Dr. Robert L. Cotton

Dr. Robert Lawson Cotton

You may never have heard the name Robert Cotton but we guarantee , if you are an Islander, he has touched your life and will continue to do so for generations. Let us tell you a little, and we mean little, about the life and deeds of Dr. Robert Lawson Cotton known to his family and friends as "Bobby".

Robert Cotton was born March 23, 1881 to William Lawson Cotton (born July 12, 1848 New London, P.E.I. died March 31, 1928) and Margaret Ellen Harris (born May 23, 1854 and died December 12, 1944). Mr. Cotton lived and was educated in Charlottetown, P.E.I. He was in active service during the First World War with the 105th Infantry Battalion P.E.I. Highlanders. He returned home after being wounded in the left leg by machine gun fire.

Once home from the war Mr. Cotton resumed his busy life with many business interests, his commitment to his church St. Peter's Cathedral, his community, and most importantly, his family and wife Mrs. Alice Gertrude Cotton (nee DeBlois) known to her family and friends as "Girlie".

Mr. Cotton's businesses and interests were vast and numerous. Most enterprises were extremely successful but others were not. But like all truly successful business people Mr. Cotton didn't dwell on the failures but looked for ways to rise from the ashes to produce greater things. Building, creating, and developing were true passions of Mr. Cotton. He was a man far ahead of his time in vision and action.

In the 1920's, at Holland Cove, he built cottages, a dinning hall, tennis courts and more. People from as far away as Montreal would summer at Mr. Cotton's resort. He even traveled to the train station in Charlottetown to meet his arriving quests and transport them out to Holland Cove personally. Some of the cottages Mr. Cotton built for this resort are still being used as summer cottages today and others were moved over to Southport into an area that was known as "Cottonville".

It was Mr. Cotton's dream that all Islanders be able to enjoy the beauty of Prince Edward Island for generations and the foresight it see the need to protect our natural resources. This dream inspired Mr. Cotton to not only donate huge parcels of land but money so the land could also be developed into parks for everyone to treasure and appreciate. Provincial Parks we know today as Strathgartney, Brudenell and Selkirk were all the gifts to the people of Prince Edward Island from Mr. Robert L. Cotton. You could say Mr. Cotton was one of P.E.I.'s first environmentalist, conservationist and naturalist all rolled into one. Through these acts Mr. Cotton gained the unofficial title as the "Father of the Provincial Parks".

In 1945, with the end of the Second World War, a new issue arose that captured Mr. Cotton's attention. The need to have affordable housing for Islanders, and a need to renew are deteriorating forests. Again, Mr. Cotton saw a need and acted by building modest affordable houses in the Charlottetown area that young families could rent and eventually own through a Rent-to-Own policy. A portion of the rent would be put towards the principle of the house and over time the house was paid for. At this time it was far more difficult to obtain a mortgage from a Bank than it is today. Many of these houses still stand in testament to their building quality. In the same area a children's park was constructed and named in honor of the Cotton Family.

To tackle the other issue of deteriorating forest Mr. Cotton provided the Province with land and money, $100,000.00 which was an enormous sum for 1946, to be known as the Cotton Memorial Trust Fund for Rural Beautification. With this trust a nursery was built to supply Islanders with trees, shrubs and flowers for their homes and farms at cost. This nursery was later to be known as the Bunbury Nursery which operated for almost 50 years.

Mr. H. B. Chandler said it best in his address to the Charlottetown International Rotary Club in April of 1954.

" I am sure it must give Mr. Cotton a grand sense of accomplishment to see his dream coming true. And what a present way he has chosen to be memorialized- in the great oaks, beeches, maples and evergreens that will be flourishing a hundred years later and their descendants for the next few thousand years until the time comes when as geologists say it must, the Atlantic seaboard sinks gracefully beneath the waves. In this present moment of time with its gift of green growing things that add pleasure and beauty to our lives we can only day,
Thank-you, Mr. Cotton." (The Guardian, April 13, 1954)

Mr. Cotton himself was a small man in statue but his sense of duty, commitment and love of his family and community made him a giant among Islanders. He was a quiet and gracious man who refused awards, accolades, or a spot of any kind for his many deeds that benefitted all Islanders. He was certainly a wealthy man in more ways than monetary means but he lived a modest life in a little home with is true love Girlie and his lovely gardens full of roses.

In 1967 Mr. Cotton received his Honorary Doctorate of Laws from Prince of Wales College (which is now the University of Prince Edward Island) to become known as Dr. Robert L. Cotton. He received his Doctorate along with Prime Minister Lester B. Pearson.

MRS. COTTON was in failing health and passed away January 31, 1968. Mr. Cotton was to follow her August 22, 1968.They are both buried in the St. Peter's Cemetery on the St. Peter's Road, Charlottetown, P.E.I.