Stewart Memorial Beach House

Accommodation in West Point - Canada

Email Stewart Memorial Beach House Reservations: bookcanada@madbookings.com

Welcome to Stewart Memorial House Bed and Breakfast. It is owned by Audrey (Stewart) MacDonald of West Point, Prince Edward Island. She and her daughter, Andrea, operate the B&B in a home that is a recreation of the Philip Stewart family home. Philip's original house once stood on what is now the property of Audrey's brother, John. The large building on the left is still standing. The property where the bed and breakfast is now located was originally owned by Audrey's cousin, Harry Stewart. He has a great knowledge of his Stewart ancestors.

To keep their memory alive, the bed and breakfast is home to many antiques and information on local history is on display. Our in-season consists of the months of July and August. During these months, our guests are treated to a full breakfast.

Check in time is Friday at 5:00 P.M. and check out time is Sunday at 5:00 P.M. A cot is available upon request

Folklore and the Super Natural
Not only did Harry Stewart own the land where the Bed and Breakfast / Museum now stands, he has also helped to keep the stories of the area alive by compiling 26 of these tales, all true of course, on audiotape in 1990. Audrey has taken the time and effort to transcribe them into a small book entitled "Supernatural and Ghost Stories of West Point".

Here's an excerpt:
John T.'s Fiddle
John T. was a great fiddler and I guess he had bought a fiddle from a fellow in Coleman by the name of Profit. This fellow worked at MacKinnon's mill in Coleman, and anyway the fiddle was hanging on the wall in the cookhouse and the whole crew were there at breakfast. About thirty men and all at once the fiddle started to play - this guy's favorite tune.

The men didn't know what to do; whether to go out to fish or what to do. There were no radios, no telephone in those days, and they found out after the mail came around in the evening that the mill, the steam mill, the boiler had blown up and this guy who owned the fiddle, the fellow Jack had bought the fiddle from, was killed in the explosion. Well anyway, that's kind of a strange one.

On display at Stewart Memorial House Bed and Breakfast is the original John T. fiddle.

The Surrounding Area
Our Bed and Breakfast is located in the community of West Point, Prince Edward Island, Canada. It overlooks the Northumberland Strait, and near many popular tourist attractions. People who visit the area comment on its beautiful beaches, relaxed lifestyle, and natural beauty. Historical properties, such as the West Point Lighthouse Inn and Museum, and our Bed and Breakfast are available for those with an interest in the past.

Families from all over love to camp at Cedar Dunes Provincial Park, just down the road from us. It has both tent and hookup sites, as well as a supervised beach.

For those interested in the fishing industry, the local harbour is visible from the Bed and Breakfast. The local port authority recently installed a floating dock for non-fishing vessels, and the Millennium community group is in the process of developing a new community center at the harbour.

Our small community is an active one. Volunteers from our area, including the communities Glenwood, Dunblane, and West Cape are involved in such groups as our fire department, the port authority, and the West Point Development Corporation, which is responsible for the West Point Lighthouse and Museum, and a local group of craftspeople who operate the Lighthouse Craftshop.

Our community also has many active businesses, including the service, sales, manufacturing, fishing, and farming industries. These include:

• MacDonald's Shore Canteen
• BB Creations and Supplies
• AT Boyles
• Stewart Enterprises
• H.F. Stewart & Sons
• Acadia Seafoods
• Maddix Seafoods
• West Shore Fisheries
• DGS Farms
• Whispering Beaches Farm

Each year, our community and area host the West Point Lighthouse Festival in support of the development corporation and the local volunteer fire department. It takes place on the 3rd weekend of July each year, and includes a parade, dance, and fishing boat races.

Also each summer, for two weeks, the local Red Cross has its summer daycamp swimming and boating lessons at our local beach and harbour. If you do happen to want to leave West Point once you get here, the nearest incoroporated community is O'Leary, and the nearest city is Summerside.

Genealogy
Audrey's interest in genealogy was fostered by many of her relatives, but she was most influenced by her uncle, Leonard Stewart. Before he died, he passed on to her much of his knowledge of the genealogy and history of families in the area.
She has continued to research these families, and has been involved with both the Stewart and MacDonald family reunions held in our area recently.

Audrey is the 6th generation of the Angus Stewart line from Skye, Scotland, to live in West Point. Anyone who wishes to know more about this history should contact us. Or if you are on the Island, you may wish to visit the living and dining rooms that are the informal museum section of the Bed and Breakfast dedicated to our Scottish ancestors.

In this museum area, you can view many photographs of people related to West Point in some way, such as are displayed throughout the website. You may be interested in some of the artifacts on display, like inkwells, the icebox, and the old organ.
Also available for your reading pleasure are a transcribed series of letters written by Mary C. Stewart of West Point and her brother Alexander (Sandy) Stewart of Boston From 1926 to 1937. They are pictured here bottom left and second from right top corners, respectively.

Email Stewart Memorial Beach House Reservations: bookcanada@madbookings.com