Montgomery home has long history
There is some confusion surrounding the old Montgomery house on Montgomery Road.
The home once belonged to Hugh Montgomery, the greatgreat-grandfather of Island author Lucy Maud Montgomery, and is believed to be one of the oldest homes on the Island.
A story regarding the refurbishment of the old Montgomery house in Malpeque, published Friday in The Guardian included some incorrect information.
The home was not the childhood home of the famous author.
The birthplace of the “Anne of Green Gables” author is on Route 6 in Clifton, New London, P.E.I., where a small museum now operates seasonally.
The site of Montgomery’s childhood, where she spent half of life, is owned by Macneill family and is situated in Cavendish on Route 6. It, along with the Green Gables house and grounds, is designated by Parks Canada as L.M. Montgomery’s Cavendish National Historic Site.
According to Canada’s Historic Places, this “Hugh Montgomery House” at Fox Point was the home of Hugh Montgomery and his family. It housed five generations of the Montgomery family, including a son Donald Montgomery and his wife Nancy Penman who raised 17 children here. Other descendants of the original Montgomery occupants of the home include Senator Donald Montgomery of Park Corner, father of Hugh John Montgomery, who was the father of Lucy Maud.
The family who currently owns the 227-year-old house has recently moved it back from the eroding shoreline.
Rudy Petrella, who remembers staying with his grandparents in the house, hired local contractors to gut the building and lay a new foundation, moving the home in August.
He and his son Joshua plan to restore it beginning next summer.
“It has allowed me a new connection with my son. He loves coming here and staying on the Island. Hopefully it will also be a special place for my youngest son who is nine months old. We can’t wait to share it with him.
“We’re going to bring the home back to how it used to be, what I remember it to be.”