The Cape North Lighthouse is a cylindrical lighthouse tower with a red and white checkerboard pattern that stood at Money Point, near Cape North,

Cape Breton Cape Breton Island (french: link=no, île du Cap-Breton, formerly '; gd, Ceap Breatainn or '; mic, Unamaꞌki) is an island on the Atlantic coast of North America and part of the province of Nova Scotia, Canada. The island accounts for 18. ...

from 1908 to 1980. While originally installed at

Cape Race Cape Race is a point of land located at the southeastern tip of the Avalon Peninsula on the island of Newfoundland, in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. Its name is thought to come from the original Portuguese name for this cape, "Raso", mea ...

Newfoundland Newfoundland and Labrador (; french: Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador; frequently abbreviated as NL) is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region ...

, this tower is most commonly referred to as the Cape North Lighthouse. It now stands landlocked at the

Canada Science and Technology Museum The Canada Science and Technology Museum (abbreviated as CSTM; french: Musée des sciences et de la technologie du Canada) is a national museum of science and technology in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. The museum has a mandate to preserve and promote ...

Ottawa, Ontario Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...

, Canada.

History and construction

The 29 meter tall lighthouse was first installed at Cape Race point in Newfoundland in 1856 by the British Government's

Trinity House "Three In One" , formation = , founding_location = Deptford, London, England , status = Royal Charter corporation and registered charity , purpose = Maintenance of lighthouses, buoys and beacons , he ...

, the official lighthouse authority for British waters. The lighthouse is constructed of 32 cast-iron plates joined together with bolts. This sectional, modular design was chosen to reduce the cost of building towers and to facilitate lighthouse construction in remote, inaccessible locations using local, unskilled labour. 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 A Fresnel lens ( ; ; or ) is a type of composite compact lens developed by the French physicist Augustin-Jean Fresnel (1788–1827) for use in lighthouses. It has been called "the invention that saved a million ships." The design allows the c ...

, made by

Chance Brothers Chance Brothers and Company was a glassworks originally based in Spon Lane, Smethwick, West Midlands (formerly in Staffordshire), in England. It was a leading glass manufacturer and a pioneer of British glassmaking technology. The Chance fami ...

in England. The lens floats in a bed of

mercury Mercury commonly refers to: * Mercury (planet), the nearest planet to the Sun * Mercury (element), a metallic chemical element with the symbol Hg * Mercury (mythology), a Roman god Mercury or The Mercury may also refer to: Companies * Merc ...

, 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.

Relocation to Ottawa

In 1980, the Cape North Lighthouse, due to be replaced with more up-to-date technology, was acquired from the

Canadian Coast Guard The Canadian Coast Guard (CCG; french: links=no, Garde côtière canadienne, GCC) is the coast guard of Canada. Formed in 1962, the coast guard is tasked with marine search and rescue (SAR), communication, navigation, and transportation issues in ...

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. The museum offers guided tours of the lighthouse during summer months. 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.Summer quake spilled mercury at Ottawa museum"
, CTV News, November 15, 2010, accessed August 8, 2011 The lighthouse has since reopened to the public.

References

External links

Cape North Lighthouse

Undated image of the Cape North Lighthouse at Money Point, Cape Breton

Aids to Navigation
''Canadian Coast Guard'' {{authority control Lighthouses completed in 1856 Lighthouses in Newfoundland and Labrador Lighthouses in Nova Scotia Lighthouse museums in Canada Museums in Ottawa