Witter Coombs House, Inns on Great George

The Witter Coombs House is a wood framed, Neo-classical influenced inn located at 66 Great George Street. It was once home to Ellen Jane Witter and her husband, Alexander Coombs, but it is now part of the group of historic inns called the Inns on Great George. The designation encompasses the building’s exterior and parcel; it does not include the building’s interior.

The heritage value of the Witter Coombs House lies in its association with Ellen Jane Witter and her husband, Alexander Coombs, its Neo-classical influenced architecture, and its importance to the streetscape.

John Howell, owner of the historic Wellington Hotel, originally owned the property where the Witter Coombs House and the property next door are located. It is not clear exactly when the property was divided but Alexander Coombs, who had married the grand daughter of Wellington Hotel owner, John Howell, was paying taxes on the Witter Coombs House and the next-door property by 1855. The houses were built at some point between 1855 and 1863, when Ellen Jane Witter Coombs was advertising hand made candles from her address.

As a well preserved example of the Neo-classical style in the city, the building maintains a symmetrical facade together with a gabled roof, clapboard siding, and simple trim details. In this instance, the addition of a Scottish central dormer also provides a more refined detail.

Within the past ten years, the Coombs’ family home has been renovated and converted into an historic inn that was named after its former owners Ellen Jane Witter and her husband, Alexander Coombs. Part of a group of historic inns that line Great George Street, the Witter Coombs House is a vital part of the Great George Street streetscape.

Sources: Heritage Office, City of Charlottetown Planning Department, PO Box 98, Charlottetown, PE C1A 7K2

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The heritage value of the Witter Coombs House lies in the following Neo-classical influenced character-defining elements:

- The overall massing of the building

- The placement and style of the two over two windows

- The style and placement of the double doors on the northern corner of the building’s facade

- Although a new addition, the doorstep with its decorative railing, adds to the overall look of the building

- The simple, contrasting trim running throughout the exterior of the building

- The pitch of the gabled roof with its Scottish dormer

- The placement and style of the chimney

Other character-defining elements of the Witter Coombs House include:

- Its location on Great George Street