame construction to the Loyalist building tradition. The designation refers to the house and its legal lot.
Heritage Value
Tilley House was designated a national historic site of Canada in 1965 because: it was the birthplace and boyhood home of Sir Samuel Leonard Tilley, Father of Confederation.
It is believed that Sir Samuel Leonard Tilley (1818 - 1896) was born in this house. Originally built for a Dr. Stickles, probably in the late eighteenth century, the house was purchased by Samuel Tilley, Sir Leonard's great grandfather in 1805. It was considerably enlarged about the time that Sir Leonard Tilley left in the 1830s, with an addition to the north side and alterations to the original south end. By 1897, the house had been converted for use as a hotel. It is now managed by the Queens County Museum.
Sir Leonard Tilley spent his boyhood in this house, leaving Gagetown for work in Saint John at the age of thirteen. By 1850 he had entered politics, serving as Member of the Legislative Assembly for Saint John, later Member of Parliament for Saint John and eventually Lieutenant-Governor of New Brunswick and a federal cabinet minister. He was knighted by Queen Victoria in 1879.
Sources: Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada, Minutes, May 1965, July 2005.
Character-Defining Elements
Key elements contributing to the heritage value of this site include: its siting, slightly back from one of the town's original streets; the one-and-a-half-storey massing under a front-sloped pitched roof with twin chimneys; the timber-frame construction and wood cladding; surviving evidence of the 1818 to 1831 layout, detailing, and finishes.