Gagetown group appeals for funds to put new roof on historic Tilley House

Queens County Heritage in Gagetown, N.B., is looking for public supportto help rescue historic Tilley House.

"We do need a new roof on this building," said Dani Comfort, the site supervisor for Queens County Heritage. "The shingles are quite old and they've started to come off."

Tilley House is one of four historic sites managed by the group. The other sites are LoomcroftersStudio, the Court House and the Flower House.

TilleyHouse was designated a national historic site of Canada in 1965. It is the birthplace of Sir Samuel Leonard Tilley, one of the Fathers ofConfederation.

The house, which is a museum, is atourist attraction. It houses artifacts from the Tilley family and otherfamilies from the area.

"We've had a lot of people here volunteering their time to scrape the old paint off, fix some clapboard and some mouldings," Comfort said of ongoing maintenance. "The building is looking much better now."

The organization has raised close to $50,000 this year from events and grants. But it needs at least $20,000 more to maintain the four properties.

Queens County Heritage is collaborating with Gagetown farmers' market to encourage people to donate and buy a new roof for the Tilley House.

"We're always happy to receive donations from anyone and we would really like to make sure we meet all of our goals and take care of these amazing buildings," said Comfort.