Lighthouse of the Week, December 31, 2023 - January 6, 2024: Cape North, Ottawa, Canada

 

This is an interesting lighthouse with a remarkable history. It is no longer a lighthouse that guides ships at sea away from dangerous rocks or shoals, but it used to be. It has been moved twice;  and apparently that cost the Canadian government a large amount of money to do so (plus more money to clean up a spill of mercury - seriously).  Read below. 

It is apparently a landmark of Canadian maritime history, too.

I'm going to provide three maps: where it was and where it is.

It was originally located at Cape Race, which is here on Newfoundland.

Then it was moved to Cape North, which is located here, way out on the northeast end of Nova Scotia.

Finally, it was moved to the Technology Park in Ottawa, and that's right here.

So, here's some information, and some links.  This is one of the rare times I won't be using the Lighthouse Directory as my primary source, because it doesn't have the full history of the lighthouse that's in Ottawa. 

From Cape North Lighthouse (Wikipedia)

History:

    "The 29 meter tall lighthouse was first installed at Cape Race point in Newfoundland in 1856 by the British Government's Trinity House, the official lighthouse authority for British waters. The lighthouse is constructed of 32 cast-iron plates joined together with bolts."

    "When a larger lighthouse was built at Cape Race, the old tower was disassembled, moved by ship, and reassembled for the light at Cape North, Nova Scotia, with a new Fresnel lens, made by Chance Brothers in England. The lens floats in a bed of mercury, and was turned by clockwork mechanism before being converted to electric power. The tower features a red checkerboard pattern, which was chosen to help make the lighthouse visible in dense fog and against the often snowy landscape."

    "In 1980, the Cape North Lighthouse, due to be replaced with more up-to-date technology, was acquired from the Canadian Coast Guard by the Canada Science and Technology Museum. The lighthouse was moved from Cape North, Nova Scotia to Ottawa, Ontario, where it was installed in the museum's Technology Park in 1980-81. Even with its modular design, moving the lighthouse was still a massive undertaking. The lighthouse has since become an iconic symbol of Canadian maritime history."

    "An earthquake on July 3, 2010 caused a mercury spill within the lighthouse, resulting in a temporary closure and a cleanup that cost thousands of dollars."

Lighthouse Friends also has a page about the one in Ottawa.

I've got three pictures following.  They all look about the same. But it also has a video.