~ A History Dating Back To 1759. ~
Hampshire Court has the distinction of being one of the oldest properties in Eastern Canada. The estate dates back to 1759, when it was acquired by Michael Francklin (1733 – 1782) of Poole, England, a man who later became Lieutenant-Governor of Nova Scotia. Francklin married Boston socialite Susannah Boutineau in 1762 and built a Georgian-style home they christened “Franckton”. On this large farm, Francklin built a very roomy mansion, here the family lived and although he had dwellings at Beausejour and Halifax, still it was at Windsor the Family dwelt for many years, and here his wife and the greater number of their children were buried.
Francklin died in 1782, leaving the property to his wife. Susannah (1741 – 1816). With the help of her oldest son, James, renovated the house for use as a school and subsequently leased the estate to Kings College (now King’s Edgehill School) for five years, beginning in 1788.
In 1808, Elizabeth Mauger Gould (1764 – 1817), the eldest daughter of Michael and Susannah Francklin, married Reverend William Colsell King, the principal of King College. She inherited the bulk of her mother’s estate, including Franckton house. Elizabeth died in 1817, leaving the estate to her husband. Upon Reverend King’s death in 1858, the property was left to his third wife Anne Dewolfe King (and their two children.
Around 1871, Mary Grace King, the youngest heir, married a wealthy man named George Wiggins. He purchased the interests owned by his wife’s siblings and became the sole owner of the estate. Wiggins then began a substantial remodeling of the house and grounds, which included erecting a coach house and stables.
George Wiggins died in 1886, leaving the property to a daughter, Alice (1877 – 1931), who was married to Colonel Hadley Brown Tremain (1874 – 1951). Interestingly, Wiggins’ Will specified that the house must not be destroyed. And so, the original Franckton manor remains standing to this day, albeit somewhat hidden by the larger house that Tremain had joined to the front of it. Late Victorian in design and decor, the Tremain house is rich in ornamentation.
Colonel Hadley B. Tremain died in 1951 without any family residing in Nova Scotia. In 1953, after remaining in the possession of the same family for almost 200 years, the property was acquired from Tremain’s heirs by the Hughes family. The Hampshire Court & Motel was built and opened in 1954.
The Hughes family created a the Hampshire Court Hotel and was advertised as “The guests of the motel can witness the planning and care that went into Hampshire Court’s grounds. The large Elm trees that provide shade from the summer sun are over 200 years old.”
Today, it’s home to Evangeline Trust and Law
