Hudgin Log House

Why vote for us?

For almost 50 years, the Moses Hudgin Log House sat unoccupied and exposed to the elements on Prince Edward County’s remote South Shore. Now the South Shore Joint Initiative is working to make the House a hub for cultural and natural heritage studies, biodiversity education, and public events.
To date, the House is stabilized, the log structure re-chinked, and the windows restored. Winning the Next-Great-Save prize will allow us to take the Next Crucial Step by making the building publicly accessible to Building Code standards and adding amenities to support our Social Enterprise Business Plan — all while protecting the House’s heritage character.
Your vote for the Hudgin Log House will support our promotion of responsible use of Lake Ontario’s last 26 kilometres of undeveloped shore in Canada and provide opportunities for everyone to learn about indigenous land use and settlers’ farming and fishing communities.

Community impact

The restoration of Hudgin Log House is an adaptive re-use of a humble 19th-century family home. We envision it as a hub for South Shore exploration and discovery. It will be an inclusive gathering place for locals, scientists, naturalists, historians and people of all ages to learn about the South Shore’s remarkable biodiversity and history. The project honours the original peoples of this part of North America who harvested fish and game on the South Shore over millennia.

We’re creating a destination for South Shore stories – of the land, of fishing and farming families, of sailing schooners crossing Lake Ontario, of Whip-poor-wills in the woods and of Blanding’s Turtles in the swamps.

The House restoration follows heritage architectural principles and is guided by historical photos, our exceptionally knowledgeable architect, skilled restoration contractors, and Hudgin family volunteers. Initial funding has been provided through the generosity of the municipality, many local people, friends throughout Ontario, and regional organizations. Your vote for Hudgin Log House will help us bring our dream of a Field House on the South Shore to life!

About this place

We are dedicated to protecting, preserving and restoring Hudgin Log House for all future generations. Situated close to Lake Ontario and adjacent to public land, the House demonstrates the area’s unique cultural and natural heritage.

Circa 1860, Moses Hudgin, a United Empire Loyalist descendant, used local white cedar to build the log house. Moses and his wife Ann (Mouck) raised nine children in the House. Three generations grew rye, buckwheat, corn, potatoes and turnips, harvested fish from Lake Ontario and local game. Living Hudgin descendants recall spending their childhood at the house, running through the fields, picking berries, and enjoying their grandmother’s home cooking.
In 2018, Nature Conservancy of Canada purchased Hudgin Log House and surrounding land. South Shore Joint Initiative is working to restore the House and operate it as a gathering place for cultural and natural heritage studies and events. The restoration of Hudgin Log House is led by local resident and well-known Ontario conservation architect Edwin Rowse.

Your vote for Hudgin Log House will help us bring this rare example of adaptive re-use of a heritage building to life!