Group seeks to preserve historic N.S. lighthouse as DFO builds steel tower replacement
Roughly 32 kilometres off the southwest coast of Nova Scotia, a lighthouse has rested on Seal Island for close to 200 years, warning ships away from jagged rocks and attracting admirers of its rich history like Mary McLaren.
“I’m a seasonal resident of Seal Island,” said McLaren, board member with the Seal Island Lighthouse Preservation Society. “I’ve been going there with my parents since I was very small. I have that connection, but it’s also the historical aspect of it.
“That island is quite compelling and overlooked.”
The lighthouse, originally built in 1831, is one of the oldest wooden lighthouses in the country. It has weathered the powerful winds and waves of the Atlantic Ocean, along with the ravages of the steady march of time.
McLaren says the structure has seen better days and her preservation society is calling on Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) and the Canadian Coast Guard to fix it before it falls into further disrepair.
“Part of the legislation of the Heritage Lighthouse Preservation Act says the owner is obligated to maintain (it) and they have not,” McLaren said. “They’ve maintained the navigational aid, but they don’t do anything else with it. When they automated the light, they had to put a window in and it wasn’t put in properly and it’s leaking. It’s allowing a little bit of rot to get in.
“The structure is incredibly sound. It is not at risk of crumbling.”
The interior of the Seal Island lighthouse. (Source: Seal Island Lighthouse Preservation Society)In an emailed statement, Kate Trask, communications advisor with Fisheries and Oceans Canada, said the lighthouse requires “extensive structural repairs” and they have decided to build a steel tower next to it to serve as a navigational aid on the island.
“Many factors were considered in the decision to build a steel tower, including the health and safety of mariners as well as the Canadian Coast Guard employees who must service the aid and the cost of the steel tower and its maintenance versus the cost of maintaining the lighthouse,” Trask said.
“A decision has not been made regarding the disposal of the lighthouse structure once the new steel tower will be built.”
According to Parks Canada, the Seal Island lighthouse is a designated federal heritage building.
“The Lighthouse is one of the best examples of a structure associated with the development of lighthouses in Atlantic Canada during the colonial period,” a description on Parks Canada’s website reads. “The fourth oldest lighthouse in Canada, it was constructed as a response to the many shipwrecks which occurred in and past the Bay of Fundy during the primacy of the Maritimes as a world shipping power.
“It is of strong regional importance because of its close association with the Hichen and Crowell families who founded Canada’s first life-saving station at this site.”
The Seal Island lighthouse in 1978. (Source: Seal Island Lighthouse Preservation Society)More than 7,400 people have signed the preservation society’s petition to save the lighthouse. McLaren said there is a divestiture program that allows groups to take over historic lighthouses, but she noted her group would need the DFO to bring the building to a certain standard before they would take it on.
McLaren, who has often taken the two-hour boat ride to Seal Island, says the land and the lighthouse are significant in Nova Scotia history.
“Honestly in my heart I hoped this would grab people’s attention because I think it does matter,” she said. “Most of the comments we get are from people concerned about losing history. (The petition) is growing. It certainly helps to show this does matter.
“History is important and if you let it go, it’s gone.”
For more Nova Scotia news visit our dedicated provincial page.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Trump returns to his campaign facing a warning of jail time if he violates a trial gag order
Donald Trump on Wednesday will use a one-day break from his hush money trial to rally voters in the battleground states of Wisconsin and Michigan, a day after he was held in contempt of court and threatened with jail time for violating a gag order.
Ontario woman surprised after 20-year-old fines suddenly tank credit score
An Ontario woman says that she was shocked when fines from 20 years ago suddenly tanked her credit score last week, but the situation may not be as unusual as it seems, according to at least one debt expert.
Anger can harm your blood vessel function, study shows
Stress and anger can have a negative impact on cardiovascular health, studies have shown. New research points to just how the mechanism may work.
Freeland leaves capital gains tax change out of coming budget implementation bill, here's why
Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland will be tabling yet another omnibus bill to pass a sweeping range of measures promised in her April 16 federal budget, though left out of the legislation will be the government's proposed capital gains tax change.
Swarm of bees delays Arizona Diamondbacks vs. Los Angeles game in Arizona. An 'MVP' beekeeper came to the rescue
Major League Baseball fans had an unexpected buzz on Tuesday after a swarm of bees delayed the Arizona Diamondbacks vs. Los Angeles Dodgers game for around two hours.
Newfoundland fisherman says police broke his leg during protest that delayed budget
Richard Martin is spending this year's fishing season on land after he says a Royal Newfoundland Constabulary officer broke his left leg in three places during a protest last month that shut down the provincial legislature.
A 98-year-old in Ukraine walked miles to safety from Russians, with slippers and a cane
A 98-year-old woman in Ukraine who escaped Russian-occupied territory by walking almost 10 kilometres (six miles) alone, wearing a pair of slippers and supported by a cane has been reunited with her family days after they were separated while fleeing to safety.
It's opening day for the $34B Trans Mountain oil pipeline expansion
Wednesday marks the official start date of the long-awaited $34-billion Trans Mountain oil pipeline expansion project.
Will an 'out of sight, out of mind' cellphone policy make a difference in Ontario schools?
Ontario’s cellphone ban in schools has been met with mixed reaction, with some teachers concerned about constant policing of kids and experts applauding the change as necessary for student learning.