Old St. Andrews

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Hillcrest

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Charles Rudolph Hosmer, of Montreal, and his wife Clara (Bigelow) Hosmer had been summer residents in St. Andrews since the opening of the Algonquin Hotel in 1889. Mr. Hosmer was among other titles head of the CPR's Telephone and Telegraph Division, a man who, like his friend Sir William Van Horne, started with little and by dint of talent and hard work rose through the ranks. In 1901 Hosmer purchased the Harding property next to the Algonquin for a summer home, though the house didn't go up until 1908, during which time the Hosmers were regular guests at the Algonquin and later in their cottages on Prince of Wales Street.

Hillcrest was designed by Edward and W. S. Maxwell of Montreal, and shows the stylish French influence of Edward Maxwell, alongside the orderly classicism of his brother. The Maxwells were much loved by the CPR and Montreal people in St. Andrews.

Mr. Hosmer died in 1927. His daughter Olive remained a long-term and much loved resident of the town in her home just down the street called Linden Grange.